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Message from Pastor Matthew Marohl

Let Us Pray

By Pastor Matthew Marohl

In one of his sermons, Martin Luther offered a very provocative description of prayer.

He exclaimed, “Out of a book, you will never pray anything good. To be sure, you may read from the book and learn how and what to pray and you may kindle your devotion; but a prayer must come from the heart spontaneously, without any prepared and prescribed words; it must speak its own language according to the fervor of the heart.”

Luther had a way of getting our attention with bold statements designed to spark conversation. In this case, I expect that Luther himself would disagree with his own words. There are certainly beautiful and profound prayers that have been offered faithfully from a variety of books, hymnals, and the Bible itself. Luther encouraged families to gather together to read and discuss the Lord’s Prayer, meal and bedtime prayers, and the Psalms. To be sure, books have always and continue to offer “much that is good.”

Luther was, on the other hand, quite right with his proclamation that prayer does not require prepared or prescribed words. Prayer speaks its own language, the language of the heart. This is a powerful image. Sometimes, the heart is full of poetry and grace and the language of prayer is equally beautiful. At other times, the heart is full of brokenness and lacks the words to speak its own pain. Prepared and prescribed words are not necessary. Sometimes a sigh or a groan is enough to express our deepest prayers to God.

Consider the prayers of children. A child’s prayer is often short and sometimes silly. Most prayer petitions begin with the phrase, “Thank you God for …” From there, we never quite know what is going to be said or for what we will be thanking God. Among grandparents and friends, I have found myself praying for Starbucks and the Quad Cities River Bandits. Children’s prayers might make us laugh, but they also reveal the deep truth of prayer. God hears what is on the heart, even if what is on the heart is Sesame Street Live.

How was prayer understood during the time of Jesus? Perhaps surprisingly, nowhere does the Old Testament prescribe or regulate prayer. Much of the worship life of ancient Judea was prescribed. For example, sacrifices could only be offered in the Temple in Jerusalem and only by the priests, at set times, in certain ways. Such sacrifice was an important part of the worship of God. But, it was also a “hands off” experience. The work of sacrifice was performed in silence by the priests.

Prayer, in sharp contrast, could be offered anywhere by anyone at any time in any way. According to the rabbis, prayer was the “service of God in the heart.” Again, we return to the spoken and unspoken world of the heart, a world that is sometimes eloquent and sometimes awkward. But, at all times, the prayers of the heart are spoken with sincerity and heard with grace and love.

Over the decades and centuries, prayer has been widely discussed. And, as with most things, we have seen the pendulum swing between extremes. Perhaps Martin Luther perceived that prayer had become rigid, with prepared and prescribed words that were at risk of losing their meaning. In an attempt to again nudge the pendulum, his words were spoken with profound force. Do not limit prayer to the elite. Do not limit prayer to rote and stale words. Do not limit prayer to the polite and the positive. As the heart experiences the extremes of life, our prayer does likewise.

So, let us pray. Whether with words found in books or words written on our hearts, let us pray. Let us pray with boldness and confidence that God listens with a heart of forgiveness and promise. Let us pray.

Pastor Matthew Marohl,

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