Forgiveness and prayer

Yesterday, my wife and I marvelled as we listened to a woman in a radio interview talk about forgiving a man who attacked her, tied her up, and took her car.

The attacker and robber used her car in a later attempted robbery and was shot by police.  She wanted to let the man know that she forgave him; but police felt it was not wise for her to do that.  She regretted not having the chance to forgive him personally.

Though it is hard to do, forgiveness is freeing.  Often, it is an essential step to emotional, spiritual and physical healing.

It is also vital to effective prayer.

In his fine little book The Most Powerful Prayer on Earth, Peter Horrobin points to Jesus' amazing prayer for his tormentors as he was dying on the cross: "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." (Luke 23:34)

"Not only did Jesus walk in personal forgiveness toward all of those who were the agents of his suffering, but he also asked God to forgive them," Horrobin writes.

It is only in recent years that I have spent time thinking about forgiving others.  Some time ago, I thought about the occasions when I was hurt by others over the years.

I even went back to an incident in elementary school where I was a new boy and one of the class leaders bullied me.  The picture is as clear in my mind today as if it happened yesterday.  I had hung on to this grievance all these years without surrendering it to God and forgiving the boy who ridiculed me.

Wise Christians have said that sometimes we have to forgive someone again and again before the anger and bitterness is finally released.

But we are commanded to forgive.  We need to go before God in prayer and forgive.

Jesus said in the Lord's prayer: "Forgive us our sins as we have forgiven those who sin against us." (Matthew 6:12)

If we are to be free of the disease of bitterness and anger, we need to forgive those who have hurt us.

The personal benefits of forgiveness can be astonishing.

Horrobin tells the story of a young woman who had been thrown to the ice from a snowmobile in Northern Ontario.  She suffered severe spinal injuries and had spent more than 20 years in pain.  She asked Horrobin for healing prayer and he asked her if she had forgiven the driver of the snowmobile.  She hadn't.

After struggling with this, she came back to Horrobin, saying she had forgiven him.  God's power came upon her and she was healed in minutes.

Forgiveness frees us - and it releases the chains from those we hate.  It glorifies God. 

Imagination and prayer

My imagination helps me pray.

I picture Jesus with me as I ask him for something or as I share a concern.  Often, I will listen to him as I walk or as I write in my journal.  I don't hear his actual voice, but I frequently receive thoughts or promptings.

Are these thoughts from God?  The best test is whether they line up with scripture.  If not, they are not.  Of course, for major decisions, the advice of wise and godly people is vital.

When I'm struggling with fears and anxieties, I sometimes just picture him with me, saying nothing but simply being a sympathetic and loving presence.  I find this calming and restoring.

In Matthew 28, Jesus promised his followers that "I am with you always, even to the end of the age".  In John 14, he said he would not leave them alone but would live in them through the Holy Spirit.  So I know he is with me as I pray.

Some Christians suggest it is fantasy - or even idolatry - to imagine Christ.

But Jesus himself made use of human imagination when he told parables such as the parables of the good Samaritan and the prodigal son.  He told stories because he knew they would have a powerful impact on his listeners.

Organizations such as Campus Crusade for Christ (now Power to Change) saw the story of Jesus as a great way to reach people with the gospel.  The Jesus Film, which depicts Jesus in his ministry, has touched millions around the world.

Our imaginations are always active - for good or bad.  My guess is that believers - consciously or unconsciously - find their imaginations active when Bible stories are told.  It is hard not to see David facing Goliath or Jesus stumbling under the cross on the way to Calvary.

We can use our imaginations to great effect in prayer.

We know that Jesus loves us and knows everything about us.  We know that he loves us in spite of our failings.  We know that he wants a close relationship with us.

Prayer is a means for exploring this close relationship.

The author of Hebrews writes in Hebrews 12: "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith."

Imagining Jesus with me is a great help in turning my mind and heart to him.

 

God's love ignites prayer and praise

It's wonderful to see a little child run and throw himself into his mother's arms.

It's the child's joyous response to the love his mother has for him.  He loves because he is loved.

It should be the same with us and God.  We need to realize that God loves us even more than our parents do.  We should respond the same way the little child does to his mother's love.

Knowing how much we are loved ignites prayer and praise.

What made me think of this was reading King David's simple opening line in Psalm 18: "I love you, O Lord, my strength."

It's not often I tell God that I love him.  I tell him he is awesome.  I ask him for things.  Those are good things - they show my admiration, respect and dependence on him.

But love brings joy to prayer.

As the apostle John said in 1 John 4:19: "We love because he first loved us."  We are only able to love others because God first loved us.

How do we know we are loved by God?  We have the testimony of his words in scripture and in the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.

Jesus himself said in John 15:13: "There is no greater love than to lay down one's life for one's friends."  He did that for each one of us - each one of us individually.

David also says in Psalm 16:2 that "every good thing I have comes from you."  God is the giver of good things - family, friends, life, jobs, talents and spiritual gifts.

Meditating on God's love helps build gratitude - and love.

The more we know we are loved, the more we love the one who loves us.

There is no better foundation for praise and confident prayer.

Trouble, the route to powerful prayer

Taken the right way, trouble is a route to powerful prayer.

E.M. Bounds, a classic writer on prayer, says: "Prayer allows God to work freely with us and in us in the day of trouble."

We may not see it - or understand it - but God permits trouble to make us more like Christ.

In his book The Essentials of Prayer, Bounds says: "God's highest aim in dealing with his people is in developing Christian character. . .  He is seeking to make us like himself."

The apostle Paul says in Romans 8:29: "For God knew his children in advance and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters."

And in Philippians 1:6, Paul says: "And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns." 

So, God is at work within us all the time.  His aim is to make us like Christ.  Trouble is one means for getting us there.

Severe trouble drives many people to pray.  Take Jacob, for example.  In Genesis 32:22-30, Jacob is deeply worried about the coming encounter with his brother Esau whom he has wronged.  During the night, he wrestles with God - a picture of prayer.

Jacob emerges from this meeting with God a different man.  He is still a weak human being with many faults, but now God is at the centre of his life.

Bounds says that our troubles "can work for us only as we co-operate with God in prayer".  When we pray, we are opening ourselves to God and agreeing that he is greater than we are.

Christ gave us the greatest example of prayer in suffering.  He went to Gethsemane to pray the night before his death on the cross.  He agonized so much that he sweat blood.  But he emerged from this time of prayer with the strength of God so that he could face his trial and triumph over the enemy.

For me, I need to remember that troubles are there to make me stronger in Christ.  And God will give me the strength I need through prayer.