The Fire of God's Love

Acts 2:1-21

Meck and I went to visit my aunt Patsy in Illinois. We wanted to go because my grandmother, Eadie Mae Jarrett, was living in the in-law apartment at my aunt Patsy and her husband Bob's house. To visit my Grandma Jarrett, we had to visit Aunt Patsy and Uncle Bob.

Patsy and Bob live on the campus of Lincoln Christian College, a very, very conservative bible college in a very conservative southern Illinois town. This is how conservative the college is: a young man and a young woman were caught kissing on campus. They were caught, I say "caught", because if you are a young man or a young woman and you want to kiss you have to hide to kiss, because kissing on campus is against the rules of Lincoln Christian College. This young couple was caught kissing, there was a disciplinary hearing during which other young couples confessed to have also been kissing on campus. And so they had a special chapel service so the couples could repent of their kissing, and ask for forgiveness.

As you can imagine, our visit to my aunt Patsy's house to see my Grandma Jarrett required some extensive advance negotiations. I started a year ahead of time, letting my aunt know that Meck and I were a couple so that she would not be scared, so that she would be ready. We had to talk about scripture, morality, culture, family dynamics, and interestingly - being American, for many months before my Aunt Patsy felt as though she could invite Meck and me to visit. We offered to stay in a hotel, we offered to accept any accommodations that would ease, allow comfort, and kindness and love to be between us. Though these negotiations were intense, and they were full of love between my aunt and me. My aunt would say again and again, I'm praying for you, I'm praying for you.

Out of the blue, one day my aunt said that as a result of her prayers she wanted to invite Meck and me to stay there with them in their house and we did. The generosity of this invitation and of her hospitality was enormous. It is maybe hard to comprehend the immensity of her generosity here in this congregation, in Lexington, in this blue state. But to give you an idea of its enormity, my uncle Bob left the house, he would not stay, while we were in residence.

While we were there visiting, I noticed an open spiral bound notebook laid out, right in public for all to see. It was not there for display, I don't think, it had just come to rest there. In my aunt's hand, there in the spiral bound notebook, were entries of dates and names. Under each date, was a list of names. My name was there on the list for the several dates I could see. Of course, I picked up the notebook, and looked through it. This notebook it turns out is a daily log of the people that my aunt was praying for - and she had been praying for me. I looked back, and yes, she had been praying for me the whole year we had been talking. It was because of my aunt's practice of prayer for me that her heart had been opened to offer hospitality to Meck and me, that gave her the necessary courage to hold open a space in the face of her husband and her community. And in fact, our visit was full of radiance, god filled, kindness - it was peace on earth in the most unusual place.

It is what we want, isn't it? Peace on earth? Peace between us, peace in our homes, peace in Iraq, in Afghanistan, peace in our streets, peace in our hearts, peace in our hearts, peace in our hearts?

Based on the strength of my aunt Patsy's testimony, I want therefore to recommend prayer to you. It is a practice that, if we can take it up, opens our hearts to peace and can also provide room and space for peace.

Here at Pilgrim, we open every service with a unison prayer, and with the Lords' prayer. We also have the pastoral prayer, and we close with prayer. When we have communion, we do more praying. We ask God to be present, we ask God for what we need, thank God for what we have, and we ask God to continue God's presence with us and in us as we leave this place. We also pray at the beginning and at the end of almost every committee meeting we attend.

But how do we pray when we're not here in this building. I know that many of us pray at the beginning of meals, and many of us pray with our kids.

But really how else do we pray. It's hard to know how to begin, to know what to do or what to say. It can be a little embarrassing to begin to pray because who really knows what to say to God - uh, hi God, uh, dear heavenly father, like, uh - what'cha doing? - uh, how's Jesus? Ok, uh, yeah, right, goodbye, amen. Suddenly we're shy, suddenly we're like teenagers again.

It's hard to know where to pray, like should I sit on a chair, should I kneel, can I pray in the shower even though I'm like - in the shower?

