Brief synopsis of the readings: In the 18th Chapter of Genesis God hears an outcry against the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. God intended to investigate and sent two men. Abraham, standing next to God, asked if God would destroy both the just and the sinners. “Will you really overwhelm them, will you not spare the place for the fifty just men in it?” God replied that he would spare Sodom if it contained fifty just men. Abraham then asks if Sodom would be spared of there were forty five, or forty, or thirty, or twenty, or ten. God replied that even if there were only ten just men he would not destroy Sodom. In Luke’s Gospel we find Jesus praying. His gathered disciples asked Jesus how they should pray. Jesus told them to “say this” and then gave them what we know as the “Our Father” or the “Lord’s Prayer.” Jesus then asked them how they would react if a friend awoke one of them while he was sleeping and asked for three loaves. The friend explained that he had an unexpected guest and needed to provide food to him. The man refused the request as the door was bolted and everyone is in bed. But then Jesus said that if the man won’t provide the loaves out of friendship, he will give it to them just to get his friend to leave. Jesus then changes characters and reminds them that no father would give his son a stone when asked for bread, or a snake when his son asked for a fish. Finally he tells them that if even lowly humans understand this, “how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.”

Yes, this is one of those Sundays where we can easily gloss over these readings because we’ve heard them so often. Preachers will sometimes describe feeling like a hypnotist: as the homily goes everyone gets…sleepy…

That’s unfortunate. Particularly because our first reading has been co-opted into a message about how God destroys homosexuals (both cities are obliterated). Later in this chapter the residents of Sodom demand to have sex with the two men God sent, and Lot (Abraham’s companion) instead offers his daughters to them. It’s complex and difficult passage and the difficult parts are often ignored to preserve a prejudice that some modern readers use as proof to back up their claims.

Others use this passage in the belief that Abraham is negotiating with God and is forcing God’s hand. I don’t believe that’s true either. This may be a stretch but I believe Abraham is exploring the depths of God’s mercy and forgiveness. I believe this dialogue between Abraham and God is more of a prayer than a negotiation.

And while we’re on the subject of prayer, any Christian will recognize Jesus’ teaching on how to pray. The Lord’s prayer is indeed a beautiful prayer and is often the first prayer a small child learns. It’s also recited every Sunday. And many of us ignore the rest of the Gospel reading.

Clearly Jesus is talking about prayer but he gives the implication that God will grant us whatever we want. Unfortunately even a small child recognizes that this isn’t literally true and that he or she will receive an abridged version of their Christmas list. A teenager recognizes that not all crushes are reciprocal and no job hunter I’ve ever met has a perfect record. Equally unfortunate we’ve all heard the phrase that God hears all our prayers “but sometimes the answer is no.”

I say unfortunate because that belief makes God into little more than Santa and prayer into little more than our list.

But prayer is more, much, much more. Prayer is what God has given us to bring us closer. Abraham came away from his conversation with God with a deeper understanding of God’s mercy. Jesus’ disciples come away from today’s Gospel with the recognition that God is not impressed with an eloquent prayer as much as a sincere prayer. To quote the 20th Century theologian Abraham Joshua Heschel, “When I was young, I used to admire intelligent people; as I grow older, I admire kind people.”

God has promised us eternal life and that we will be cared for and loved. But God never promised we would understand God’s actions or that we are always the best judges of what we need. Many years ago I heard a story from one of my childhood neighbors. He told me that his great grandfather had a ticket on the Titanic but missed the boat. I imagine he was greatly disappointed, seeing the stern of the ship slowly disappear on the horizon. But a few days later he must have felt great relief as he read the morning newspaper.

Prayer is a gift that I believe God gave us on purpose. From our earliest days God has chosen to reveal himself and be a part of our lives. He didn’t have to. But as we pray we are given the gift of understanding God and God’s hopes for us.

Now I have to say this: almost everyone I know feels some measure of guilt over prayer, that they don’t pray long enough, sincerely enough, or expansively enough. But let me say this: I believe we all pray more than we think. If you’ve ever been sorting out a problem or decision while you’ve been driving and you turned off the radio, that’s prayer. Even if you’re not aware you’re asking for God’s wisdom. Think about the moments before you wedding or the first time you held your child. Admit it, you were lost in the wonder of the moment. You were praying that God would watch over and protect your spouse or child.

And one last point: I’ve noticed that as we age our prayer becomes less “wordy.” The holiest people I know as a way of better understanding God. Let me finish with another quote from Rabbi Heschel:

The primary purpose of prayer is not to make requests. The primary purpose is to praise, to sing, to chant. Because the essence of prayer is a song, and [we] cannot live without a song. Prayer may not save us. But prayer may make us worthy of being saved.