Pray, and do not lose heart

Ever since the Great Recession of 2008 we have been living in a turbulent and unsettling time both in our nation and throughout the world.  In spite of the economic recovery and related improvements,  our national government is in disarray and the political climate is fixated on egregious and abhorrent behavior rather than on policies to move our country forward in a positive direction.

An article last week by Thomas Friedman in the New York Times stated, “We have too much deferred maintenance to fix, too much deferred leadership to generate and too much deferred reimagining to undertake to wait another four years to solve our biggest problems, especially in this age of accelerating technology and climate change.”  Friedman is arguing for a renewed sense of good government and a transformation that will meet the needs of all our citizens.

The biblical readings appointed for today from Jeremiah, Luke and Timothy tell us about our faith and how we can live in the midst of these anxious times.  While all that is happening is different from the ancient days of the prophet Jeremiah, the core message of his prophecy rings true.  Jeremiah said, “The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt-- a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord.  But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days:… I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” 

Jeremiah’s was a plea for a better future.  To apply it to our time we need a renewed commitment from our government leaders; an understanding that they are elected to serve the people – all the people of every race and creed.  The poor, immigrants, and those oppressed because of gender are equal and share in our constitutional right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

The people in Jeremiah’s time had lived in exile in Babylon.  The city of Jerusalem and the Temple had been destroyed, and the people were anxious and insecure.  But then God announced that the restoration of the city was coming.  God’s law of love and justice will be written in their hearts, and the people will be transformed; their relationship with God will be renewed.

Many years after Jeremiah’s time Jesus proclaimed God’s justice to those who pray always and do not lose heart.  He told a parable about an unjust judge who did not respect anyone but granted justice to a widow who kept bothering him.  In Jewish society at the time of Jesus a widow had no legal standing.  Widows were among those who lived on the margins of society.  So Jesus said, "Listen to what the unjust judge says.  And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them? I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?"

If nothing else the widow in continuing to bother the unjust judge was persistent.  She kept after him until he relented and granted her request.

What about us? How do we practice the faith we profess?  We lose heart when we feel powerless and think that whatever we do will not make a difference.  But actions matter.  How we relate to others by caring for them, loving them and working for justice in the lives of everyone makes an impact on the whole community.

What about prayer?  Our need for prayer serves as a means for reflection about ourselves and about all that happens around us.  We persist in prayer by not losing heart in our hope for a better day for all people.  Jesus said that God will grant justice to those who pray, “who cry to him day and night.”  As we heard in St. Paul’s letter to Timothy, “continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, … how from childhood you have known the sacred writings that are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.… I solemnly urge you: proclaim the message; be persistent whether the time is favorable or unfavorable; convince, rebuke, and encourage, with the utmost patience in teaching. …Always be sober, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, carry out your ministry fully.”

So, as we live through this difficult period in our history feeling bereft because of the political climate and all the problems around us, let us be persistent in prayer and not lose heart.  Amen.