I often say to myself and repeat this sentiment among followers of Jesus: “Don’t complain about our culture, cry out to the Lord for mercy.”  As God’s faithful people in a negative, post-Christian environment, it is imperative to reimage our understanding of our nation.  I believe we’re past the point of dialogue with a popular narrative that is hostile to a biblical view of reality.  We are more like missionaries in a third-world country.  We are now exiles in a strange land.  Yet, we can be positive, hopeful and joyful.

For some time now, I have felt led to spend time in the prophets.  My continual question has been, “Lord, what do your prophets have to say to my generation?”  In other words, “What is God’s prophetic word for his church?” I assume that God’s prophetic word, as given by the prophets, has significant relevance when we begin to see the unfolding of his judgment on our nation as we wander further and further away from his revealed word.  

I must confess, this has been a challenge for me.  I do this work because I am motivated to know first hand – from my meditation on scripture and reliance on his Spirit – what God is saying to our culture.  The observers, influencers and policy makers are secondary.  How do we work through the confusion of the many voices?  God warns us in Deut. 28:20, “The Lord himself will send on you curses, confusion, and frustration in everything you do, until at last you are completely destroyed for doing evil and abandoning me.”  Micah tells us, “But your judgment day is coming swiftly now.  Your time of punishment is here, a time of confusion” (Micah 7:4). Could the confusion of our day actually be a sign of the Lord’s judgment on our nation?  

When I learn of the latest news coming out of Washington and other centers of influence, the words of Ezekiel 22:5 seem appropriate: “O infamous city, filled with confusion, you will be mocked by people far and near.”  Could this be what the Lord is allowing among those who are supposed to govern us as a nation?  “Oh, what a day of crushing defeat!  What a day of confusion and terror brought by the Lord, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, upon the Valley of Vision! (Isaiah 22:5).  Who will lead us out of this confusion?  What message will finally bring relief to all this confusion?

I find great encouragement and strength from the intercession of the prophets.  For example, Isaiah 63:15-64:12 is such a prayer.  The prophet’s focus is on the Lord:  “Lord, look down from heaven; look from your holy glorious home and see us” (Is. 63:15).  He prays for God to intervene.  “Oh, that you would burst from the heaven and come down” (64:1).  There still are many questions. “Where are your zeal and your might?” (63:15).  “Lord, why have you allowed us to turn from your path?” (64:17). “Why have you given us stubborn heart so we no longer fear you?” (64:17).  “We are constant sinners; how can people like us be saved?” (64:5).  I ask these questions repeatedly.  

These are hard questions, but they are not antagonistic, nor are they directed inward.  They are directed to God, who is addressed as Father.  “They are children’s questions, expressing penitence, dependence and trust.  They are questions of prodigals come home, daring to hope that the father… will not turn them from his door” (The Bible Speaks). 

Men, don’t allow complaining voices draw you away from an “upward gaze” on our victorious Lord.  He is in charge of history.  Bring your questions to Him as you cry out for mercy. 

Years ago I came across the phase “a comfortable walk with God,”  which was coined by early Puritan writers.  James Houston used it while discussing prayer,  referring to a person coming to peace with who they were in relationship to God.  He said, in effect, “A person is never more true to themselves and more natural before God, than when they are in Christ.” 

I thought of “the comfortable walk” when our men’s group discussed the chapter on the “Discipline of Devotion” in R. Kent Hughes book, “Disciplines of a Godly Man.” The tendency for men is to make our devotional life a religious performance in which we win favor with God and satisfy ourselves by being spiritual.   In a group, men often measure their spirituality by comparing themselves with other men. There’s always pressure to measure up to a certain standard.  In a book entitled “The Pressure’s Off,” Larry Crabb maintains that when you seek God and nothing else, the pressure truly is off.  

We can easily make our walk with God something that works well for us.  It is more about us than a relationship with God.  If we do certain spiritual practices, then we will be blessed by the Lord.  Crabb warns, “when the desire becomes our goal, the objective we most value… our lives then become a sustained effort to discover and follow whatever principles will provide a life that lets us feel pretty good.”  As a result, “the pressure is on.”

My journey of prayer has been one of “letting go” and simply “receiving.”  It has taken years for me to become “comfortable” in my walk with the Lord.  It has been plagued with pride, shame, selfishness, and self-pity. What has made it a ”burden” at times is that my calling was to be a “professional holy man.” I was paid to be good.  The pressure was on for a lot of years. I still get caught on “my treadmill” of trying to be good.  But thankfully, I am finding more freedom and joy in my walk.  Even so, I still hit “ditches and potholes” of my own making when I focus on me.  

After years of growth and struggle, here is some hard-learned discoveries I have come to appreciate about prayer:

1)  First and foremost, prayer is not a duty or discipline, but rather an ongoing conversation with the living God.  He has put within each of us a hunger to know Him.  The Psalmist says it passionately, “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God” (Ps. 42:1)  Panting is a heartfelt response.  I bring my whole self before God, not just my “shiny, religious self.” 

2)  The Lord is already present within me.  Paul reminds us, “The Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express” (Romans 8:26).  Did you know that prayer is already going on in your soul?  The Lord is there waiting for you to make yourself available to Him.

3)  I need to get beyond my thoughts and simply be quiet in the presence of the Lord.  Listening is imperative in a mutual and intimate relationship. 

4)  My maturing in prayer is unique to my personality.  What works for me does not necessarily work for someone else. We find our own unique way with Him.  

5)  This has been particularly hard to accept: the Lord changes the nature of the relationship as I mature.  My Father is after intimacy and oneness.  I have to give up my childish ways, including my “spiritual achievements.” 

Remember: “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” (II Cor. 3:17).