Prayer day

Matthew 7: 7 - 12

Ask.....seek....knock.......

Today is the eighth day of the lunar new year and it is a special day for people of Hokkien descent. It is a special day of prayer to the 'god of heaven'. I don't know the history of this celebration but it is an important occasion that my family celebrated when I was a child. I was at the market today and there was special 'kueh' being sold to be used as offering for the prayers.

The Lent reading for today has to do with prayer too. We are told to ask, to seek, to knock expectantly, for our Father in heaven will surely give us good gifts. We are fortunate indeed to be able to call our God by the familiar title 'Father'. For most people, a father is someone who protects his family, who makes sure that he provides good things for his children. (Of course there are some who have never known a father or who have never known one of such character, and for these, our God would need to extend special healing to). Generally, as children we were confident that our father would give us what was good for us. And it is in this spirit that we ask, seek and knock in prayer to our heavenly Father.

Tonight there will be a special meal and prayers in the homes of traditional Hokkien families. The prayers I believe have to do with gratitude for the year that has passed and asking for good things for the year ahead. Many people do seek someone 'out there' they can trust to answer their requests. As Christians, it would be good to be able to introduce our 'Father' to such persons. They are asking, seeking and knocking, full of hope that their prayers will be answered. We know a 'Father' whose love is beyond our human imagination. He promises to give good gifts to those who ask. And we do know that his promises can be trusted since he has already given us the greatest gift of all....his own Son.