Knock, Knock
(a sermon on Luke 11:1-13)
“I
would rather live in a world surrounded by mystery than live in a world so
small that my mind could comprehend it.”
―
Harry Fosdick
Prayer
is nearly too mysterious for words. So as to get out of the way as much as
possible, I’m going to give you space and time to listen to something other
than my voice and ideas this morning. That’s another way of saying that I’m
going to ask you to pray this sermon about prayer with me.
We’re
taking a field trip to the Prayer Café. Before you go, we must have a signed
permission slip and waiver from everyone.
Permission Slip
I
hereby give permission for me to visit the Prayer Café. I acknowledge that,
even though the Prayer Café has an unlimited menu, there are times when my
order will arrive at times other than I expected, times when it will look
nothing like what I ordered, times when I will want to send it back because
accepting it requires me to take risks with which I am not at all comfortable,
times when my order doesn’t arrive at all, but never will I leave unfed. I also
acknowledge that, despite my frequent misgivings and doubts, the best meals
usually come when I ask the waiter to bring me “Today’s Special” because that’s
what helps me to realize that tomorrow is also. ______________________________
(signature)
The Menu
We’re
all too used to having everything spelled out clearly, so we can understand it,
which is why prayer is so difficult for us. This morning, just to ease your
anxiety, I have printed menus. Take a look at them now, and, when you hear or
taste something that your ears or taste buds can’t quite identify, feel free to
refer back to your menu.
Prayer Café Menu
(Not only are all welcome
here, but all ARE here, whether they or we notice it or not. In fact, there is
no “they” and “we.” Look at the wordle of Jesus’ prayer, if you doubt that.)
Appetizer: “Warning” – a dish of
humility that comes from the Prayer Café’s garden of mystery.
Salad: “Prayer Poet” – a blending
of flavors connecting prayer to the poets.
Veggies: “Questions” – fiber and
vitamin-filled truth about the Prayer Café’s reason for existence.
Luke’s Dish: “The Prayer of Our Savior
in Questions” – catch of the day, freshly grilled with the punctuation that
best complements all of the dishes from the Prayer Café, prepared and shared
from our guest chef, Maren Tirabassi.
Dessert: “Bolder Dash” – a
bittersweet (dark chocolate) reminder that the Prayer Café is open 24/7 and
nothing is above or beyond request on the menu.
Here's your first course:
Appetizer: “Warning”
I
am less certain about
HOW
prayer works;
more
certain THAT it works.
I’m
not sure about
the
forms it takes;
more
sure that it takes many forms.
I
can’t say that
I
always recognize prayer’s answer;
but
I can say that
I
often hear its questions.
I
won’t claim that
I
can answer its inquiries;
but
letting them roam the house
is
a surefire way to create circulation.
-------------------------
Salad: “Prayer Poet”
The
psalmists knew very well
how
carefully loaded phrases
strung
together in surprising ways
can
be explosive in both
hopeful
and dangerous ways;
how
hurling guttural truth
toward
the heavens changes
the
world in ways we can
neither
explain nor predict;
how
leaving wide margins
of
blank silence leaves room
for
the other voice to speak.
The
pieces that both come from
and
travel to the deepest places
often
begin with empty lines,
which
represent the ways
we
duct-tape the voices in our head
long
enough to hear the one in our heart.
Those
are the ones asking us
questions
which most need answering;
questions
that all creation asks daily;
questions
that weave us into
the
tapestry of history and hope.
-------------------------
Veggies (your favorites, of course): “Questions”
The
essence of prayer is really
quite
simple. At its core, prayer is
a
rhythmic reminder that all conversation
is
opportunity to both speak to God
and
listen for God’s guidance.
All
seeking and striving are interactions
between
our own wills/understandings,
and
God’s creative purposes.
When
we turn it into a laundry list,
imploring
God to remove all stains
from
our emotional wardrobes;
when
we use it as a detailed honey-do list
for
God to generate our pleasure and happiness;
when
we wield it to ward off pain and suffering,
we
have missed its purposes altogether.
Imagine
finding a pile of precisely mitered
pieces
of wood, along with a variety
of
tools and fasteners at your disposal.
Or if you're less of a workshop kind of person
and more of a cook, imagine a pantry full
of fresh ingredients and a drawer full
of all sorts of pots and pans with which
to create a yet-to-be-determined dish.
Was
this collection designed
to
be connected or combined in a way that
would
accomplish some purpose?
If
so, what?
When
you find yourself attaching one piece
to
another or mixing one ingredient with another,
slowly, over the course of many years,
do
you dream of what it could one day become?
Do
you have a picture of completeness in your mind?
Now
imagine yourself coming to the realization
that
you know the one who not only
created
the pieces of wood and fasteners
and that pantry full of ingredients and pans
that
are within your reach and influence,
but
also created everything else
that
was, is, and will ever be.
What
if you had a chance every day –
all
day long – to listen for questions
about
how you are choosing to connect
the
pieces, or combine the ingredients,
creating something with this collection?
What
if you had the opportunity to offer up
what
you’ve already constructed/combined to the one
whose
grand design is Love itself?
Would
you want to know how your pieces or ingredients
fit
with the rest, and how you might rearrange
or
reconstruct what you once imagined,
so
that it complements all of the rest;
so
that your pieces and ingredients find their way
into
the whole, and maybe even the holy?
Yeah,
that listening and conversation
are
how prayer is designed to function;
opening
us to see and be answers
to
the deepest questions and needs
planted
in the universe’s heart.
-----------------
Luke’s Dish: “The Prayer of Our Savior
in Questions” by Maren Tirabassi
O
God where are you?
Are
you in heaven or here with us?
If
you are here, look around – do something.
Are
you “ours” or everyone’s God?
Are
you as tender as a parent …
as
dangerous as a parent?
How
can we make your name holy
or
make it holy again when it has been abused,
used
to justify every kind of harm?
Where
is the laundry for your name?
Why
don’t we recognize your will?
How
do we bring about your peaceable realm?
Can
we trust you with our daily needs
and
live free of planning?
Will
you teach us to be forgiving …
for
their sake and our sake?
How
do we walk away from temptation –
one
step, twelve steps?
And
is ‘deliver us from evil’
the
kind of delivery
that
means someone is being born?
What
is the future? Can you really help us?
How
can we reflect your glory?
When
is … forever
and
what do you want us to do
with
our lives now? Amen
------------------
Dessert: “Bolder Dash”
Fear
assaults halls of prayer,
intimidates
with balderdash,
“What
good is petition
if
it doesn’t come true?”
Reason
peeks from behind Anxiety,
calculates
known sequencing,
concurs
with Fear’s assessment,
“Not
very likely to happen.”
Faith
blows in from four corners,
laughs
at the absurdity,
“Prayer
isn’t an exercise in probability;
but
rather one of possibility.”
Hope
musters up from the deeps,
rolls
away the stone of doubt,
“It’s
not really prayer until
it
approaches the preposterous!”
Courage
starches the sails,
squeezes
adrenal glands,
“Now
is not the time for timidity;
it’s
time to make a bolder dash.”
Dove
descends in fire and cloud,
voice
of gentle thunder,
“Unleash
your wildest prayers of healing
for
those whose faith and hope are fading!”
Ours
is not the task
to
determine what will or won’t,
but
to fiercely ask for what we need
and
wholly trust the holy Giver.
---------------
