20190314
A
DISCERNING PRAYER
14 MARCH, 2019,
Thursday, 1st Week of Lent
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour:
Violet.
|
First reading
|
Esther 4:17 ©
|
|
I am alone, Lord, and have no-one but
you
|
Queen Esther took refuge with the Lord in
the mortal peril which had overtaken her. She besought the Lord God of Israel
in these words:
‘My Lord, our King, the only one,
come to my help, for I am alone
and have no helper but you
and am about to take my life in my hands.
‘I have been taught from my earliest
years, in the bosom of my family,
that you, Lord, chose
Israel out of all the nations
and our ancestors out of all the people of
old times
to be your heritage for ever;
and that you have treated them as you
promised.
‘Remember, Lord; reveal yourself
in the time of our distress.
‘As for me, give me courage,
King of gods and master of all power.
Put persuasive words into my mouth
when I face the lion;
change his feeling into hatred for our
enemy,
that the latter and all like him may be
brought to their end.
‘As for ourselves, save us by your hand,
and come to my help, for I am alone
and have no one but you, Lord.’
|
Responsorial Psalm
|
|
Psalm 137(138):1-3,7-8 ©
|
On the day I called, you
answered me, O Lord.
I thank you, Lord, with all my heart:
you have heard the words of my
mouth.
In the presence of the angels I will bless
you.
I will adore before your holy
temple.
On the day I called, you
answered me, O Lord.
I thank you for your faithfulness and
love,
which excel all we ever knew
of you.
On the day I called, you answered;
you increased the strength of
my soul.
On the day I called, you
answered me, O Lord.
You stretch out your hand and save me,
your hand will do all things
for me.
Your love, O Lord, is eternal,
discard not the work of your
hands.
On the day I called, you
answered me, O Lord.
|
Gospel Acclamation
|
Joel2:12-13
|
Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word
of God!
Now, now – it is the Lord who
speaks –
come back to me with all your heart,
for I am all tenderness and compassion.
Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word
of God!
|
Or:
|
Ps50:12,14
|
Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word
of God!
A pure heart create for me, O God,
and give me again the joy of your help.
Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word
of God!
|
Gospel
|
Matthew 7:7-12 ©
|
|
Ask, and it will be given to you;
search, and you will find
|
Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Ask, and it
will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be
opened to you. For the one who asks always receives; the one who searches
always finds; the one who knocks will always have the door opened to him. Is
there a man among you who would hand his son a stone when he asked for bread?
Or would hand him a snake when he asked for a fish? If you, then, who are evil,
know how to give your children what is good, how much more will your Father in
heaven give good things to those who ask him!
‘So
always treat others as you would like them to treat you; that is the meaning of
the Law and the Prophets.’
A DISCERNING
PRAYER
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ Est 4:17; Ps 138:1-3,7-8; Mt 7:7-12 ]
The prevailing theme of
this first week of Lent is on prayer.
On Tuesday, the gospel gave us the guidelines and pattern of all prayers,
namely, the Lord’s Prayer. Yesterday, we read how the Ninevites, upon
hearing of their imminent destruction, called on the name of the Lord in prayer
and fasting and their prayers were heard. In the first reading today, we
read about Queen Esther who was in desperation for God’s help to save her
people from extermination. And the same message runs through these next
few days that God will hear our prayers when they are sincere, fervent and
filled with faith.
But today, the liturgy
deepens further the understanding of prayer as not mere seeking for petitions
to be answered. Most
people reduce prayer to asking God for help. This is just only one form
of prayer. Jesus already reminded us that “When you are praying, do not
heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be
heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father
knows what you need before you ask him.” (Mt 6:7f) Indeed, before we ask, the
Father already knows what we need. He can read our hearts and our
desires. He does not even need us to articulate them. That is why
St Paul also wrote, “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do
not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs
too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is
the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according
to the will of God.” (Rom 8:26f)
Otherwise, our prayers
could end up asking for the wrong things because of our ignorance. This was what the Lord warned us.
“Is there a man among you who would hand his son a stone when he asked for
bread? Or would hand him a snake when he asked for a fish?” Often, we
pray with a limited vision. We tend to react to trials and sufferings
that come our way. We are like little children crying out for help
instead of behaving like adults, thinking through carefully how to overcome our
trials and tribulations in a way that is truly beneficial not just for us but
for others, and even our enemies.
