Suppose Pope Francis had the habit of picking someone at random from the Angelus audience crowd to come have tea with him later in the day as an informal, private audience. Suppose one day you were at the Vatican and you were the person chosen! What would you do to prepare? How would you approach Pope Francis?
I’m pretty sure I would be very excited and more than a little nervous. I would prepare by carefully considering what I would say and how I would say it—at least to get started. I’m pretty sure I would want to express my admiration and respect for both the person of Pope Francis and the office within the Church which he holds. I would want to tell him of my faith and the work for God I try to do. Humbled at this opportunity, I would probably also tell him of my regret for my years of tepidity and humanism. I would want him to know the real me. (And considering his humility, I think I would want to experience his fatherly expression of acceptance of me, sins and all.) I would also want to listen to him, how his day has been going, what is on his heart. I would want to take to heart any advice he might have for me. Then, as the time ended, I would want his blessing, so that I might carry the experience with me for days to come.
I don’t expect to ever have a private audience with Pope Francis. But every day, I have an opportunity to have a private audience with someone greater than he. I have an opportunity to have a private audience with God. So do you. That private audience is called prayer. Preparing to approach God in prayer is very similar to preparing to approach any great and wonderful person.
Today’s readings give us guidance for how to prepare to approach God. The first reading from Isaiah gives us general guidance for how to approach God. It sets the stage for us. Isaiah compares God’s word (God’s expression of Himself) with the capacity of rain and snow to make the earth fertile and fruitful. When we encounter God in prayer, His word—His expression of Himself—makes the “dust” or earth of us fertile and fruitful. If you have had extended periods of spiritual desert, times when you could not perceive God’s Presence in prayer, you know how good it is to receive that spiritual rain from God. Isaiah reminds us to approach prayer as a time when God’s expression of Himself will change the dust of which we are made into fertile soil for love.
Psalm 34 reminds us that HOWEVER we are as we humbly approach God, He is ready for us and welcomes us. Whether we are anxious, sad, ashamed, distressed, just, an evildoer, brokenhearted, or crushed, we can approach God and know that God will answer us. He will deliver us, make us radiant with joy, remove our shame, confront us when we do wrong, wipe out memories of our traumas, rescue us, be close to us—whatever we need. We can depend on him.
Then comes Jesus’ teaching on prayer from the Gospel, the “Our Father.” Jesus tells us just what to do to approach the Father. Recently I have been changing “Our Father” to “My Father” when I say this prayer each morning. While I think theologically it is much better to pray “OUR Father,” in recognition that we approach God for both ourselves and others, this habit of saying “My Father” has given me a new understanding of what each of those phrases in the “Our Father” means. It has made the prayer very rich and personal. You might like to try it with your own added phrasing. Here is what has evolved for me:
“Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name”—My Father, God who loves me, I praise You, honor You, trust You.
“Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” I pledge myself in the ordinary tasks of my life today to live in a way that obeys your commandments and so creates Your Goodness in my little corner of earth. That is how I can create Your Kingdom.
“Give me this day my daily bread.” Give me what I need today, Lord. Be with me in the moments of my life.
“Forgive me my sins and trespasses, as I forgive those who trespass against me.” This for me is the hard part, yet my experience tells me God is so very good when He requires this of us, for this is what keeps evil from settling in our souls. We let go of how evil has touched us, because we recognize we have done wrong ourselves. To make this real to myself, of late I have been praying this “Forgive me my sins and the ways that I have offended You and might do wrong today, as I forgive those who hurt or misunderstand me or who do me injustice.”
“Lead me not into temptation, but deliver me from evil.” Lord, protect me from temptations today, and take me away from all that is evil or would lead me away from You.
It is interesting to me to notice that this prayer we say so often is very similar to the way I would approach a person I much admire and respect—like Pope Francis.
It begins with recognition of relationship, respect, and praise: Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed by thy name.
It connects around shared goals. Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
It requests with humility what is needed and desired. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.
It asks for guidance. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Prayer:
Pray with the Our Father today. Use it as a model for approaching God. You might match your concerns of the day to the lines of Jesus’ model prayer. You might want to try the phrasing, “My Father….” You might want to read it over carefully until a phrase stands out to you, then sit with God and that phrase.
However you do it, let the Scripture speak to you as you approach your Father. Then be with Him.
