"On A Wing And A Prayer"

(Isaiah 40:21-31, Mark 1:29-39)

Rev. Billy D. Strayhorn

Isaiah 40:21-31

²¹Have you not known? Have you not heard?

Has it not been told you from the beginning?

Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?

²²It is he who sits above the circle of the earth,

and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers;

who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,

and spreads them like a tent to live in;

²³who brings princes to naught,

and makes the rulers of the earth as nothing.

²⁴Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown,

scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth,

when he blows upon them, and they wither,

and the tempest carries them off like stubble.

²⁵To whom then will you compare me,

or who is my equal? says the Holy One.

²⁶Lift up your eyes on high and see:

Who created these?

He who brings out their host and numbers them,

calling them all by name;

because he is great in strength,

mighty in power,

not one is missing.

²⁷Why do you say, O Jacob,

and speak, O Israel,

"My way is hidden from the Lord,

and my right is disregarded by my God"?

²⁸Have you not known? Have you not heard?

The Lord is the everlasting God,

the Creator of the ends of the earth.

He does not faint or grow weary;

his understanding is unsearchable.

²⁹He gives power to the faint,

and strengthens the powerless.

³⁰Even youths will faint and be weary,

and the young will fall exhausted;

³¹but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength,

they shall mount up with wings like eagles,

they shall run and not be weary,

they shall walk and not faint.

Mark 1:29-39

²⁹As soon as they left the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. ³⁰Now Simon's mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told him about her at once. ³¹He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them.

³²That evening, at sundown, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. ³³And the whole city was gathered around the door. ³⁴And he cured many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.

³⁵In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. ³⁶And Simon and his companions hunted for him. ³⁷When they found him, they said to him, "Everyone is searching for you." ³⁸He answered, "Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do." ³⁹And he went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.

INTRODUCTION:

A fifth grade class at school had been studying American History and government. The teacher had explained all about Senators and Representatives and what goes on in Congress. As a refresher, the teacher asked one of the boys, "What does the chaplain of the Senate do?"

One little boy jumped up and said: "He stands up, looks at the Senators, and then prays for the country." (1)

I. THE SOURCE:

You've heard about those travel books entitled "Europe on $20 A Day" or "Ireland On $10 A Day"? Well, I think the two passages I read this morning could be the basis for a book entitled "Life On A Wing And A Prayer A Day".

Look at the passage from Mark. It is filled with action. Mark's Gospel was written for the Roman audience who liked action packed works. Mark uses action packed words like: immediately, suddenly, at once. Mark presents the Gospel with an immediacy that catches the reader's attention. Notice, the passage picks up right where we left off last week. Jesus has just finished teaching and healing in the Synagogue, and like most of our Sundays, he went home afterwards to eat. He went with Peter, Andrew, James and John only to find Peter's mother-in-law very ill.

Jesus heals her. Even though he was tired from preaching and teaching, he took time to heal Peter's mother-in-law. And later that evening, people from all around flocked to the house so that Jesus could heal them, too. And he did. The last verse of the passage is also filled with action. It describes how Jesus began his Galilean ministry the very next day. He went all over Galilee preaching and healing those in need.

Jesus was one busy guy. It seems He was constantly on the go, constantly preaching, teaching or healing. So, where did he get all the energy? I think the secret is in verse 35 (GNB). "Very early the next morning, long before daylight, Jesus got up and left the house. He went out of the town to a lonely place, where he prayed." (2)

That is the secret of Jesus' energy and purpose. And I think that's the purpose for these few verses being included in Mark's Gospel. Mark witnessed the power of prayer in Jesus' life and ministry and he wanted to make sure that we realized the source of Jesus' strength. The source of course was prayer.

II. ENDORSE THE RESOURCE:

A. We know the SOURCE, now let me ENDORSE THE RESOURCE to you. Prayer is one of the most important resources in our Daily Christian Lives. Prayer makes a difference in our lives and in the lives of those for whom we pray. That's one of the main reasons why, even though it might get a little long at times, that I think "The Prayers Of The People" is such an important and sacred time in our worship. We are speaking as the people and family of God. Speaking to each other and to God about each other's needs and desires. And God listens.