We cannot allow our
emotions and fears to decide what we want and what we need. This was the situation of Queen
Esther. In desperation, in great anxiety and fear, she turned to the Lord
and said, “Put persuasive words into my mouth when I face the lion; change his
feeling into hatred for our enemy that the latter and all like him may be
brought to their end.” The prayer to destroy our enemies is not the
prayer of a Christian but the prayer of someone in desperation, in fear or even
in vindictiveness. In the gospel, Jesus made it clear that
forgiveness is a condition for prayer. That was why in the Lord’s Prayer
He concluded by asking us to pray, “forgive us our debts as we also have
forgiven our debtors.” (Mt 6:12) And in Mark’s gospel, Jesus
said, “So I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have
received it, and it will be yours. Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you
have anything against anyone; so that your Father in heaven may also forgive
you your trespasses.” (Mk 11:24f)
Yet, the fact is that
when we are in desperation, we pray without thinking and considering what we
are asking for. In
the case of Queen Esther, while it was right that she prayed for the grace to
say the right words to the King so that he could be moved to save his people,
she lacked the wisdom and compassion to pray for her enemies. As St Paul
says, “Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of
God; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’
No, ‘if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give
them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their
heads.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Rom 12:19-21)
For this reason, when we
pray, we must be discerning. God will only grant us what is good, not
what is evil.“If you, then, who are
evil, know how to give your children what is good, how much more will your
Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him! ‘So always treat others
as you would like them to treat you; that is the meaning of the Law and the
Prophets.'” All prayers directed to God must be for our good and the good
of others. To pray the Lord’s Prayer is to pray as one family and for
this reason we address God as OUR Father. Every father loves his children
regardless. So we cannot expect God who is the Father of us all, to
destroy His other children in order to save us. God does not do
evil. He seeks to do good and He would even send His Son to die for us as
sinners. Indeed, in yesterday’s scripture reading on the story of Jonah,
we are told that the sign to be given to them is that of Jonah, in that Christ
at His passion, death and resurrection was like Jonah who was thrown into the
sea and swallowed up by a large fish. Jonah said to the people, “Pick me
up and throw me into the sea; then the sea will quiet down for you; for I know
it is because of me that this great storm has come upon you.” (Jonah 1:12) Jesus however died for us,
innocent though He was for our sins.
A discerning prayer
therefore would entail firstly by asking. Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to
you.” To ask is more than merely making a request because as the Lord
already said, His Father knows what we need even before we ask from Him.
So this asking is to articulate our intentions in the heart aloud so that we
can hear what we are asking. When we hear what we are saying, we can
discern clearer whether what we are praying for is in the mind of God and
according to His will. Only prayers made in the name of Christ, that is,
when we pray according to His mind and heart, will be answered. If our
prayers do not agree with what the Lord is asking, which means we are going
against the will of God and His wisdom, we cannot expect the Lord to grant us
gifts that would destroy us ultimately, even if not in this life, in the life
hereafter.
Secondly, Jesus said,
“search, and you will find.” A discerning prayer is one that searches
one’s own heart and the heart of God. We pray in such a way that our motives are
pure and holy. St Paul wrote, “Do not worry about
anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let
your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses
all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is
just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there
is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these
things.” (Phil 4:6-8) Hence
to search means to purify our intentions and seek the wisdom of God in whatever
we are praying for. God might have other solutions for us in dealing with
a difficult situation. That was how our Blessed Mother prayed. She
told the servants at Cana after making known to her Son that the guests had no
wine, “Do whatever he tells you.” (Jn 2:5)
Finally, a discerning
prayer is one that knocks. Jesus said, “the one who knocks will always
have the door opened to him.” This
means that although God will answer our prayers, He normally answers through
others. Therefore, whilst asking God to help us, we must not simply do
nothing and expect God to act. As it is said, we must do our best and
leave the rest to God. We must pray and work. We need to follow the
advice of St Benedict, “Ora et labora”. Thus, it behoves us to seek the
necessary advice, having the courage to approach the right people to help us,
being receptive to the messengers that God sends to us. To knock means to
look for solutions and cooperate with the grace of God. Unless we have
the humility to knock, to seek for help, we will miss out on the opportunities
the Lord is giving to us. To knock also means that we must persevere in
seeking for the answers to our prayers.
In the final analysis,
whether in asking, searching or knocking, we must persevere in our prayers with
faith. Like Queen
Esther, we must trust in the power of God as she did when she said, “My Lord,
our King, the only one, come to my help, for I am alone and have no helper. As
for ourselves, save us by your hand, and come to my help, for I am alone and
have no one but you, Lord.” Furthermore, she added, “I have been taught
from my earliest years, in the bosom of my family, that you, Lord, chose Israel
out of all the nations and our ancestors out of all the people of old times to
be your heritage for ever; and that you have treated them as you promised.
Remember, Lord; reveal yourself in the time of our distress.” By
recalling the fidelity of God to our forefathers, we will gain faith in the
power and mercy of God to save us from our distress because He is the faithful
one. Indeed, let our prayer be with the psalmist, “You stretch out your
hand and save me, your hand will do all things for me. Your love, O Lord,
is eternal, discard not the work of your hands.”
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
No comments:
Post a Comment