QUESTIONS TO ASK THE TEXT - What was it about Jesus’
prayer life that prompted this disciple’s question? What else could they have felt
they lacked? (Just a chapter earlier these same disciples had returned joyously announcing
that "even demons submit to us!") Apparently, they all had experienced power and
success in curing the sick and exorcism. What else could they have lacked that they so
admired in Jesus’ prayer life?
LUKE’S THEOLOGY-BY-ARRANGEMENT - What is the relationship between the example
"Our Father," and the story on persistence (lit. "shamelessness")
which follows; i.e. how can the prayer fit logically with his teaching? What can we say
about our prayer life?
LUKE’S PRAYER SECTION - Jesus’ teaching on prayer require that the
one who prays will pray as one aware of desperate self-need before God. Jesus’
teachings assure us that prayer is effective not because our cajoling, or because we have
found the right words, but because of God’s nature as a Father who loves his own and
wants to give to those in need. [1]
Do you have a favorite prayer-apart from the Lord’s Prayer-that has become a
favorite prayer of yours?
Recite a prayer you said as a child. What were you requesting of God?
What part of the Lord’s Prayer do you find yourself most attentive to? Why do you
think that is?
First, you’ll want to check the DPS archives for some great homilies that
have already been published on this passage. The bullets which follow suggest some
reflections that may prompt you in your own sermon-building exercise . . .
What can we say about our prayer life?
What pray-ers have we listened in on that have inspired us to be better pray-ers?
How can our faith communities become prayer communities in a more deliberate,
self-conscious way?
What do we actually know about prayer from our years in Christian community?
What questions about prayer would we have addressed to Jesus?
Is there anything in this passage that’s surprising? Anything that runs counter to
our understanding of prayer?"
What is the biggest obstacle that inhibits people from praying? What is the biggest
incentive?
What does Jesus’ story and concluding remarks tell us about God? What does it tell
us about how people in his time thought about prayer?
Romancing the Prayer - reducing prayer to an idyllic setting and feeling ensconced in
gospel songs such as In the Garden, and Sweet Hour of Prayer.
What’s your earliest recollection of prayer-unanswered or answered? (Mine:
"God, bring my pet turtle back to life. I’ll be back tomorrow, God; and when I
come back, I want to see his eyes blinking.")
What history lies behind the Our Father? How did Augustine, Calvin and Luther
understand and appreciate the prayer? What are its Jewish roots? Patristic legacy?
Medieval and Reformation interpretations?
The one common denominator between Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox Christians is the
Lords Prayer-Pater Noster-Our Father. It is the distinctive prayer of the Christian faith,
it is a confession of our faith; it is our heritage.
In preaching - the sermon might well move from within the parable and explanation,
rather than spending most of its energy unpacking the Lord’s Prayer; at least in
Luke’s Gospel. The Lucan writer seems to be more interested in the overall theme of
prayer-shameless, barefaced prayer-than in providing a model structure for prayer.
What might persistence look like? An aggressive salesperson who refuses to take
"no" for an answer; an optimist/pessimist: light at the end of tunnel: coming
out of the tunnel or the headlights of an oncoming train? A boy who loves girl who does
not love the boy. A dog who "adopts" a family; perhaps shot at, kicked, chased
off property; yet keeps coming back to family.
Examples of perseverance: Viktor Frankl and George Muller
Prayer for many is like a foreign land. When we go there, we go as tourists. Like
most tourists, we feel uncomfortable and out of place. Like most tourists, we therefore
move on before too long and go somewhere else. -
First, you’ll want to check the DPS archives for some great homilies that
have already been published on this passage. The bullets which follow suggest some
reflections that may prompt you in your own sermon-building exercise . . .