prayer quotes from John Wesley's Plain Account of Christian Perfection:
"(5.) God hardly gives his Spirit even to those whom he has established in grace, if they do not pray for it on all occasions, not only once, but many times.
"God does nothing but in answer to prayer; and even they who have been converted to God without praying for it themselves, (which is exceeding rare,) were not without the prayers of others. Every new victory which a soul gains is the effect of a new prayer.
In the greatest temptations, a single look to Christ, and the barely pronouncing his name, suffices to overcome the wicked one, so it be done with confidence and calmness of spirit.
Whether we think of; or speak to, God, whether we act or suffer for him, all is prayer, when we have no other object than his love, and the desire of pleasing him.
"All that a Christian does, even in eating and sleeping, is prayer, when it is done in simplicity, according to the order of God, without either adding to or diminishing from it by his own choice.
"Prayer continues in the desire of the heart, though the understanding be employed on outward things.
"In souls filled with love, the desire to please God is a continual prayer.
"As the furious hate which the devil bears us is termed the roaring of a lion, so our vehement love may be termed crying after God.
"Confessing is not the same as lamenting. Perhaps we deprive ourselves of in-depth cleansing because we only confess our sins, but do not lament them."
- G. Hassell Bullock
(add to the hymn that includes "now my foul revolt deplore" or some such)
learning to pray from the Psalmist
borrowing directly from the structures the Psalmist used -- e.g., the step by step "lament" structure found in Osborne (as well as the corresponding thanksgiving structure)
perhaps a clip or two from War Room to help illustrate some things about prayer -- I'm thinking especially just now of keeping some record of answered prayers
parallelism of Psalm 25:1 and your dad's note in his copy of the Psalms indicating the implied connection between trust/faith and prayer
For Psalm 13, when they psalmist plaintively asks, how long, direct their attention to the knocking, nagging widow. Invite them to recall some matter of ongoing deed and prayer for you, and ask the Lord again for that matter, saying how long, and knocking as you do it. Perhaps make a habit of knocking each time you pray about that matter, and let the gesture be a reminder to you that this is an active persevering faith and obedience on your part.
Identify all of the Psalms where the psalmist asks, how long? Over the course of those instances, explore not only the knocking above, but also the child's question in the backseat of the car as emblematic of our fundamental human need for desire to know how long. Also, acknowledge that many of us feel we could endure almost anything if we could just know when it would end, or even that it would end.
In Psalm 6, we hear the Psalmist ask the Lord, "How long?" (This is the first of numerous times in the Book of Psalms when we will hear the Psalmist ask that question of God.) Have you asked that question of the Lord in the past? If so, how was your question answered and when? Is there a situation in the present about which you want to ask the Lord, "How long?" Name that situation, and follow the Psalmist's lead in praying about it.
Is this being impatient? Is some impatience good?
types of prayers
different titles for God
what we say to our souls
non-personal memories
affirmations / expressions of trust
questions
complaining
recurring fundamentals over the year
designed for increasing depth/growth
Some exercises to consider for the weekly booklets:
· rewrite the Psalm in your own words
· what was the Psalmist feeling? when have you felt the same way?
· what was the Psalmist experiencing? when have you experienced something similar?
· what does the Psalmist teach us about God, or faith, or trouble, or prayer?
Themes:
· learning how to confess
· learning how to ask
· learning how to complain
· learning how to praise
· learning how to thank
· learning how to pray for enemies
· the importance of crying out candidly
· the importance of affirming what you believe to be true in the face of any circumstance
· distinguishing between “fact” and “truth”
· distinguishing between feelings and knowledge
· distinguishing between circumstances and promise/hope
· when my situation does not seem to square with God’s character or will
· toggling between 2nd person and 3rd person references to God
· toggling between addressing God and addressing self and addressing other humans (who?)
· the importance of what things we say to ourselves in prayer
- Week 52: 148, 149, 150
Read Psalm 1. This Psalm is not a prayer in the sense of being addressed to God. It is, however, an affirmation of how things work under God. It is important for the people of God to affirm -- to articulate and say aloud -- the things that are true.
Read Psalm 1 again, but this time read it aloud. Read it aloud in the same tone of voice with which you would make some other statement about which you are certain and passionate -- e.g., why this season or that your favorite season of the year.
