Prayed For
Read John 17.
Have you ever been prayed for? I'm sure you have. It's a powerful experience. As a pastor, I have a lot of people tell me they are praying for me, and I know they are and it is appreciated so much, but then there are those times that really stand out for whatever reason. Actually, usually the reason is I'm going through something significant and need to have an extra assurance that there are people lifting me up to God the Father. It's not that God needs to be reminded that I am in need, nor is it a matter of "getting enough people to pray" to convince God to come through. Prayer is all about relationship, connection, and prayer does more in us and for us than it does in or for God.
Nevertheless, there have been times when I distinctly remember the sacrifice of someone praying for me. One of the first things I learned when I woke up from my first heart surgery in 1999 was of the death of one of my parishioners, Ron Kohlhagen. Ron was a great guy, always kidding me and always greeting me with, "Hey, Preach!" The church had organized a prayer vigil for me while I was in surgery, and the last thing Ron did before he died was to pray for me. That touched me deeply, knowing he was thinking of me and communicating with the savior he loved during his last moments here on Earth. I also remember the first person to tell me, when I was moving to a new appointment, that he was praying for me in the transition and as I led the church. I believe he still does pray for me. And during this past fall, when I had my second heart surgery, I can tell you I could literally feel the strength that came from people praying for me. I do not know if I would have made it through without that support, love and strength.
There have been other times (like when I got a card in the mail from a Catholic priest in the community who said, "I hope you don't mind some Catholic prayers!" When I saw Father Jim next, I told him I deeply valued his prayers), but I can't help but wonder what it would be like to have Jesus pray for me—and to hear him! On that last night, during that long final walk, that's exactly what happened. He prayed for the disciples he loved and they got to listen in to this most intimate conversation with his heavenly Father. And then, he prayed for you and me—for all believers. And because John took the time to write it down, we get to listen in, all these years later! Jesus is praying for you and for me!
For me, the most powerful prayer during that time is found in verse 15: "My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one." I don't know about you, but there are times when life gets hard and I don't want to face the struggle anymore. That's when I hear these words: don't take them out of the world, protect them from the evil one. Ultimately, based on Jesus' prayer, the Devil cannot harm us. He can (and does) mess with us, but he can't harm us because Jesus has already prayed for us to be protected.
And the most beautiful thing is that Jesus still prays for us! In Romans 8:34, Paul describes Jesus as the one who died and was raised to life, but where is he now? Paul says he "is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us." He is still doing what he did for us on that long, final walk. He's still praying for us, and that, my friends, is good news.
Have you ever been prayed for? I'm sure you have. It's a powerful experience. As a pastor, I have a lot of people tell me they are praying for me, and I know they are and it is appreciated so much, but then there are those times that really stand out for whatever reason. Actually, usually the reason is I'm going through something significant and need to have an extra assurance that there are people lifting me up to God the Father. It's not that God needs to be reminded that I am in need, nor is it a matter of "getting enough people to pray" to convince God to come through. Prayer is all about relationship, connection, and prayer does more in us and for us than it does in or for God.
Nevertheless, there have been times when I distinctly remember the sacrifice of someone praying for me. One of the first things I learned when I woke up from my first heart surgery in 1999 was of the death of one of my parishioners, Ron Kohlhagen. Ron was a great guy, always kidding me and always greeting me with, "Hey, Preach!" The church had organized a prayer vigil for me while I was in surgery, and the last thing Ron did before he died was to pray for me. That touched me deeply, knowing he was thinking of me and communicating with the savior he loved during his last moments here on Earth. I also remember the first person to tell me, when I was moving to a new appointment, that he was praying for me in the transition and as I led the church. I believe he still does pray for me. And during this past fall, when I had my second heart surgery, I can tell you I could literally feel the strength that came from people praying for me. I do not know if I would have made it through without that support, love and strength.
There have been other times (like when I got a card in the mail from a Catholic priest in the community who said, "I hope you don't mind some Catholic prayers!" When I saw Father Jim next, I told him I deeply valued his prayers), but I can't help but wonder what it would be like to have Jesus pray for me—and to hear him! On that last night, during that long final walk, that's exactly what happened. He prayed for the disciples he loved and they got to listen in to this most intimate conversation with his heavenly Father. And then, he prayed for you and me—for all believers. And because John took the time to write it down, we get to listen in, all these years later! Jesus is praying for you and for me!
For me, the most powerful prayer during that time is found in verse 15: "My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one." I don't know about you, but there are times when life gets hard and I don't want to face the struggle anymore. That's when I hear these words: don't take them out of the world, protect them from the evil one. Ultimately, based on Jesus' prayer, the Devil cannot harm us. He can (and does) mess with us, but he can't harm us because Jesus has already prayed for us to be protected.
And the most beautiful thing is that Jesus still prays for us! In Romans 8:34, Paul describes Jesus as the one who died and was raised to life, but where is he now? Paul says he "is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us." He is still doing what he did for us on that long, final walk. He's still praying for us, and that, my friends, is good news.
Comments
Post a Comment