Last week I struggled to utter prayers about our children. I had many thoughts bouncing around in my head but somehow could not put them into words. I found it distressing and felt like my lips were being held close. But I was reminded of Romans 8:26, which tells me even when I don’t know or can’t articulate what is in my heart, the Holy Spirit intercedes on my behalf. It doesn’t mean I can stop saying prayers, but it is good to know when we struggle, the Holy Spirit is with us, even talking on our behalf.
   
My thoughts were linked to school graduations occurring across this country. I had grandchildren, nieces and nephews who reached the next step in their life. Some graduated college, high school, middle school and even kindergarten. I was pleased for them, but my heart was burdened because of the world they were entering, a world that pushed them to ignore thoughts about the image they were created in and pursue an identity based on sexuality, materialism, and self-gratification. It punishes them for not buying into the idea that they were created male or female and yells they will only be accepted if they identify as something else. They are being taught that if they disagree and have an opinion that differs from others, they must remain quiet or feel the wrath of those who will try to destroy their life and lively hood. Suicide amongst young people is on the rise because of the confusion and anxieties they face. Sadly, those who are confused and struggle with all the changes in the world are judged by a community that allegedly pursues the love of God and neighbour.  

Parents, grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, and neighbours, pray for our children and love them. Here is a guide to praying for our children. Print it off and place it in your bible or stick it to your refrigerator or where you seek solitude with God. Continually bring them before God.  

First, direct your conversation to God.
Lament is not directed toward our enemies, toward our suffering, or toward our pain. We direct our conversation to God, the One who hears us. It acknowledges God’s sovereignty in all things, and He is the One in control.
 
Second, describe your suffering and your pain to Him
The Lord knows our deepest innermost thoughts, but we should make it a point to tell Him what we are feeling! How angry are we about the pain we are experiencing? How frustrated we are that He seems to be silent?

Thirdly, depend on Christ for your help and your hope
We don’t simply pour our sorrows and pain before God and end there. Instead, we then turn to the gospel of Christ to find help and hope in our suffering. We turn a corner, begin to speak the gospel of peace and hope to ourselves, and turn to Jesus and ask Him for comfort, for His perspective, and for Him to act.

In the Bible, lament isn’t about blame, or anger. 

Lament is when we acknowledge, in grief and pain, that there’s no getting back what we’ve lost. 
Our fixes haven’t worked.
Our world will never be the same again. 
We’ve all lost by what’s happened during the Covid-19 crisis, whether or not we’ve been ill or bereaved. 
We’ve lost work opportunities, the company of friends and family, the ordinary privilege of doing what we like. 
Perhaps most of all, we’ve lost the illusion of invulnerability.
The idea that life will just keep getting better, because scientists and technicians will always keep us safe, healthy and comfortable, turns out not to be true. 
These have been dark times, and it’s right to acknowledge that without joining in those calls for someone to take the blame for it.

We shouldn’t try to be cheerful, or to peddle a false optimism about COVID 
We shouldn’t pretend we can soon, if at all, go back to how things used to be. 

But we are also people of hope, because we follow a crucified and risen Saviour. 
We’re familiar with the sadness of Good Friday and Holy Saturday, when hope seemed buried in the tomb; but we also know the rejoicing of Easter Sunday, when Christ rose from the dead. So for us, lament is not the same as despair.
Our hope, though, doesn’t rest on human skills or achievements. 
But so is hope, grounded in a faithful God. 
We want to move forward to be part of the mission God has called us to.
We want to look at where he wants to lead us and what plans he has for our church family.
But we have to acknowledge the damage COVID did to us and the church, talk with God about it and be ready to move forward.

I read these verses on Pastor Carols O’Donnell’s Facebook page, do join me in speaking them into our lives.

Give praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! He is the Father who gives tender love. All comfort comes from Him. 
 
He comforts us in all our troubles. 
Now we can comfort others when they are in trouble. 
We ourselves have received comfort from God. 
 
We share the sufferings of Christ. 
We also share His comfort. 
If we are having trouble, it is so that you will be comforted and renewed. 
If we are comforted, it is so that you will be comforted. 
Then you will be able to put up with the same suffering we have gone through. 
 
Our hope for you remains firm. We know that you suffer just as we do. In the same way, God comforts you just as He comforts us. 
 
Brothers and sisters, we want you to know about the hard times we suffered during COVID  
We were having a lot of trouble. 
It was far more than some could stand. 
We even thought we were going to die. 
 
In fact, in our hearts we felt as if we were under the sentence of death. But that happened so that we would not depend on ourselves but on God. He raises the dead to life. 
 
God has saved us from deadly dangers. And He will continue to do it. We have put our hope in Him. He will continue to save us. 

And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 

But when you pray, go into your room, close the door, and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.”  Matthew 6:5-8

Prayer is something that we are all familiar with, but are we familiar enough with prayer or is it possible that we have become too familiar with prayer. I believe there are instances in our lives where both are true. Many times, prayer has become so friendly that we aren’t earnest enough in it, and then there are times when we feel so inadequate. Whatever the circumstance, I am confident that we all could improve regarding our prayer life. 

As you study the life of Christ, it is quickly evident that He was committed to prayer. He enjoyed an unhindered fellowship with the Father and was in continual communication with Him through prayer. In our text, Jesus addresses various attitudes of prayer, two of which are unacceptable, and one will be heard and answered. 

Jesus had witnessed those who loved to offer prayers in public places. They wanted to ensure that others would see them as they prayed and heard the words they offered. They were not interested in getting in touch with the Lord or even having their prayers answered; they desired the recognition of men. There was no depth or substance to their prayers. They were only offered for show and recognition.

This is not a condemnation of public prayer. Jesus is not teaching that we should never pray audibly in the presence of others. Public prayer can be an effective witness for the Lord. When offered from a pure heart, we can display our faith before others as we pray. The difference lies within the motive. If we are offering a public prayer in sincerity, God will hear that prayer. If it is offered to receive the recognition and praise of others, it is nothing more than words uttered from our lips. There is something within the nature of man that desires praise. If we aren’t careful, we will seek to pray in a way that pleases others rather than making our requests known to God. 

We all know that we can pray anywhere and at any time. We are to be in a continual state of prayer. That is the beautiful thing about prayer; it isn’t reserved for special times and occasions. However, there is a great truth that we need to consider. Jesus encouraged that we have a specific place in which to pray, a prayer closet. That speaks of a storage room, but it also can refer to an inner chamber or a secret room. The point is we need a place where we are comfortable and able to pray. It may be in a particular room, the basement, or out in the garage. It doesn’t matter where it is if we have a place to pray and seek the Lord. We all need that quiet place of prayer and meditation.

God’s people need to understand and exercise the privilege of prayer. We need to come boldly before the throne of grace and make our petitions known. This is not done so that others might think we are holy, but to intercede for the needs of our day! We need to maintain a positive witness among the world, but there are far greater needs than what others think of us. We need to get in touch with God and plead for the souls of humanity and the perils that plague our modern society.

If you are facing needs or difficulties in life, bring them unto the Lord. He already knows, and He is waiting to hear from you. If you have never accepted Christ as your Saviour, He stands ready to save you today. Whatever the need is, bring it to the Lord.