I Am a Pharisee of Prayer

Jesus loves every human being who has ever lived or will yet live on the earth. He paid for the sins of every single individual, including yours and mine. Therefore, I believe He loved every scribe and Pharisee. He had nothing good to say, however, about the things the scribes and Pharisees did, particularly in the name of religion. An entire chapter in the book of Matthew in the New Testament records Jesus's diatribe against the practices of the religious leaders in His day. Among the woes He pronounced is this statement: 

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.
--Matthew 23:14

It is not the length of our prayers that matter but the intent and the genuineness of our communications with God. Long or short, a prayer for show -- not to speak to God but to impress the people around us -- is hypocrisy and unacceptable to God. Our Father hears every prayer, but with some prayer He is not well pleased.

I confess I struggle when I am called upon to offer a public prayer in a church meeting. Because of my nature, I instantly fret about how well my prayer will be accepted by the people listening. I want to come up with something that reflects the topic of the meeting or the concerns of those who will hear my prayer. 

I require great concentration and a fair amount of inner coercion to talk myself off that ledge of self-consciousness and fear and to prayer from my heart instead of from my head -- to pray to God for the people instead of to the people. 

Sadly, I sometimes think I am a Pharisee at heart. :-( When I calm my inner thoughts enough to hear the Holy Spirit, I can offer a sincere prayer. I admit, however, that most of the time I fail. I am grateful for forgiveness.