February 26

[media presentation below]

GospelThink

Thursday, February 26, Lent I

MATTHEW 7:7-12

Prayer of Petition

Prayerthoughts

a. Every prayer that I say to the Lord will be answered. Do I pray with that thought in mind or do I think that the Lord answers some prayers and not others? A prayer of thanksgiving to God for listening to my every prayer would be in order here.

b. Again God answers every prayer. Jesus reiterates it twice here. It is very important then that I know this because there are times in my life when I doubted it. What were some of those times, and how have they been resolved?

c. God knows more than I do. In my prayer of petition, I may be asking for things that would have been harmful to me. What are some examples of the past when I prayed for something, but God saw that it should not be given to me?

d. The Lord knows what is best for me, and so my prayer of petition for whatever I desire must close with “...but You know better than I.” Do I remember to do that?

e. It is fitting that as the Lord talks about petitionary prayer that he reiterates the Golden Rule. It says to us that as we pray for things that we need, we remember that we must truly love others. Is there anyone in my circle of people that I am not loving the way I should?

g. My prayerthoughts…

Today, I will read Esther C:12,14-16,23-25 and write an important thought from it.

Some Thoughts on the Liturgy

THE PRAYER OF PETITION

+ The readings today want us to consider the subject of the prayer of petition

- Queen Esther fervently prays for help and courage as she honors God in a foreign land

- Jesus’s words are from the Sermon on the Mount

- giving a treatise, almost, on the prayer of petition

- just as Esther does, Jesus says you have to pray—ask, seek, knock

+ A couple of things about that prayer of petition:

1 – we must remember what Jesus says earlier in the Sermon on the Mount

- we pray because we need it, not God

- therefore we pray knowing that God already knows what we need

- we simply are putting God into our consciousness knowing that God is with us as we ask

2 – when we pray, it may not seem like we receive, find or have the door opened, but it really happens

- it must all be understood with Jesus’s statements about what is good

- God will give us only good

- and only God knows what is really good

- stone/loaf; snake/fish

- we know good for our children; God knows good for us

- the prayer of petition will always be answered

- and part of the prayer of petition is that we understand that God’s answer will be good for us

3 – there is another element that is not part of the prayer of petition, but part of Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount

- and I think that Matthew placing it here in the Sermon on the Mount is an important statement

- and that is the closing phrase

- even as we ask for what is necessary in our lives, we have to work on charity toward others

- too many people pray to God, expecting God to answer—and God will—

- but do not make God part of the rest of their lives

- in particular, how we treat others

+ The prayer of petition is an important part of our spirituality

- it should be part of what we do every day, but we have to understand it well.

MEDIA PRESENTATION

Song: "So Easy" – Olivia Dean

AN EASY YOKE

The Gospel

Matthew 11:28-30

Jesus said: “Come to me, all you who labor and are abandoned, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.

Gospelthink: My ways are only somewhat difficult.

"I could be the twist, the one to make you stop, the icing on the cake, the cherry on the top. It’s heaven in my heart, and we could find you some space. I could be the world to you, the missing piece, that kind of chemistry. Some people make it hard; with me, that isn’t the case ‘cause I make it so easy to fall in love. So, come give me a call, and we’ll fall into us. I’m the perfect mix of Saturday night and the rest of your life. Anyone with a heart would agree: it’s so easy to fall in love with me.”

Jesus knew full well that the yoke he was preaching wasn’t outright easy. That which made it “easy” was the fact that the condition had to be fulfilled, that is, a person’s heart had to be in it. If a person was convinced that Jesus’s yoke would help the person’s life, it was easy for that person to place it on him/her.

Olivia Dean’s song “So Easy” should be interpreted the same way. If the other really knew that her love was with that person, and that person really wanted it, then it would be easy to fall in love with her. But the condition had to be fulfilled—that person had to have their heart in it, had to really want it with all of their heart.

Such a knowledge is a challenge in the spiritual life. The yoke will be easy for those who really want it in their lives. The question for the truly Christian person is: does he/she want it completely? It involves a “yes” answer that includes wanting love to flourish in a person’s life, seeking peace in whatever situation he/she is in, and shaping one’s life according to the Christian attitude, that is, following what Jesus set up as a guide.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, I know that you want me to follow your Son completely. Give me the grace to carry out that desire every day of my life. Be with us, we pray.

+++++

GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: When your heart is really in it, it is easy to fall in love.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
What does the song "So Easy" teach young people?