A little girl was in her bedroom getting ready for bed. Part of the nightly ritual was to say her bedtime prayers. When she ready to pray, she suddenly jumped up and ran out into the hall where she hollered out: "I'm ready to pray - anybody want anything?" (3)

That little girl understood the power of prayer.

B. I want you to know that I can tell the difference in my life on those mornings that I don't pray. I don't feel as centered or focused. I feel less prepared to say "No" to those little temptations that plague us all during the day. You know: over eating, snacking when I'm not really hungry, hollering at the other drivers and the like. When I spend time in prayer I really do feel more focused and even more responsive to God. It's as the passage from Isaiah says, "God lifts me up on eagle's wings." I believe God does that for everyone but I experience it more fully, or I'm aware of it more fully when I spend time in prayer.

And not only are we lifted when we pray for ourselves, we help lift and are lifted even more when we pray for others. Isaiah 40:31 says "those who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint."

Jesus knew the truth of that passage. He knew he would "faint and be weary," as verse 30 says, if he didn't spend time in prayer. His strength came from His close communion with God through prayer. And so did the strength of the Disciples. Part of their strength, and part of their purpose came from the fact that Jesus prayed for them.

You see, we can help others and effect a change in their lives through prayer.

III. OUR COURSE:

A. This morning the Evangelism Committee and I would like to set OUR COURSE and ask you to be a part of that kind of prayer ministry. We would like you to be a part of the 3 X 5 ministry. In your bulletins you will find three 3 X 5 cards. If you don't have any or forgot to pick up a bulletin, the ushers have extra they will pass out. What we would like you to do is this:

1. Take the first card and write the names of five different people you know who aren't going to church anywhere. It might be a neighbor, a friend, a relative, a co-worker, or someone who used to attend but for some reason has quit; just five people you know who aren't attending church.
2. Copy those five names onto the other 2 cards.
3. Turn to the person on your left (you can walk across the aisle if you need to or turn to the pew behind you) and give that person one of your cards with the five names on it. You will be taking one from someone else, too.
4. Put that card along with one of your cards in your purse or in your pocket.
5. Now the third card, we want you to lay face down on the altar.
6. You should have two 3 X 5 cards and ten names. Some of them may be the same but that's OK. That just means that you and the person you swapped with are on the same wave length.
7. Now for the next three weeks, we would like you to pray for those 10 people on your cards. Set aside a time either in the morning or the evening when you can spend more than just a second or two in prayer for each person.
8. Carry the cards with you and whenever you get a chance, pray for them. Ask God's blessing in their lives. If you know specific needs in the family, lift those as well.
9. Finally, the cards you laid on the altar will stay there for the next three weeks. I'll seal them in an envelope. And every Sunday, for the next three weeks, we will lift them up to God. God knows who they are.
10. And while you praying for others, don't forget to pray for yourself, too. Draw upon the same energy and resources Jesus drew on for His life and ministry.

I ran across a letter to God. It says: DEAR GOD, If you do all these things you are pretty busy. Now here's my question. When is the best time I can talk to you? I know you are always listening but when will you be listening hard in Troy, New York? Sincerely Yours, Allen. (4)

I can tell you, God listens hard all the time and everywhere. It doesn't make any difference when and how you pray. But it does make a difference IF you pray. So, pray.

CONCLUSION:

Let God be the wind beneath your wings. Find that lonely place, that deserted place, that quiet place, even if it's only locking yourself in the bathroom for a few minutes and spend time in prayer. Just as you are fed here at the altar on Communion Sundays, you will be fed and renewed as you pray for yourself and for others.

This is the Word of the Lord for this day.

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Bibliography

1. INFOsearch Software, The Computer Assistant

2. Good News Bible: Today's English Version, American Bible Society, (1992: New York, NY)

3. AutoIllustrator

4. Parables, Etc. (Platteville, Colorado: Saratoga Press), May 1984

Other References Consulted