I've been thinking a lot about prayer. I've been thinking about the Sikh practice of wearing a bracelet which is never removed, whose purpose is to remind the pray-er to say God's name as many times as day as one can remember. I wrote about prayer for my ordination paper, for my ecclesiastical council, and I would like to share what I wrote with you because I was teaching myself about prayer. Maybe you'll recognize something about how you pray, or maybe you'll teach me something about your prayers.

What is it, prayer?

Prayer is verbal and non-verbal communication with God. Prayer is work intentionally offered to God. Prayer is song and rhythm offered to God. Prayer is shouting, foot stomping anger aimed at God. Prayer is foot stomping joy shared with God. Prayer is the receptive posture, and prayer is the practice and preparation to receive God. Prayer is the apprehension of divine light, voice, apparition, intention. Prayer is painting with the purpose of co-creating with God. Prayer is the recitation of the 23^rd Psalm in English and German. Prayer is the fire of God's Love.

Prayer - what is it good for? Prayer is what enables the pastor, when knee to knee or shoulder to shoulder with a parishioner, to hold the parishioner and her/his needs in the light of God. Prayer is what reminds the community to be thinking of what the community or an individual.

Prayer resets, realigns the molecules of the pray-er's body and spirit. Prayer offers the opportunity for the numinous experience.

Prayer allows the pray-er to transcend the boundaries of tribe, kin, congregation, skin, and identity.

Prayer allows the Divine Presence the same possibility of transcendence.

Prayer is both the path and the map to God.

Prayer - why do we do it? We pray because it is our first language.

We pray because we want communication with the highest truth and beauty available in the vast universe and in the apple tart made by the hands of our beloved mothers-in-law. We pray because we are disconsolate, because we feel the present need to show gratitude to give thanks. We pray because we run out of words. We pray because without praying we are dry husks of narcissism. We pray because an experience of beauty or sorrow is too big to hold alone inside our one body. We pray because prayer opens the interior territory of our spirit, and prayer is a lamp in that territory.

Prayer - where do we do it? We pray in church, in temple, in school, in the garden, under the car when we are looking for the bolt in the oil pan. We pray in our kitchens, and at the dinner table. We pray in front of the mirror in response to what we see. We pray in yoga class, and at the table with our watercolors. We pray in our woodshops the first time we use a new sharp chisel. We pray in the pulpit, and we pray at our children's bedsides.

We pray in the hospital, at the graveside, at weddings, and committee meetings. We pray as we walk into the main entrance of the prison, the state house and the mall. We pray in the check-out line.

Prayer - who does it? Preachers, pastors, all clergy pray professionally. Every person who has ever been in a fox hole prays.

People who lie on gurneys having arrived at the hospital very early in the morning for day surgery, who have never prayed in their lives, will tolerate being ,prayed. Beginning today, Chris Emery and Deb Adams, and you who join them will pray. Children pray, "Mommy!" or "Daddy" or "Now I lay me down to sleep . . ."

Prayer - how do we do it? We pray as Annie Lamott says, by praying, "Help me, help me, help me," and "Thank you, thank you, thank you." We pray without ceasing as Paul instructed us.

We may pray for the practice of it or comfort of it. But we also pray because we believe that prayer is transformative. We believe our praying will give us courage, will open our hearts, will end the war, will make wisdom available to our leaders, and strengthen our teachers.

For this week of Pentecost I invite you to prayer, to begin to pray or to deepen the prayer practice you already have. You can join Chris Emery and the newly formed Pilgrim Prayers just after the service today, if you feel the impulse to do so. Or you could begin this week in prayer another way. You will find on the outside end of your pew bits of red yarn. There should be enough for each of you to tie around your wrist if you'd like, to put in your pocket if you like, to tape it to your computer monitor or your steering wheel. Put it in a place somewhere where you will encounter it through out your day, to remind you to say God's name as many times as you can remember in a day. Try to remember to pray simply, Hi God, how's Jesus, or help me, help me, help me. Try it to see if maybe you like it. Pray for peace on earth in unusual places, peace in our homes, and peace in our hearts, peace in our hearts, peace in our hearts. Come, Holy Spirit, Come.

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