by Phil Harper

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I recently read a letter written by a father who wanted to apologise to a young man for not allowing him to marry his daughter: Dear Martin, I have been unable to sleep since I broke off your engagement to my daughter. Will you please forgive and forget? I was much too sensitive about your Mohican haircut, tattoos and pierced nose. I now realize motorcycles aren’t really that dangerous, and I really should not have reacted that way to the fact that you have never held a job. I am also very sure that some other very nice people live under the bridge in the park, too. Sure my daughter is only 18 and wants to marry you instead of going to Oxford on full scholarship. After all, you can’t learn everything about life from books. I sometimes forget how backward I can be. I was wrong. I was a fool. I have now come to my senses and you have my full blessing to marry my daughter. Sincerely, Your future father-in-law. P.S. Congratulations on winning the Lottery! We should do what we do in order to gain God’s approval instead of prestige and approval from other human beings. Jesus raises the main question: “Who is our audience?” Are we motivated by the approval of people or the applause of God? Jesus warns us against praying to impress others. He challenges us to pray with sincerity. Jesus says, “Pray to be heard by God, not to be seen by others.” Kingdom living is righteous living Jesus teaches us that living a righteous life is not just a matter of what we do, but also involves why we do it. Jesus is not just concerned with us doing the right things, he wants us do the right things for the right reasons. For Him the “why” is just as important as the “what”. Kingdom-living is motivated by seeking God’s approval. It is God’s rule and God’s will that is the focus not our will and our rule. While we join with others in prayer there is only one agenda - God’s will. While we enjoy and share in the corporate, international expression of prayer quietly or loudly, there is only one agenda - God’s will. While we may have a lot of people agreeing with us in prayer, there is only one agenda – God’s will. Response As a group response: 1. give out paper and pens/pencils 2. ask group to find private space to express on the paper what they believe God’s will is for the group not individuals. This could take the form of poetry, song, image, drawing, bullet points or story 3. allow time for sharing 4. pray together for God’s will to be done in the group that heaven would be expressed through the group Phil Harper