Church on its Knees

So where do we go from here? We all know that prayer is a fundamental part of our relationship with God as Father, Son, and Spirit. We all acknowledge that prayer is a dialogue with God that requires us both to open up to God and to listen for his voice in our lives. We all know that without prayer, we will lose our focus on God.

And so, I invite you to join me on a journey. Starting in November, we will be having a monthly prayer meeting here at Knox where we will pray for each other, the church, and the world. The first meeting will take place on Sunday November 17^th from 9:00 – 9:45 a.m. and we meet on the third Sunday of the month moving forward. All are welcome to join me as we grow together as a community through prayer. That said, I do realize that a prayer meeting is not for everyone. We all pray in different ways so I do not want to exclude people from being connected to the church through prayer, so if you are not interested in attending a prayer meeting, but would still like to be engaged in this ministry please let me know. Please let me know by phone or email (aka not after worship today!) so that I can have a list of people who are interested and we can determine the best way forward. 

I know that prayer works. I have felt the power of prayer in my life, especially in the last year as I completed my studies and sought a call in a congregation. There is an invisible cloud of witnesses who have been praying for me to discern the right place for me to serve. Family. Friends. Classmates. Members of my extended church family. And I know that there have been people praying in this congregation for some time to find the right minister. I know that God has called me here in your midst for a purpose. And so we are going to P.U.S.H. – pray until something happens –to pray for God’s spirit to move through us as we see what exciting things God has in store for us.

Yours in Christ, Emma. 

 

 

Praying through Song

One of the things that I love doing when preparing for worship is picking the hymns. Music is an important part of my life and faith and so I know how important music is as we worship our triune God. Music can also help us as we pray. Both the words of beloved hymns and the tunes can lift us up as we pray to God. William P. Merrill said that “there is nothing in the world so much like prayer as music is.” And I agree with him 100%!

If you think about your favorite hymns, you will find many direct and indirect references to prayer. These indirect references can be found when we think about the P.R.A.Y. acronym (praise, repent, another, yourself). When we sing a song of praise at the beginning of the service, it is a prayer of thanksgiving for all that God has done for us. When we sing a song of discipleship at the end of the service, it is a prayer both for ourselves and for others.

The final part in my sermon series on prayer will be tomorrow and we will be talking about the acronym P.U.S.H.  – pray until something happens. Even though we do not know God’s plan for our lives and our world, Jesus encourages us to pray continuously and not to give up hope. The closing hymn that we will be singing tomorrow is a prayer of praise because of the hope that we have in Jesus Christ. It is one of my favorite hymns and it is called “My hope is built on nothing less.”  Here are the words for this song:

My hope is built on nothing less
than Jesus' blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
but wholly lean on Jesus' name.

Refrain:
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
all other ground is sinking sand;
all other ground is sinking sand.

When darkness seems to hide his face,
I rest on his unchanging grace;
in every high and stormy gale,
my anchor holds within the veil. [Refrain]

His oath, his covenant, his blood
support me in the whelming flood;
when all around my soul gives way,
he then is all my hope and stay. [Refrain]

When he shall come with trumpet sound,
O may I then in him be found,
dressed in his righteousness alone,
faultless to stand before the throne. [Refrain]

Yours in Christ, Emma.

P.S. Here’s a link to the song on YouTube. (We’re singing a different tune tomorrow…)

Resting in God

Today has been a day of rest for me, so my apologies for posting on the blog so late in the day! This day of rest included doing errands, having lunch with an old friend, and enjoying dinner with my family and church family. It may not sound restful to some of you, but it was for me! 

When we rest in God through prayer, it is very different kind of resting.  It brings peace and comfort because we lift up our cares to God. This can be scary because it involves trusting in God’s divine will for us. Our resting in God means that we have given up control of our lives to the creator of the universe. 

One of my favourite stories from the Old Testament about trusting God can be found in the book of Ruth. The story of Ruth and Naomi is not a happy one. These three women – Naomi and her 2 daughter-in-laws, Ruth and Orpah - were brought together by marriage and bound together by tragedy. When tragedy struck, it struck completely and harshly through the loss of their husbands and because of a famine in their land. In their patriarchal society, the loss of their husbands made them social outcasts. They went to the end of the line. They became nobodies. 

Naomi tried to send her daughter-in-laws away, but Ruth refused. She told her ‘wherever you go I will go and wherever you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. (Ruth 1:16) By staying with Naomi, Ruth was taking a huge risk.

But God was with them and provided for them. As a dutiful daughter of both of Naomi and God, Ruth found rest in God because of her ability to trust in Him.

Yours in Christ, Emma.

Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Matthew 11:28