OP-ED
After the Capitol Hill riot on January 6, 2020, people have been sharing the powerful words prayed by Dr. Barry Black, the Chaplain of the Senate.
In the prayer, he asked the Sovereign Lord to help all who saw or shared in the seditious actions to recognize the deplorable nature of the actions in desecrating the Capitol building, the shedding of innocent blood, the loss of life, and “the quagmire of dysfunction that threaten our democracy.” Then, for leaders to repent for the tragedy of the words that led to the actions, to resolve to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies domestic as well as foreign, and to lead the way in bringing about healing and unity to the hurting and divided nation and world. It was a powerful prayer indeed.
After a few days when I saw new clips of the seditionists in the Capitol, I could not believe my ears, that they were praying. After they had beaten up some of the police officers and killed one, and desecrated the chambers, one stood with his bull horn and prayed quite a long prayer, directed to who he called the Almighty God and closed the prayer in the name of Jesus.
After turning away from the clip for a moment, I had to ask the Lord to help me understand his mercy. How can my God listen to prostituting prayers? Then my mind turned to a scene from centuries ago, on a mountain called, in the land of Israel, Carmel.
As the story is told, in 1 Kings 18:16-45, the prophet of God, Elijah confronted some 400 prophets of king Ahab and queen Jezebel of Israel in one of the greatest contests of all times. The prophet Elijah brought the challenge because the people of Israel had been led astray with a lot of falsehood, into the worship of the fertility god called Baal, by king Ahab and Jezebel.
In the worship of Baal, the people were still believing that they were worshiping the God of Heaven. So, prophet Elijah invited them to a contest on Mount Carmel to prove who was the true God, the one who could stop the rain or allow it to fall. The worshippers of Baal accepted the invitation, and on the Mountain, they built their altar, offered their sacrifice and prayed from morning till evening to Baal. When Baal did not answer, they shouted and in their frustrations cut themselves, but they never got an answer.
Then evening came and Elijah repaired the altar of God that had been dedicated to God years before but now broken down. He got his two bulls and offered his sacrifice and prayed. Before long fire came down from God and burned up his sacrifice. And the people who were standing around watching the contest began to shout, “The Lord, he is God.”
The rest of the story is of interest but the point of importance for us here is that a period of reformation began in Israel. Of course, in a month the reformation followed a trajectory of rebellion and the prophets and other servants of God in Israel had to constantly call for reform. Read the history in Ezra, Nehemiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Joel, and Malachi where you can hear and see the prayers of reform that were prayed. At a point, the nation became so idolatrous that it was subjected to captivity from other nations.
Yes, I am calling for prayer reform before it is too late, because from what I am noting, I would argue that for all the prayers that are being prayed during this time of crisis, not all the prayers seem to be prayed to the Sovereign of heaven. In fact, for a while I have been trying to reconcile what has been happening to the prayers at the National Prayer Breakfast, which seemed to denigrate into political rhetoric rather than prayers.
Further, I have been wondering whether our National Day of Prayer, which has been celebrated by Americans of many persuasions, including Christians of many denominations, and Sikhs, Muslims, Hindus, and Jews, has lost its meaning. This day of prayer held on the first Thursday of May each year, when many Americans assemble in front of courthouses, as well as in houses of worship, such as churches, mosques, synagogues, and temples, and hold luncheons, picnics, and music performances revolving around praying for the nation seem has been trivialized, to the extent many are asking what is the use.
What I am trying to say is this. If we want the prayers, being offered in the congress, and at our prayer breakfasts, in our centers of faith, our prayer groups and prayer closets, to have significance we are going to need prayer reform. We are going to need clarity on who we are praying to, whether it is the God of heaven, or the Baal or (mammon) money, or some personages that we are holding dear, in the place of the God of heaven.
I hear a lot of people tossing around the section of king Solomon’s prayer in 2 Chronicles 7:14 that call us to repentance, “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” (ESV), but I need say, if we are saying the words, we need to mean them.
Hope that I am not being too harsh in judging anyone’s lack of sincerity, although I know that sincerity has nothing to do with truth. What I am emphasizing is that we cannot be serving God while corrupting his name with our ideas or ideological practices that contradict what his righteousness demands. As the great preacher R. A. Torrey, of a couple generations ago, said, “We have to be clear on who and what our service needs to be. If we have sin in our hearts it makes it impossible for God to answer our prayers, even though the thing for which we are praying is entirely according to His will.”
The purpose of this reflection is not to discourage our prayers, but to ask that we examine who we are praying to, what we are praying for, and how we are praying. The prophet Isaiah says “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; but your iniquities have made a separation, between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he does not hear.” Isaiah 59:1-2 (ESV)
May God help us to reform our prayer lives, so that the hand of God might help and heal us.
