How to 'number our days' (3)
Aspects of 'orientated prayer'
Peter Carruthers
In the second article in this series, I proposed that a key to ‘numbering our days’ is to practice ‘orientated prayer’. Here I address some aspects of what this might look like, ie how to put it into practice.
Petitionary
In all traditions, but especially where prayer, both corporate and private, is primarily understood as extempore, it is very easy to privilege petitionary prayer, even to lapse into ‘shopping-list’ mode, to ask God to fix everything that is wrong in our lives and in the world, and to use prayer to unburden ourselves of the things that are worrying and distressing us.
Certainly, we are to bring our cares and concerns to the Lord, as our first resort. Peter urges us to cast our anxieties on God because He cares for us (1 Peter 5:7). Paul tells not to be anxious, but rather to bring our requests to God with prayer, supplication and thanksgiving (Philippians 4:6). James exhorts anyone who is suffering to pray (James 5:13).
However, as with any prayer, petitionary prayer must be guided by scripture and the Holy Spirit, and not simply by our own needs and desires. “Prayer is an art which only the Spirit can teach us. He is the giver of all prayer. Pray for prayer - pray till you can pray.” (C H Spurgeon, 1834-1892). We are weak, said Paul, and do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Holy Spirit helps us (even, mysteriously, doing the praying for us).
Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God. (Romans 8:26-27)
The heart of petitionary prayer (and all prayer) is that it is ‘orientated’ - towards our Father in Heaven and His Kingdom and His will, not ours (Matthew 6:9-10; 22:42).
Evagrius of Pontus (345-399) warned against pressing one’s own agenda too far.
“Do not pray that your own will be done, for your will may not accord with the will of God. But pray as you have been taught saying: Thy will be done in me (Luke 22:42). Always entreat Him in this way - that His will be done. For He desires what is good and profitable for you, whereas you do not always ask for this.
“Often in my prayers, I have asked for what I thought was good, and persisted in my petition, stupidly trying to force the will of God, instead of leaving him to arrange things as he knows best. But afterwards, on obtaining what I asked for I was very sorry that I did not pray rather for God’s will to be done; because the thing turned out to be different from what I had expected.”
Extempore and liturgical
Petitionary prayer is, however, only part of what ‘orientated prayer’ is meant to be.
In the time of Jesus and the early church, prayer was both extempore and liturgical. In Acts, we read of the believers’ extempore prayers in the upper room (eg Acts 1:14, 4:24-31), and their participation in the liturgical prayers of Israel in the Temple (Acts 2:46, 3:1) and the synagogue (Acts 13:14, 17:1-2). That these practices continued after the apostolic age is evident in the documents of the early church.
Mystical and contemplative
There is also a ‘mystical’ thread running through the OT, especially the Psalms (Israel’s and the Church’s essential prayer and hymn book), the NT, and the experience and writings of Christian divines throughout history, right up to our own time.
In the simplest (and ‘safest’) sense, Christian mysticism is a loving awareness and direct knowledge of God, and mystical theology is personal experience of God and reflection on it.1 ‘Mystical prayer’ (‘or contemplative prayer’) refers to the experience of being and remaining in the Lord’s presence, arising from an always deepening relationship, fellowship, communion, and intimacy with Him.2
Russian Orthodox bishop, Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh (1914-2003), described how prayer is an encounter and a relationship.
It is very important to remember that prayer is an encounter and a relationship, a relationship which is deep, and this relationship cannot be forced either on us or on God. The fact that God can make Himself present or can leave us with the sense of His absence is part of this live and real relationship. If we could mechanically draw Him into an encounter, force Him to meet us, simply because we have chosen this moment to meet Him, there would be no relationship and no encounter. We can do that with an image, with the imagination, with the various idols we can put in front of us instead of God; we can do nothing of the sort with the living God, any more than we can do it with a living person.3
If Martha represents petitionary prayer and action, Mary represents mystical prayer and contemplation. They are sisters. Jesus loved both of them. Both were needed to run the house. But, as He said, Mary “chose that good part” (Luke 10:38-42).
C H Spurgeon was a man of many words, had much to say about prayer, and published many lengthy prayers. But, he urged, “when you are before the Lord; let your words be few, but let your heart be fervent”. For Spurgeon, prayer was an essential and powerful encounter with God, which imparted strength and energy for the spiritual battle.
“Prayer plumes the wings of God’s young eaglets so that they may learn to mount above the clouds. Prayer brings inner strength to God’s warriors and sends them forth to spiritual battle with their muscles firm and their armour in place.”
Penitential
Orientated prayer is also penitential.
For example, in Isaiah 6, we read how the prophet’s encounter with the Lord in the Temple in all his glory prompted his prayer of confession and contrition.
Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts. (Isaiah 6:5)
For the writer of Psalm 73, perplexed and envious of the apparent ease and prosperity of the wicked and the seeming futility of being good (Psalm 73:2-14), it was only when he “went into the sanctuary of God that he understood their end” (Psalm 73:17). This prompted penitence and confession, acknowledgment of God’s enduring love , and declaration of his trust in Him (Psalm 73:18-28).
Prophetic
Finally, orientated prayer is prophetic. The Song of Simeon is a prophetic prayer, arising from revelation in the Temple (Luke 2:25-35). In Daniel 9, we see how, paradoxically, once the prophet sees what the will of the Lord is, he prays it into being.
Fervent prayer does not go unnoticed
I conclude with some words of warning. Reflecting the ideas above, one writer describes prayer as, “communion with God, entering into the heavenly age to come, and abiding with the saints”. But, he goes on, “because prayer is powerful, the enemy opposes. Therefore, it comes with a struggle. We are attacked with acedia to stop prayer and sever us from communion with God”.
Following his exhortation to cast all our cares on the Lord, Peter goes on to warn us that our prayers do not go unchallenged. We are, he urges, to be sober and watchful.
Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith. (1 Peter 5:6-9)
Hillyer, P N. 1988. Mystical theology. In: Ferguson, S B & Wright, D F. New Dictionary of Theology. p 448. IVP, Leicester.
Conservative evangelicals are wary of mystical theology and contemplative prayer. In some ways this is paradoxical, because a core tenet of evangelicalism is ‘knowing God personally’ and not just via propositions, church institutions and religious practices. Coming to faith is for most evangelicals traceable to a specific ‘experience’ of God. Nevertheless, some of the caution is justified. Contemporary (and indeed historical) mystical and contemplative spiritualities and practices have ‘blurry’ boundaries and present dangers of individualism, syncretism, heresy, deception etc. As this writer put it: “there’s a lot of weird stuff out there that gets a pass under guise of being spirituality. And this is not a new thing; there’s been weird and heretical mystical stuff being taught since the first century.” For this author, the ‘three issues burning today for evangelical mysticism are Quietism, New-Age occultism, and Universalism’. There is a need for discernment. Approach with care, but don’t ‘throw out the baby with the bath water’!
Archbishop Anthony Bloom. 1970. School for prayer. p 2. Libra Books, London.
I agree, a timely reminder
Thank you Peter for another excellent article. Very helpful and reminds me prayer is more a spiritual conversation and relationship than a duty.