No matter what happens, no matter what comes down the pike, and no matter what your heart and mind might tell you, do not let go of this fact: the Lord Jesus has come to you, and by His Gospel He calls you to Himself in love. He desires to receive you to Himself. He longs to help you, to give you life both now and forever. In mercy He brings you to His God and Father in both body and soul. He promises grace and every blessing to all who call upon His Name, and He does it.
In Holy Baptism, the same Lord Jesus Christ has bound Himself to you — and you to Him — in His Cross and Resurrection from the dead. So are you also bound to God the Father in His Son. For He has named you with His own Name. He has adopted you to be His own dear child, and He will not renounce you. He has anointed you with His Holy Spirit, and so has He given you divine, eternal Life. He forgives you all your sins and remembers them no more. He justifies you by His grace alone. He sanctifies you with His Blood. He shall not withhold any good thing from you.
All of this is sure and certain, for His call and His gifts are irrevocable. It shall be done for you as He has promised through the Gospel. The One who calls you is faithful, and He will do it.
Therefore, ask, and it will be given to you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened to you. Call upon the Name of the Lord in faith, and do not doubt that He will hear and answer.
In Christ Jesus, your God and Father in heaven has commanded you to pray in this way. And He has taught you how to pray, He has put the very words upon your lips. And He has promised to hear you. Therefore, pray at all times, and do not lose heart. Pray without ceasing. Pray with confidence and courage, and say “Amen,” that is, “It shall be so!” Pray, praise, and give thanks.
Pray, not only for yourself, but for your neighbors in the world, and even for your enemies.
Pray, not only by yourself, but along with your brothers and sisters in Christ in the company and fellowship of His holy Christian Church.
Praise and worship the Lord your God with heart and hand and voice — in prayer and confession — in Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs — not only giving thanks for His good gifts and benefits, but praising Him for who He is. Praise Him in the splendor of His Holiness. Praise and glorify His Holy Name in all that you do and say. Praise Him for the God He has revealed Himself to be — the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — for it is truly meet, right, and salutary so to do.
And of course, do also give Him thanks for His gracious gifts and His generous benefits. Above all, give thanks to God for His free and full forgiveness of all your sins — and for the Life and Salvation that are yours by His grace through faith in Jesus Christ, your Savior.
Give thanks, not only for what you already see — for what you already hold in your hands — but also for what the Lord your God has promised, even as you wait upon Him in the confident hope of His mercy. Such prayer is the voice of faith, an active confession of God’s Word in Christ.
To pray with such faith in the Word of God is the most decisive and definitive characteristic of Christian discipleship and life. Christians pray. It is that simple, basic, and fundamental, because it is an exercise of trust and confidence, by which you not only look to God in Christ Jesus for help, but you rely upon Him alone for all that you need, for both your body and your soul.
To pray with such faith depends entirely upon the Word of Christ. Therefore, true Christian prayer always begins with — and continues to rest upon — the hearing of His Word. You cannot pray without the Word of Christ. So, if you would pray, open up your ears before opening your mouth.
Where you have not prayed as you should, Repent. Hear and heed the Word of Christ, and pray.
And for all the ways that you have prayed only out of habit or superstition, without the fear, love, and trust of God in your heart, Repent. Do not cease to pray, but pray with a new and right spirit.
If you have been lazy or distracted, so that you have not given your time and attention to the Word of God and prayer, Repent, and pray in Jesus’ name. Pray because you need Him above all else.
If you have neglected to pray with and for your family and your congregation, Repent, and fulfill your calling (your vocation) as a Christian. To pray and intercede for your neighbor — and to offer the morning and evening sacrifice of prayer, praise, and thanksgiving — that is your royal priesthood as a baptized child of God. Do it faithfully. Where you have fallen short, do it better.
If you have become discouraged, given up hope, and ceased to pray — because you have felt as though the Lord were not listening or answering — Repent, trust Christ, and live. Do not despair, but continue to cry out to Him. He is not deaf to your pleas. He is not blind to your tears. He is not slow about keeping His promises, but He is patient with you, and He is merciful.
The Lord’s desire is to save you. That is His good and gracious will. If His help tarries for a night, a week, a month, a year — if it tarries for a lifetime — His help will yet come in the morning. Even if you go down to the grave in death, He shall raise you up again to Life with Himself in both body and soul. It shall be done for you as you wish. It shall be done for you as you believe.
As often as His Law accuses you of sin, say “yes” to that. His Word is Truth. You are a sinner. But do not take that thundering “no” of the Law as the Lord’s last word or final answer to your prayer. For Christ is the Savior of sinners. He is your Savior. And He speaks another Word, which satisfies the Law and rescues you from sin and death. It has been spoken by His Cross and in His Resurrection, and it has been spoken to you in your Holy Baptism. So it is that the sure and certain “Yes” and “Amen” of the Gospel stands fast, even through the long dark night of silence.
Do not despair, give up, or lose heart, but continue to pray. At just the right time, in due season, you shall hear and receive His Word of mercy, which does what it says and gives what it promises.
If you suffer hardship, loss, pain, and grief, even this is for your good, for the strengthening of your faith unto Life. It is a participation in the Cross of Christ, by which you enter into Life with Him. What is more, your suffering is an opportunity and a blessed privilege to confess your hope in Christ Jesus and His mercy, for the strengthening of your neighbor’s faith unto Life everlasting.
Trust your dear God and Father in heaven. He knows what He is doing, and He does it all for the sake of love, out of fatherly, divine goodness and mercy. For the sake of His beloved Son, He governs and guides all things in heaven and on earth for the blessing and benefit of His Church, for the eternal welfare and well-being of all His baptized children. All of history — including all current events — it is all constrained to serve His purposes for the salvation of His entire family.
Likewise, trust your gracious Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who has not only taught you to pray — who not only hears your prayer and answers in love — but who also prays and intercedes for you, Himself, as your merciful and great High Priest. His Spirit also helps you in your weakness and prays for you, bearing the groans of your heart to God the Father in Christ Jesus. So, then, by the prayer of God Himself, you are strengthened and sustained in faith and life — and in prayer.
For you are a sheep of the Good Shepherd. You belong to the flocks of His pasture. You were lost and in danger, but the Lord has found you, and He has brought you home with great rejoicing.
You are not a dog. You are a dear child seated at your Father’s Table. You are no more a stranger, an alien, a foreigner, or an outcast, but a member of His own household and family. This is where you live. This is where you belong. Not by any merit or worthiness in you, but by the grace of God in Christ Jesus, which is constant, sure, and certain.
When you pray, you are not begging for table scraps, but asking your own dear God and Father for the Food that He loves to give you, for the gifts Christ freely gives. Ask Him, then, not as though He would otherwise withhold His gracious hand, but to confess and give thanks for His mercy. For here is the living and Life-giving Bread which He bestows from His open hand to satisfy your deepest longing and your heart’s desire. As He feeds you in body and soul with this supernatural Bread which endures unto eternal Life, you lack no good thing at all in heaven or on earth.
Open your ears to hear, and speak as you have heard.
And even as you then open your mouth to pray, so shall you find that you are fed — that you are healed and satisfied, cleansed and refreshed, rescued and sustained — unto the Life everlasting.
In the Name + of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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