"A Prayer For Today"

By Rev. Billy D. Strayhorn

(John 17:6-19)

"I have made your name known to those whom you gave me from the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. [7] Now they know that everything you have given me is from you; [8] for the words that you gave to me I have given to them, and they have received them and know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. [9] I am asking on their behalf; I am not asking on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those whom you gave me, because they are yours. [10] All mine are yours, and yours are mine; and I have been glorified in them. [11] And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one. [12] While I was with them, I protected them in your name that you have given me. I guarded them, and not one of them was lost except the one destined to be lost, so that the scripture might be fulfilled. [13] But now I am coming to you, and I speak these things in the world so that they may have my joy made complete in themselves. [14] I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. [15] I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one. [16] They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. [17] Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. [18] As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. [19] And for their sakes I sanctify myself, so that they also may be sanctified in truth.

(NRSV)

INTRODUCTION:

A young man came home from school with a report card less than exemplary. His folks were decidedly upset. That evening at supper, Dad it brought up again. The young man responded, "Well, Dad, we have a problem, all right. So, what do you think? Which one is it? Is it mainly environmental or hereditary?"

I thought that would be a good way to start this morning. Today we celebrate the Festival of the Christian Home and Mother's Day. Now at first glance, you might not think that this passage from John's Gospel has much to do with mothers or parenting. It IS a glimpse into the prayer life of Jesus. Before his arrest, Jesus spent time in prayer both with and for the disciples and the Church. In this passage we see Jesus praying for us. It is a prayer for today. And through this prayer, we can glean some guidelines for our families. You see, I think this passage shows us the difference between GOOD parents and GODLY parents. And there is a difference.

Sociologists, psychologists, and every other kind of "ologists" keep telling us the obvious, the fabric of society is changing. The make up of the family is changing. While all of this change is taking place, there is one thing that remains constant. "The Family." It may look different and be structured different than ever before but it is still the central place of nurture and development. And there is difference between GOOD families and GODLY families. There are millions of GOOD families that aren't GODLY families. And there are probably some GODLY families that aren't so good. But we're called to have Good AND Godly Families. Let's look at the differences.

I. PROTECTION:

A. Here in this passage Jesus prays, "Holy Father, protect them." One of the marks of a good family is that it offers protection and safety. A place where there is emotional, social, psychological and physical protection from the harshness of the world. We have developed all kinds of ways to protect our families. There's Home Security systems, automobile security systems, bars on the windows, seat belts, immunizations, self defense programs, telephone skills, healthy diets, exercise, Neighborhood Watches, you name it. Good families go out of their way to provide protection for their families.

My mother had an annoying habit while I was growing up. She was our designated seat belt. The first car I remember us having that came equipped with seatbelts was our 62 Chevy Impala. Before seat belts we had Mom's arm. Whenever we came to a stop while she was driving, Mom's arm would shoot out to hold us firmly against the seat. I remember Mom taking me and my buddies somewhere one night and having to come to a stop in a hurry and out went the arm. My friends all laughed and harassed me about it the of the night. Mom's 67 now and she still does it. But now it's not annoying. It's a fond memory and an act of protection.

B. Good families offer protection. So do Godly families. But Godly families offer another level of protection, as well. Godly families offer the ultimate security system, God. Listen to the promise found in Psalm 18:30 says: "God's way is perfect; the promise of the LORD proves true; he is a shield for all who take refuge in him." God is our shield and our protection.

Good families depend on security systems. Godly families may have security systems but they depend upon God first. And they know they can trust God because Jesus has already prayed, "Holy Father, protect them."

II. PRIORITIES:

A. The second aspect of Good and Godly families is that of Priorities. Columnist Bob Green called it the "Twitching of America." Futurist David M. Zach called it "Hyperliving - skimming along the surface of life." The late Norman Cousins called ours "A sprinting, squirting, shoving age." E. F. Schumacher called it "the forward stampede." From "fast food" to the "weekend squeeze" to the "Christmas Rush," time has us in its grip.

Good families deal with the time squeeze and set priorities. A lot of you are like me, you have a daytimer or calendar or Personal Information Manager on you computer that keeps track of your life. A Good family's calendar lists all of a family's priorities by the dates and events they are involved in. Good families make and reserve time for each other and for the family.

B. Godly families do the same but there's another priority that tops the list. And that priority is God. Godly families not only make and reserve time for each other and for the family. They make and reserve time for God. Godly families know that worship, study and prayer are important aspects of a Godly life. They keep us connected to the one who is our shield and protection.

