The "O" of Prayer
Jacob prays, "O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the Lord said to me, 'Return to your country and to your family and I will deal well with you.'" [Genesis 32:9]
So frequently, our prayers are well mannered and carefully theological, but Jacob’s "O God" is a truly living theology. The "O" is a theology in itself. Just as Paul cried out, "O wretched man that I am!", Jacob cried out of passion and despair, out of existential knowledge of Who God was and who Jacob was before Him. When we talk to God, we often use many formulae and Christian slogans. But where is the "O" in our prayers?
Jacob prayed to the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac, to the God Who has said certain things to him. When I was in prison, I would cry out, "O God of Jucika" [the speaker’s faithful wife] or "O God of Sándor" [a godly fellow prisoner]. Do others see anything in my life that would encourage them to pray to my God? To the God of my spouse? To the God of my best friend? Can we imagine anyone praying to the God of - insert the name of your church - ? Do our lives testify to a God worth praying to?
[FV, 1998]
So frequently, our prayers are well mannered and carefully theological, but Jacob’s "O God" is a truly living theology. The "O" is a theology in itself. Just as Paul cried out, "O wretched man that I am!", Jacob cried out of passion and despair, out of existential knowledge of Who God was and who Jacob was before Him. When we talk to God, we often use many formulae and Christian slogans. But where is the "O" in our prayers?
Jacob prayed to the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac, to the God Who has said certain things to him. When I was in prison, I would cry out, "O God of Jucika" [the speaker’s faithful wife] or "O God of Sándor" [a godly fellow prisoner]. Do others see anything in my life that would encourage them to pray to my God? To the God of my spouse? To the God of my best friend? Can we imagine anyone praying to the God of - insert the name of your church - ? Do our lives testify to a God worth praying to?
[FV, 1998]