A PRAYER TO START
Most of our psalms have been sung by the people of God throughout our history, reminding us that some of our most genuine prayers are voiced with a melody. So sing this prayer first given words by John Newton today…
Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.
’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.
Through many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
The Lord has promised good to me,
His Word my hope secures;
He will my Shield and Portion be,
As long as life endures.
Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease,
I shall possess, within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.
The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;
But God, who called me here below,
Will be forever mine.
When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
Than when we’d first begun.
GETTING THOUGHTFUL
It is not easy living an alternative lifestyle. Naturally, swimming upstream requires much more effort and much more endurance than floating along with the current. And yet, swimming against the flow of our culture is exactly what we were encouraged to do in Romans 12:2, “Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed…”
Of course our alternative lifestyle is not a matter of options but of grace, the mercies of our Father received, the gifts from our Father put to good use. Nevertheless, a life of grace comes with its challenges, some from outside us as the current quickens against our strokes, pulling at us. Others, from inside us as our stamina fades, doubtful that we can finish what we started, frustrated at the lack of distance covered. What do we do when the transformed life feels like an effort we cannot sustain, or is, in all reality, causing us to suffer the losses of the effort already exerted?
Paul’s packed and potent answer, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer” (12:12).
Be joyful in your hope, persevere through the significant troubles, are Paul’s first words of encouragement as he swims up next to us. These words are no greeting card note. He is not saying, “Don’t worry, be happy” or even “Quit moaning and get over it.” Rather, he reminds us to remember grace got you started in this alternative life, and that same grace will propel you to the finish. The author of Hebrews says it this way,
“let us also lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” (12:1-2).
We endure with joy as Jesus did, not dismissing the pain and shame, the real physical and emotional difficulty of living an alternative life, but because we know as he did what awaits on the other side; the shared glory of the Kingdom with our Father. We will not endure unless the sure belief of what we will receive is of value to us and that we will surely receive it.
“Be constant in prayer”, Paul adds with a wide grin and sincere eyes as he looks you straight in the face, your strokes now in sync with his. Our tendency in the midst of the difficulty of alternative living is to forget the simplest reality, and thus think little of mundane salvation. Prayer, Paul says, is what keeps us going. Specifically a devotion to prayer. William Barclay once noted, “No man should be surprised when life collapses if he insists on living it alone.” So let us be diligent in responding to and interacting with the One who keeps you going, who has given us life with him and others. Praying keeps us together in the upstream trek, and thus able to partake of all the benefits of that togetherness.
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REFLECTION
There is an abundance to life with Jesus. A richness, beauty and purpose that can hardly be expressed adequately and only feebly impersonated. Yet, just as any life of longevity, not everything goes swimmingly. It is in these moments when we feel the internal and external undercurrent most intensely that we need those swimming in our same direction to remind us, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.”
Use the questions below to help you prayerfully reflect individually and/or discuss as a DNA group.
Are you feeling the pull of the current against the transformed life right now?
If so, in what ways?
Endurance that manifests as hope (see Romans 5:3-5), requires in part that you value what it is at the finish that you will receive, and that you believe that it is yours to possess. Do you?
Do you value not just what you can have now, but what you will receive when now is over? Explain.
Do you believe that what is Christ’s is actually yours? Explain.
Paul assumes that in the roughest patches we are prone to believe we are alone. Prayer keeps us from narrowed vision of difficulty as we cry out to God and let our voice join in with others doing the same. In what ways are you being “constant” in prayer?
Last question. Who swimming upstream around you right now needs you to come alongside them and speak these same words of encouragement?
REVERBERATIONS
As we immerse ourselves in the biblical narrative we notice that God consistently gives his children promises with his instructions. It is as if he knows we will need something to cling to, something to propel us forward in the life set apart. Meditating on that truth, let these words reflect off the walls of your mind, the chamber of your heart, and the actions of your hands this week.
Obedience means adhering to God’s promises.
(Eugene Peterson)