Sorting our Prayers – Day 28 of 40

Armodoxy for Today – Sorting our Prayers – Day 28 of Lent

Of the Lenten Sundays, three of them are named after parables which spotlight questionable characters. During the last two Sundays we met the Prodigal Son and the Dishonest Steward. Completing the trilogy of Parables-Sundays is the dedication for this 28th day of Lent to the Unrighteous Judge. All three parables come to us from our Lord and are found in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 16, 17 & 18, respectively.

The Unrighteous Judge is a man who, as Jesus explains, did not fear anyone – not even God, nor was he ashamed of any person. In the town where he served as judge a widow kept coming to him and pleading with him, begging that he hear her case. For some time he refused, but finally he said to himself, “Even though I don’t fear God, nor do I care about men, but because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice so she won’t eventually wear me out!” Jesus concludes his parable with an interesting statement. He says, “Listen to what the unjust judge says and will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones who cry out to him day and night. Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, He will see that they get justice, and quickly.”

Indeed, this is an odd story at least on the surface. At first reading you might think that Jesus compares God to this unrighteous, unjust judge. Following that parallel you’re inclined to think that God can be worn out or worn down. It is as if we continue to pray repeatedly, God will eventually say yes to our needs and to our desires. So keep praying, keep being persistent. Persevere like the old lady! And in the end God will be tired of hearing you and will change His mind! Yes, it is odd, and perhaps it is for that reason why the evangelist St. Luke, writes a few words of explanation as a preface to the parable. He says, “Jesus told His disciples this parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.” St. Luke’s narrative suggests that during his time, as is the case today, there is a misconception about the nature of prayer.

When Jesus teaches us the “Lord’s Prayer” he warns, “Do not heap up extra words. Your heavenly Father already knows what you need. Therefore when you pray, pray like this. Our Father, which art in heaven … ” Let’s think about that for a moment. If our Heavenly Father knows what we need, why then should we pray? This question betrays the fact that we have a misunderstanding about prayer.

Prayer is not merely a conversation with God. We pray because we need a conversation with ourselves. God already knows the desires of our heart. He knows our needs and as a loving father, wants the best for us. The real question is, do we know our needs? It may sound strange, but unless you have a true focus on your life, it is questionable whether or not you know what your needs are. Hence, we have the Lenten Season, annually, to realign ourselves with God and ourselves.

The act of charity today is to extend yourself to someone in obvious need, a patient in the hospital, a person on the street, a bereaved friend. Without being intrusive and without asking them, can you understand what their needs are?  Fast from shopping list types of prayers.

Try Broiled Lemon-garlic Mushroom for tonight’s Lenten meal with the recipe below.

We pray, Lord our God, you know our needs and our wants better than we do. Open my heart to Your Love so that I may trust that You are in charge. Amen.

Lenten Recipes by Deacon Varoujan: Recipe 28: Broiled Lemon-garlic Mushrooms