The Church of St.
Paul & Incarnation, Jersey City NJ
October 20, 2019
Year C, Proper 24:
The Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost
Jeremiah 31:27-34
Psalm 119:97-104
2 Timothy 3:14-4:5
Luke 18:1-8
The Power of Persistent Prayer
So,
lately I’ve been surprising myself a little.
I’ve
mentioned to you before that, by nature, I tend to be a kind of anxious person
– worrying over all sorts of things, quick to see obstacles and potential
disasters ahead, both real and imaginary.
I
tend to focus on what’s missing, on the half-empty glass.
With
God’s help, I’m working on that, but I also have to accept that this is how I
am and not get anxious about being anxious!
But,
anxious or not, the truth is that we’ve had a rough few weeks around here.
A
longtime St. Paul’s parishioner, the much-loved matriarch of her family, has died,
and a couple of parishioners have suddenly and shockingly become seriously ill.
Last
week I told you the unwelcome news that the boiler that heats the church and
the hall has reached the end of the line and a couple of days ago we found out
that replacing it will cost something like $35,000.
And,
on top of that, we learned that we will not receive a grant we were counting on
to cover about half the cost of the new restroom.
Ouch.
And…now
it’s the time of year when we focus on stewardship.
This
can be a really joyful time when we take stock of – and celebrate - all the
many ways that God has blessed us, both individually and as a pretty rockin’
church!
But,
it can also be a stressful time.
Will
we pledge and give enough so that we can do some great things for Jesus both in
here and out in the world?
Will
we pledge and give enough so that we can pay our many bills, including the
unexpected ones that keep popping up?
Are
we going to be a little club that exists mostly for the benefit of us, its
members, or are we going to shine the Light of Christ boldly and generously
into an increasingly shadowy world?
We
will soon find out!
So,
it’s a lot.
But,
here’s the thing:
Despite
all of these very real things to worry about, to my surprise, I actually feel
pretty good.
And,
I think I know why.
In
today’s lesson from the Gospel of Luke we heard this strange, even somewhat
humorous, parable – what’s usually called the Parable of the Persistent Widow
and the Unjust Judge.
As
usual, we’re not given too much background information, just that there is a
judge in the city “who neither feared God nor had respect for people.”
We
know the type, yes?
And
there is a widow who keeps coming at him demanding justice – or, actually, the
word can also be translated as “vengeance,” which changes the feel of things,
doesn’t it?
Maybe
surprisingly, the judge gives into the widow, saying to himself, “I will grant
her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.”
By
the way, what’s translated as “wear me out” is actually a boxing term meaning
something like, “punch me in the eye.”
So,
the judge gives in to the widow, at least in part, because she is powerful and
intimidating – the parable kind of reverses the way we would normally think of
things, right?
Normally,
we would say that judges are very powerful while widows, not so much.
Yet,
then and now, widows (or, really, any women on their own) have to be clever and
tough and, yes, persistent, in order to defend themselves and their children
and their dignity and their property.
So,
maybe we shouldn’t be so surprised that the widow got her way, even if it may
have meant using a threat of physical violence.
It’s
quite a little story – and then Jesus connects it to prayer, and the need to be
persistent in prayer.
Now,
prayer is not about threatening God (though we’re welcome to get angry with God
sometimes - there’s a long history of that, just flip through the Psalms and
you’ll see.)
And,
prayer is not about wearing down God, somehow talking God into doing what we
want God to do.
God
already knows what’s best for us and is always ready to bless us in ways we
can’t even begin to imagine.
So,
we persist in prayer not to change God’s mind but to change us, to allow
God to draw even closer to us, to make more room in our heart for God, to give
us the confidence and strength that we need to face even the biggest and most
frightening obstacles.
In
the case of our parishioners who have recently taken ill, in each case I know
that they can feel the power of prayer supporting them and supporting all of us
who love them – and all of that love and grace and power is having a real
effect on their recovery.
Thanks
be to God.
And
then there’s me.
The
other day I received an email from someone I’m very close with, someone I love
very much: a parishioner from my former church.
Over
the years we have been through life and death together: the death of her
daughter and later the death of her husband – and, I also had the honor of
officiating at the wedding of her granddaughter.
You
go through all of that together and you can’t help to form an unbreakable bond.
Lately,
she’s been going through her own health challenges and I’ve been worried about
her, praying for her.
The
other day, she emailed me, updating me on her progress.
And,
here is how she ended her message:
“You’re
always in my prayers, mainly for the strength to keep doing all you’re doing.”
So,
despite our many challenges here, no wonder I feel pretty good!
It’s
the power of persistent prayer!
Prayer doesn’t fix the boiler or pay the
bills or make disease go away (at least not usually), but prayer does give us the strength and
faith to face whatever comes our way, knowing that we – and, most especially,
God – are all in this together.
Amen.
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