“Marks of Methodism: Pray Continually” 1 Tim 2:1 John 15: 1-17

11/11/18 “Marks of Methodism: Pray Continually” 1 Tim 2:1

John 15: 1-17

I love to be in worship. To gather together as the body of Christ and hear the Word proclaimed through songs, prayers and scripture reading. But even though I geninually love worshiping, there aren’t as many moments that I truly remember in worship. Ones where I was touched so deeply that they feel like they are seared in my brain. 

One of those moments, however, came from annual conference a few years ago where the guest professor leading a Bible Study during worship took this passage from John 15 and made it come alive for me in a whole new way, as she showed a spoken word piece by Allyson Weremelskirchen called “Jesus is the Vine” that I have watched many times since. One of the lines that struck me was “I am the only way that you can flourish”.

Friends, how very true. Jesus Christ is the only way we can flourish in this world. He is the foundation that we build our very lives upon. In fact, being a disciple is built upon the premise that you have a deep and abiding relationship with Jesus Christ. But discipleship isn’t about regulation or religion, it is about continuing this relationship with Christ. Its about growing more in love with him every day. And one of the ways that we do that is through prayer. 

Growing up, I could often tell how some of my friends felt on a given day by how they communicated. One friend, when he was angry, he avoided talking to you, cutting off all communication. Another would talk all the time, but not about anything that was bothering them. When folks started to cut off the line of communication one way or another, I knew that we weren’t in a good place.

Yet, how often, do we do the same thing - cutting off communication with God? We cut ourselves off from the only One - the only Way, the only source of Truth and Life, the only way to flourish. 

Sometimes we do this unintentionally. We get to the end of the day, we’re tired. So we just skip praying. And then at some point we think back over the last few days or weeks or months and realize that we simply haven’t been praying, haven’t been communicating with God. 

Take time to think about the people who are important to you in life. What would happen if you went weeks or months without speaking to them? Could you imagine not talking to your spouse or children or best friend for weeks at a time? For me, that’s really hard. I grew up in a family that treasured time together and communication. We always talked. The thought of being cut off from them would break my heart. 

And honestly, friends, I believe that it breaks God’s heart too. When we slip away - making choices other then spending time with God. Other than communicating with God. Cutting ourselves off from the vine. 

Other times, I have known people who have intentionally cut themselves off from God. Some people do this because they believe that God has failed to hear their cries, failed to answer their prayers, so one day they just decide that they aren’t going to pray anymore. Allyson Wermelskirchen puts it this way, God is asking that we not cut Him loose. Yet, we can probably all think of someone who did just that. 

When we look at prayer as a transaction - I tell God what I want and then God gives it to me -  it becomes really easy to cut God loose, to distance ourselves from God, when we feel like we didn’t get what we want. 

And that in some ways is so similar to the second way that we can intentionally cut ourselves off from God - when we make prayer all about us - us talking, us receiving, instead of a conversation where we also listen. 

Prayer was never intended to be a one way conversation, friends. When we are in relationship, with the people around us and with God, we have to communicate and commune - or spend time with. Now that may look different for each of us, and that’s absolutely okay, because we were created differently. But what is not okay is cutting ourselves off from the vine, intentionally or unintentionally by not praying. Prayer helps us to create and sustain our relationship with God. 

In this fifteenth chapter of the Gospel of John, we find Jesus giving this teaching to his disciples about what it means to connected to him, and bear fruit. What it means to abide in Jesus. Yet, somehow we have taken the power out of this passage by forgetting that’s what its about - about following Jesus. About bearing fruit in Jesus’s name. But friends, believe me when I say that you cannot bear fruit for Jesus, no matter how badly you may want to, if you aren’t connected to the vine. If you aren’t staying connected to God through prayer and time with the Lord. 

So how do we do that? For some of you, the idea of praying may be new. It may be hard for you to think about taking time out of your day - but really prayer is talking to the God who loves you. To simply say, God this is what’s going well today or Lord, this is where I really need your strength and wisdom. Start small, but make time for the Lord. 

For others of you, perhaps you used to pray, but something has separated you from that time with the Lord. Maybe you do need to make time to pray, but I would encourage you to also take time to listen more closely to the Lord and respond more. Its not just about talking to God, its about listening for God to speak to our hearts. would encourage you to take time for sacred silence and point your hearts towards God. 

Maybe others of you feel like you have a rich and vibrant prayer life. Then John Wesley would admonish us as United Methodists to be a people who pray without ceasing. John Wesley would encourage people to pray for anyone and any time and anywhere, which 1st Timothy lifts up to us this morning. Maybe for you, you need to mediate and pray both on the reflections of your heart and printed prayers as well. Prayers that maybe we wouldn’t think about praying on our own. Wesley would pray on his own, he would pray in groups, but he would also pray using the Book of Common Prayer - this wonderful collection of worship resources and prayer, because sometimes we shy away from the things we would rather not think about or confess. Its not about reading prayers, its about praying them and making them our own. 

Friends, if we start seeing prayer as a way to be connected to God, a way to communicate with God, then many of our excuses start to fall away. Its not about whether we feel like it or not. Its not about whether we know what to pray for, or about whether we have the right words. Its simply about being connected to the source of all life and love. May we stay connected to the One True Vine through a heart of continual prayer. Amen.