"I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil." John 17:15
My friend asked me a very interesting questions the other day. Why do we close our eyes when we pray? Nowhere in the Bible does it say that we have to do so. We do it to remove any distractions, so that we can focus our attention on God more easily. But is it possible to pray with your eyes open? My cluster leader once prayed while she was driving. Which led me on to think, is our prayer time restricted only to the wee hours of the morning or late into the night, when all is quiet around us? Is our meditation on the Word of the Lord restricted to those times when we are unbothered by other thoughts or troubles? Psalm 1 says, "But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night." No doubt the intimate moments we are familiar with are those spent alone with Him in peace and quiet. But is that the end of the story?
Nowhere in his prayer did Jesus pray that His disciples be withdrawn from the world. Throughout his ministry Jesus never sheltered His disciples from the harsh realities of the world, instead He said to them, "I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves." Matthew 10:16. I believe that Christianity is not just another high ideal, or a noble religion that men listen to and participate in on Sundays only. Our worship to the Lord should not be restricted to Sundays where we greet each other with smiling faces in church. Christianity is a way of life. Indeed, more than that, it is a life in itself. It is meant to be lived out, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. In the same way Christianity is not just a state where we feel so close to God and feel happy and peaceful, perhaps while we are worshipping him with all our hearts, or when we are praying. Do not mistake me, I cherish and love these moments very dearly. But if that was all that God intended for us, he might as well take us into heaven now. In that respect I disagree with people who say that worship is the most important part of Christian life. Jesus said very early in His ministry, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father in heaven."
I think we can understand it better if we look to the Old Testament. "And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up." The Israelites were called to obey and serve God every moment of their lives. And I do not believe the Old Testament is outdated, because Jesus said, "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill." Matthew 5:17.
I believe how we view our Christendom is crucial to how we respond to it. Do we see is it as just a Sunday affair? Or do we see it as our way of life- in our relationships, in our works, in our endeavours, in everything that we do?
My friend asked me a very interesting questions the other day. Why do we close our eyes when we pray? Nowhere in the Bible does it say that we have to do so. We do it to remove any distractions, so that we can focus our attention on God more easily. But is it possible to pray with your eyes open? My cluster leader once prayed while she was driving. Which led me on to think, is our prayer time restricted only to the wee hours of the morning or late into the night, when all is quiet around us? Is our meditation on the Word of the Lord restricted to those times when we are unbothered by other thoughts or troubles? Psalm 1 says, "But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night." No doubt the intimate moments we are familiar with are those spent alone with Him in peace and quiet. But is that the end of the story?
Nowhere in his prayer did Jesus pray that His disciples be withdrawn from the world. Throughout his ministry Jesus never sheltered His disciples from the harsh realities of the world, instead He said to them, "I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves." Matthew 10:16. I believe that Christianity is not just another high ideal, or a noble religion that men listen to and participate in on Sundays only. Our worship to the Lord should not be restricted to Sundays where we greet each other with smiling faces in church. Christianity is a way of life. Indeed, more than that, it is a life in itself. It is meant to be lived out, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. In the same way Christianity is not just a state where we feel so close to God and feel happy and peaceful, perhaps while we are worshipping him with all our hearts, or when we are praying. Do not mistake me, I cherish and love these moments very dearly. But if that was all that God intended for us, he might as well take us into heaven now. In that respect I disagree with people who say that worship is the most important part of Christian life. Jesus said very early in His ministry, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father in heaven."
I think we can understand it better if we look to the Old Testament. "And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up." The Israelites were called to obey and serve God every moment of their lives. And I do not believe the Old Testament is outdated, because Jesus said, "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill." Matthew 5:17.
I believe how we view our Christendom is crucial to how we respond to it. Do we see is it as just a Sunday affair? Or do we see it as our way of life- in our relationships, in our works, in our endeavours, in everything that we do?
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