Pray for Your Persecutors

In Matthew 5, we are told "“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect." (Matthew 5:43-48)

Now in this passage, I want to zero in on the part on prayer (conveniently bolded).

We are to pray for those who persecute us. Pray for. 

Jesus did not command us to pray against our enemies.

We are not ordered to pray for their destruction or downfall, but to pray for them.

What kinds of prayers do you like people to pray for you? 

-Prayers to draw closer to God? good.

-Prayers to reject pride and act with humility? good.

-Prayers to follow God's will and be receptive to His teaching and guidance? good.

Pray those for them. 

New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Pray by Listening

 Take a moment and listen. What do you hear? 

The TV? Turn it off.

The radio? Also turn it off. 

Cell phone notifications? Switch it to do not disturb.

Listen. 

Not to the to do list in your head.

Not to the hate and fear the news companies push.

Not to world pushing what it says will satisfy you.

But listen.

To the Holy Spirit.

To its promptings.

To its leading.

Ask a question and then listen for the answer. 

The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence

Have you ever procrastinated reading a book because you thought it would be long and difficult, only to discover it's only an 1 hour and 15 minute audiobook? 

That happened to me when I read The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence.

What struck me when I listened to this book was how gracious Brother Lawrence was to himself when he got sidetracked and forgot to spend time in God's presence while going about his tasks. He didn't belittle, berate, or lecture himself, but was grateful that he was now reminded to practice the presence of God once again. 

As a recovering perfectionist, I was floored by his response to his "failure". 

He didn't teach us how we can avoid getting distracted and perfectly practice the presence of God, but he showed us how to get back on track when we are aware that we have wandered away from God. 

I encourage you to read his book and then start to practice being in the presence of God throughout the day. As we intentionally spend time in God's presence, we will find that we are talking to God and listening to God as we go about our tasks. 

Praying with the Bells

Most summers, I dust off my copy of a prayer book that provides morning, midday, evening, and night prayers and do my best to pray at the proper time (6-9, 11-2, 5-8, and bedtime) as I try to show myself grace for the times I am busy or just simply forget. 

This summer, while I haven't brought out my summer prayer book, I have been structuring my day around bells as I volunteer on a farm at a Catholic college. As the bells toll, I use them as a reminder to drink water, but I hope to also cultivate the practice of praying when the bells chime.

I work at a school during the school year and I hear a lot of bells. Each class is dismissed and started by a bell, with a 1-minute warning bell thrown in for good measure, so over the course of my day, I hear over 30 bells. What if I used these bells as a prompt to pray? Not long, elaborate, showy prayers, but simple, silent, one-sentence prayers.

-God, I ask for wisdom for my job.

-Lord, show these children Your love.

-Jesus, may I show Your peace to those I interact with today.

-Spirit, give me Your words to say when someone is suffering.  

30+ opportunities to pray.

30+ reminders to intercede for those in my line of sight.

30+ moments to refocus on God.

Praying using a Prayer Map

Let us pray using a map...

...of our city: what is happening in our city? 

...of our state: what is happening in our state?

...of our country: what is happening in our country?  

...of our continent: what is happening in our continent?

...of the other continents: what is happening in the other continents? 

What good things are happening that we can praise God for? 

What things are concerning or frightening us? 

What natural disasters have struck people? 

What man-made disasters are people struggling with? 

How can we pray for people in different religions?  

How can we pray for people in different jobs?

How can we pray for people in different governments and economies? 

How can we use color on our maps? 

Make a color chart to pray for different things. 

Red: natural disaster

Orange: man-made disaster

Green: Praise

etc.

Pray in New Positions

As we study the Bible this year, let us note the physical positions of those praying in the Bible. (A quick online search will show a sampling of the positions of prayers in the Bible)

Is there a position for petitioning and interceding?

Is there a position for praising and worshipping? 

What position were we unfamiliar with? 

Which position of prayer resonates with us? 

Which position of pray makes us uncomfortable? 

Praying the Bible's Prayers

As we study the Bible this year, let us note the prayers of the Bible. (A quick online search will show a collection of prayers in the Bible)

How does the person praying praise God in the prayer? 

How does the person praying petition God in the prayer? 

How does the person praying vent to God in the prayer?  

What aspects of the Bible's prayers resonate with us? 

What aspects of the Bible's prayers make us uncomfortable?