Read Psalm 1 one verse at a time. After each verse, pause to pray, with these questions in mind:
- Is there anything here for which I should thank or praise the Lord?
- Is there anything for which this prompts me to repent?
- Is there a commitment to the Lord that I should make in response to this verse?
Read Psalm 2. Like Psalm 1, Psalm 2 is not a traditional prayer in the sense of being addressed to God. Yet, again, it affirms truths about God and the world. At the end of every three verses of Psalm 2, say to God in prayer what you understand is the truth being affirmed in those verses.
Read Psalm 2 again, watching for reasons to praise and thank God in the Psalm. Give expression to that thanks and praise.
Intercessory prayer is asking God to intervene in some situation where it seems that His will is not being done. Read Psalm 2 prayerfully, watching for anything that prompts you to intercessory prayer.
Read Psalm 3. The Psalmist begins by crying out to God about how many enemies or foes he has. According to tradition, the Psalm came out of the time when David was usurped by his son Absalom. That suggests that he felt like he had enemies at several levels: military, political, and personal. Not every enemy draws a sword or a gun against you. Some may only use their tongues. Some enemies -- that is, things that threaten us -- aren't even people, at all; they are disease or fear, pain or temptation, and more. Make a list of some of the enemies that you have had in the past, as well as any enemies you feel you have in the present. Pray through Psalm 3 in a personal way, and make specific reference to some of those past and present enemies where it is appropriate in the prayer.
While the Psalmist feels surrounded by enemies, he doesn't spend much time describing them in this particular Psalm. He does, on the other hand, make a number of definitive statements about God. That can be hard to do -- to focus on God when there are threatening and frightening circumstances on every side. Read Psalm 3 again, and list the things that the Psalmist declares and affirms about God in Psalm 3. Rewrite those affirmations in your own words and according to your own experience.
Psalm 3 seems to be written out of present crisis, yet the Psalmist makes reference to past experiences of divine help and salvation. What past experiences of God's faithfulness and care should you deliberately recall today in the face of whatever troubles or challenges you may be facing?
While the entire context of Psalm 3 suggests the need for help, verse 7 is the only explicit moment where the Psalmist specifically expresses his cry for God to help him. How is the Psalmist's approach in Psalm 3 exemplary for you in terms of how you should pray when you need the Lord's help.
WEEK 52 |
psalms this week |
"Confessing is not the same as lamenting. Perhaps we deprive ourselves of in-depth cleansing because we only confess our sins, but do not lament them." |
Psalms 148, 149, and 150
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introduction to the Series
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Most of what we learn how to do, we learn from other people. Sometimes it is the learning that comes from specific and deliberate instruction. At other times it is the learning that comes by way of example and imitation. During 2023, our endeavor is to learn how to pray from the Psalmist.*
The Book of Psalms is the longest book in the Bible, and it is mostly a book of prayers. We will spend the year going through the book, beginning to end, and letting the Psalmist teach us by example how to pray. |
In this endeavor, we cannot benefit from his deliberate instruction, of course. What we can do, however, is take full advantage of his example. We will observe how he prays, and we will learn to imitate him.
Our approach will be week by week. The recommended practices and exercises are not daily, but rather suggestions for an individual to implement throughout the whole week. |
Exercises for this week
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Psalm 148
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Psalm 149
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Psalm 150
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Read Psalm 150. The concluding Psalm in the entire collection is, appropriately, a Psalm of praise. Once more, let us begin by thinking through the Psalm carefully using the pertinent journalist's questions:
Read verse 2 in a variety of translations in order to gain a full sense for the meaning. Then:
Verses 3-5 suggest a musical ensemble, as well as dance:
The invitation or command to praise occurs 13 times in this brief Psalm. All but one of them (the first occurrence in verse 6) is written in the plural.
Read Matthew 12:28-30. Praise and love typically go together.
Talk to the Lord about what the Psalmist teaches you about praise. Praise the Lord! |
* We will refer to the author as “the Psalmist,” though of course not all of the Psalms were written by the same person. A significant number are attributed to David. Others are associated with Asaph, the sons of Korah, and an assortment of other individuals. Also, several dozen Psalms have no name attached to them. For the sake of ease and uniformity, we will simply refer to “the Psalmist.”