Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” And he said to them, “When you pray, say…” (Luke 11:1-2a, ESV)
Teaching his disciples how to pray was significant then and continues to be significant for us today. When we read how Jesus taught his disciples to pray, we ourselves learn how to pray too. As it turns out, this is relevant in any language and culture.
Late last year, I had the opportunity to research a topic of choice, relevant to Thailand and my ministry here. Around that time, God had been bringing up the topic of evangelism, so I decided to look into evangelism and what it means to share the Gospel in a Thai, Buddhist context. One thing that came up over and again was prayer. One ministry worker I interviewed told me, “When you teach Thais how to pray, even before they accept Jesus as their Savior, later, when they run into trouble, they know exactly Who to pray to and what to pray.” I got to witness this firsthand at our Christmas celebration for our elementary-age English students last month. Our pastor, Ajan Kim, had the kids close their eyes, fold their hands, and repeat a short, simple prayer after her. These are the same students that we pray for and with at the beginning of every English class on Friday evenings. We pray that God would help and bless them in their studies. It’s brief and to the point, but our hope is that they’ll learn more of who Jesus is, both in and outside of English class.
Both because of my research findings as well as the goals I set for the remainder of my internship, I feel challenged to continue praying with and for those I interact with on a regular basis. These days that includes my English students and a handful of neighbors whom I’ve grown closer to over the past 16 months. As I pray with and for them, I hope to see God move in mighty ways, softening hearts, drawing them closer, and experiencing God’s power and love, maybe for the first time in their lives.
I’m both excited and humbled to be here at this time, doing what I’m doing. I expect, pray, and hope for great things, big or small, over these next seven months. Will you pray with me?