What if His People Prayed (My first Sermon) 2009

Good Morning!

Today’s message is a little unconventional. The inspiration came at 5:30 in the morning, while I was at work trying not to fall asleep. The only way I can stay awake sometimes, is to listen to music. And yes, today’s message is in music.

My life revolves around music. You can ask my parents, there is always music playing in my room, my car, or from my iPod. I listen to a little bit of everything, but my favorite kind of music is contemporary Christian.

My dad tells me that he can’t tell the difference sometimes between my Christian music and other types of music. The difference isn’t in the sound, that’s the point; contemporary Christian music is designed to fit all tastes of music style. The only difference is in the words.

          Instead of drugs, sex, and money, it is Jesus, God, and Prayer.

I just ask you to give this a chance. Consider this a Youth Sunday where everything is a little different. Please have that Methodist open mind, we say we have.

This song is called:  “What if His People Prayed?” by my favorite group, Casting Crowns.

I ask that you listen, and listen to the words, they’re the important part. I am going to read the words to you after you hear it; to be sure you get it!

(PLAY SONG)

What if the armies of the Lord

Picked up and dusted off their swords

Vowed to set the captive free

And not let Satan have one more

What if the Church, for heaven’s sake

Finally stepped up to the plate

Took a stand upon God’s promise

And stormed Hell’s rusty gates

What if His people prayed?

And those who bear His name

Would only seek His faith

And turn from their old ways

And what would happen if we prayed

For those raised up to lead the way

Then maybe kids in school could pray

And unborn children see light of day

What if the light that we pursue

Came from a hunger for the truth

What if the family turned to Jesus?

Stopped asking Oprah what to do

What if His people prayed?

And those who bear His name

Would only seek His face

And turn from their own way

He said that He would hear

His promise has been made

He’ll answer loud and clear

If only we would pray

If My people call by My name

If they’ll humble themselves and pray

If My people call by My name

If they’ll humble themselves and pray

Then the chorus plays again.

This song spoke to me in a weird way, and I still can’t believe that this is the message God wanted me to give to you today. This message isn’t just for you it is for me too. If I went through all of this without including me, it would be very hypocritical of me. I’m terrible, and I mean terrible about remembering to pray. Unless, of course, I need something, need to complain, or something amazing happens. I am also the LAST person to volunteer to pray in a group. If you noticed I got Leslie to pray the prayers for me today. I’m big on silent prayer or at least not group prayer, and I always wonder how people know what to say when they are in a group.

I also don’t pray the conventional way we are taught in church, it just doesn’t really work for me. I saw someone give a sermon once on prayer, and they said you didn’t have to kneel down and fold your hands and close your eyes. That’s a wonderful way to teach kids, they’re easily distracted, and it gives them a model to follow. But as I’ve gotten older and closer to God, I realized that I didn’t have to kneel at my bed every night to pray, I could do it in bed, or in the shower, while I’m walking down the stairs,  and in my car (and I pray in my car a lot). If you walked by me while I was praying you would probably think that I was talking to myself. So I urge you if conventional prayer is not working for you, and you think that it is the only way to pray, try something new. Just talk to God, and I mean literally just talk, but make sure you’re ready to listen, and that’s generally the harder part. Kara now understands this. One night last semester she was struggling with past family issues, she just couldn’t get over, I asked her if she had prayed and she said it never works, I’m bad at praying. But she isn’t bad at talking!

None of us are. The moment she started talking, sure it was ranting and raving, and a lot of tears, things started to change in her. I haven’t really asked her about her prayer life since then, but I do know that, for the first time in her life, she now has a true relationship with Jesus. It started that night in my car when she let go and let God. She always knew he was there but that night he became real.

The line in the song:

“What if the family turned to Jesus and stopped asking Oprah what to do.”

Now I wrote this sermon before all the news about Oprah and her version of Christianity came out, so I’m not going into that today.

But Oprah, Dr. Phil, or any other person we turn to for all of the answers that our hearts are seeking can make great assumptions, but true answers lie in our creator. Oprah is human just like we are, she obviously doesn’t know all of the answers, especially when it comes to God, no one on this Earth does. We are a society of instant gratification, when we should be waiting and listening quietly. God has the answers we are looking for. They’re not always the answers we want but they’re the ones we truly need. And we don’t need all of the answers to all of life’s questions. God will reveal to us, when it is time, what he knows we need to know.

God doesn’t speak to us with burning bushes, or like I am speaking to you today, it sure would be nice if he did, but he does speak in other ways. It would be amazing to hear the booming voice of God in the middle of the night calling us to serve him. His ways of speaking are not so obvious anymore. We have to listen. So the part of prayer we seem to lack in is listening. Prayer equals talking to God right?

Sure but that is only half of it. We can talk all we want, but if we don’t stop and listen then what good have we done? God loves to hear your voice, and he cares about everything we have to say. But he has a lot to tell us too. If we never listened to our parents and teachers how could we have learned anything? It is the same with God. We have to listen to what he has to say.

Now I know that we have some true prayer warriors here in this room and we’ve seen the power of prayer. But can you imagine if every person in this church was a prayer warrior? How about if every Christian in Arkansas City was a warrior? Cowley County? Kansas? The United States? If every Christian in the world was a true prayer warrior, there would be no chance for the Devil to leave his mark. He would be cowering in fear. Prayer is the last thing he wants. And he is great at causing us to be too busy to pray.

When you’re too busy, too tired, too angry, and too undeserving, that is when you need to talk to God the most. So I pray and I truly do, that you take this message to heart, it came from mine, and pray. Pray without ceasing.

This quote comes from one of my friend’s Facebook “To pray does not mean to think about God in contrast to thinking about other things, to spend time with God instead of spending time with other people. Rather it means to think and live in the presence of God. As soon as we begin to divide our thoughts into thoughts about God and thoughts about people and events, we remove God from our daily life and put him in a pious little niche where we can think pious thoughts and experience pious feelings.

Prayer can only become unceasing prayer when all our thought – beautiful or ugly, high or low, proud or shameful, sorrowful or joyful – can be thought in the presence of God. The main question is not so much what we think, but to whom we present our thoughts”

That quote sums it all up for me and I hope it helps you too!

Prayer is powerful!

And Powerful prayer can move mountains,

Mainly the mountains in people’s hearts and souls

So pray, pray, pray!

Benediction:

May the Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. Turn his face towards you and give you peace. Out into the world we go.