Jesus prayed for us asking, "that we might have His joy made complete in ourselves." That joy is made complete when God comes first. Jesus told us to, "Seek first the Kingdom of God" and to "love God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength." In other words, make God our number one priority. When God is our number one priority then we become the role models God calls us to be for our families and for each other.

A couple of weeks ago during the Youth Sunday several youth gave their testimonies about how important this Church and their faith is to them. A couple of the boys related how, for awhile, they struggled with even coming to Church. One of there major questions was: "Well, if Dad doesn't go, how come I have to go?" I know that question got to those Dads because they started coming to Church regularly. And look at the effect it had on their children.

These Godly families had Jesus' joy made complete in their lives because they put God first. Good families set priorities. Godly families make God the number one priority.

III. PARTNERSHIP:

A. Third, this passage teaches us that Good Families see their relationship as a partnership or a contract. A father spent some time reading a story to his little girl. The story had characters who were slaves. After he finished reading, the little girl asked, "What's a slave daddy?" He explained it the best that he could. When he was finished, the little girl looked up at her daddy and asked, "Is that what Mommy is? (1)

In Good families there are no slaves, Mom and Dad are equal partners in the relationship of marriage and family. They share equally in the responsibilities of the family or they have made an agreement and assigned and accepted responsibilities for the different aspects of the family.

B. Godly families may see marriage and families in the same light, they may see it as a contract or a partnership or a covenant. But in Godly families this covenant becomes a Trinitarian Covenant. There are more than just two members. Godly families acknowledge that God is a part of their Covenant.

Jesus prays that we "may be one, as he and God are one." Godly families attempt to live that way and put that prayer into practice through the practice of the faith. Each person grows in their faith and becomes one with God through Christ. And as they grow, so does the marriage and the family. It becomes one with God and develops that partnership mentality.

IV. PERFECTING:

A. Fourth, Good families allow and encourage growth. Good families are always perfecting their relationship and helping one another in areas of growth and responsibility. Someone asked, "Why is it that our children brighten our lives, but they don't seem to know how to turn out the lights?"

Good families don't treat dandruff with a guillotine. They allow for mistakes and help one another learn from those mistakes. Good families know that people don't always start in the same place or at the same size. You don't expect an 18 year old to wear baby clothes or a baby to fit into an adult size dress or suit. People grow in size and people grow in their skills and abilities, that's why our schools are graded. Good families don't expect everyone to be perfect but they teach and train and help perfect each other in the skills of life.

B. The same can be said for Godly families. Godly families don't expect everyone to be perfect, either. But they do expect everyone to be lead on to perfection. Jesus prayed, "Sanctify them in the truth." In Methodist theology, Sanctification is that process of being lead to Christian Perfection. Not that we become perfect by worldly standards and never mess up or sin again. But sanctification is the process by which we give ourselves more and more to God so that we CAN be perfected. Where our wills become more and more God's will. God doesn't want perfect Christians. God wants Christians and Christian families that can be perfected, molded and shaped into the image of Christ.

Discipline isn't a very popular word or concept any these days. It tends to congers up memories and images of the woodshed or Sister Mary Stiletto rapping your knuckles with a ruler or Boot Camp at Fort Hood. Yet the root of the word discipline is the word disciple. A disciple is someone who lives a certain way and becomes more and more like the one they follow. Discipline is that process of sanctification, that process of being perfected by and through and in response to the love of God. Godly families seek to be perfected through God's love.

V. PRAYER:

There's one more aspect of the Godly family that's not directly mentioned by Jesus in this passage but rather is implied by Jesus' action. And that's prayer. All of the aspects of a Godly family fall under the umbrella of prayer. Prayer is an important aspect of a Godly family.

Do you pray for your kids and their needs? Do you pray for the events in their lives like tests and field trips? Do you pray for your spouse? Do you pray together?

I'm not trying to make you feel guilty if you've never prayed for your kids or your spouse. Maybe you're one of those who has put it on your to do list forever and ever but somehow just haven't gotten around to it. Now is the time to do so. That's what this is, a challenge for you to pray for your family. To undergird it with God's blessing and God's presence.

Take a moment at the beginning of each day or of an evening if you're not a morning person: to acknowledge the blessing of your children and your spouse, to pray for their safety, their health, their growth, and their relationship with God.

Pray for them. And whenever you have the chance, pray WITH them. Seek the help of God in your family. Your prayers WILL help them and they will help you, too.

CONCLUSION: