Words of Wisdom

For today, the topics of prayer and peace....

I've heard so many Christians who prayer as loud as possible, as long as possible, thinking somehow that if they say enough of the right words God will hear them, or they'll sound as if they have a closer relationship with God, or they're more righteous than others...

I would caution everyone against this insidious type of pride. It comes easily, and is hard to purge from your life. Especially when one is trained that this is way Christians should pray - loud, obnoxious, for all the world to hear our tzedakah (righteousness).

This is what Yeshua says on the matter:
"Be careful not to parade your acts of tzedakah in front of peoplein order to be seen by them! If you do, you have no reward from your Father in heaven. So, when you do tzedakah, don't announce it with trumpets to win people's praise, like the hypocrites in the synagogues and on the streets.... When you pray, don't be like the hypocrites, who love to pray standing in the synagogues and on street corners, so that people can see them. Yes! I tell you, they have their reward already! But you, when you pray, do into your room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. Your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
"And when you pray, don't babble on and on like the pagans, who think God will hear them better if they talk a lot. Don't be like them, because your Father knows what you need before you ask him. You, therefore, pray like this:
"Our Father in heaven!
May your name be kept holy.
May your Kingdom come,
your will be done on earth as in heaven.
Give us the food we need today.
Forgive us what we have done wrong,
as we too have forgiven those who have wronged us.
And do not lead us into hard testing,
but keep us safe from the Evil One.
For kingship, power and glory are yours forever. Amen."

Many Christians also fall into the habit of constantly worrying about life. You might say, "Well, it's not just Christians, everyone worries!"
Why is that? We are called to be holy, set apart, different. Why is it then that our lifestyle mirrors that of "pagans"?
Worrying is telling Yahweh that you don't trust Him enough to take care of everything, down to the smallest detail. Relationships are built on trust. If there is no trust, there is no close relationship. So how then could you call Yahweh your Lord, savior, closest friend, confidante, etc if you still worry about earthly matters?

This is what Yeshua says:
"Therefore, I tell you, don't worry about your life - what you will eat or drink; or about your body - what you will wear. Isn't life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds flying about! They neither plant nor harvest, nor do they gather food into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren't you worth more than they are? Can any of you by worrying add a single hour to his life?
"And why be anxious about clothing? Think about the fields of wild irises, and how they they grow. They neither work nor spin thread, yet I tell you that not even Shlomo in all his glory was clothed as beautifully as one of these.
"If this is how God clothes grass in the field - which is here today and gone tomorrow, thrown in an oven - won't he much more clothe you? What little trust you have!
"So don't be anxious, asking, 'What will we eat?', 'What will we drink?' or 'How will we be clothed?' For it is the pagans who set their hearts on all these things. Your heavenly Father knows you need them all. But seek first his Kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Don't worry about tomorrow - tomorrow will worry about itself! Today has enough tsuris already!"

I hope that you read all this, and that it has both encouraged and chastised you (in love). Don't allow guilt to weigh you down; instead, put the past behind you, lift your face to the sunrise, and realise that Yahweh doesn't remember our mistakes and sins. Today is a new day. You will have choices to make, some easy, some tough. I pray that what you do, you do for the glory of Yahweh.

Shalom.