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The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know. Pray especially for rulers and their governments to rule well so we can be quietly about our business of living simply, in humble contemplation. This is the way our Savior God wants us to live. He wants not only us but everyone saved, you know, everyone to get to know the truth we've learned: that there's one God and only one, and one Priest-Mediator between God and us - Jesus, who offered himself in exchange for everyone held captive by sin, to set them all free. Eventually the news is going to get out. This and this only has been my appointed work: getting this news to those who have never heard of God, and explaining how it works by simple faith and plain truth. (1Timothy 2:1-7) The Message.
Prayer is sometimes the last thing we do. Say you cut yourself accidentally while preparing a meal. What's the first thing you do? Okay, no swear words! Easier said than done, right? You wash the cut, You go to the first aid kit and hope your grandkids haven't taken the last bandaid for their doll or stuffed animals. You dress the wound. But what if the cut is deeper than you thought? The bandaid is soon saturated with blood and you realize you need medical attention... Okay, sorry for an early morning illustration that may affect your appetite for food. The point is that sometimes we put prayer at the end of the need. Paul here says, pray first. Pray first thing out of bed. Pray as you start your day. And he says, "Pray every way you know, for everyone you know." That is powerful in and of itself. Add to your prayer list those who rule over us, even for those who run over countries we may not be fond of. This weekend saw the 15th Anniversary of that tragic day and event we now call 9-11. And one pastor recalled how another clergy person in the days after in planning a prayer service for the community said, "Don't forget we need to pray for those who are behind this attack." That might irk some people who don't know better. I heard a sad illustration just this Sunday as the pastor shared how that week he and another pastor spent time with the K-9 agents of the border patrol. They started to share how they also spend time with prisoners in the jail. One of the agents said, "Why do you waste your time on them? They're locked up for being convicted of wrongdoings against others; they don't deserve your time!" Sigh. That agent, the pastor related, is a United Methodist.
Paul reminds us that Jesus wants us to live as He taught, not as the world teaches. Jesus said to pray for our enemies, and to visit the sick, those in jail, and to love others as ourselves. Jesus came to reconcile the world to God; everyone saved, not just us. It's easier to live as the world teaches, but precisely why Jesus came, to show us a better way, a loving way; a saving way.
PRAYER: Lord, forgive me the times I have chosen the world, prayed at the very end or when I finally remembered to pray. Teach me Your ways, help me to love everyone, with no exceptions. Help me to be part of those who show salvation as something given to me. In Christ Jesus I pray, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord.
Eradio Valverde
