Dear friends in Christ it is a huge privilege for me to be here today. Not so much that I get to occupy Rev. Rick Marrs' pulpit though that is a privilege and not so much that I get to speak before you which is also a privilege but because we are here together in the Lord's house. Gathered around His word and sacraments at his invitation. He invites us into his presence and it is a great privilege for us to be here to worship, to confess our sins and receive his forgiveness.

Grace mercy and peace be unto you from God our father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Let us pray, May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in thy sight oh Lord our strength and our redeemer.

Jesus' disciples came to him and said "Lord, teach us to pray." It was about this time last year when I was driving home from a funeral home in the evening and it was just about dark and as I crossed a bridge over a river, I saw a commotion on the side of the road with a car parked and well I thought maybe I could be of some help so I pulled my car off too, grabbed my phone and walked back. And what I found was 3 people, a man and a woman who had wrestled another man to the ground because he was going to jump. I offered my phone, I offered to pray, they took the phone and dialed 911 and I prayed with the man and waited with them until the police came. Now you need to know that I didn't save the man's life or anything. When I got there the woman had the man in a headlock and the other man was sitting on his back. I prayed. I gave them the phone. They transferred the man into the police squad car and I went back to him and I gave him my card and I told him that I would continue to pray for him and pray that God would give him hope for the future. That is from Jeremiah 29, "I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you," When I mentioned hope and a future, the man cried and said, "That's exactly what I need, hope and a future."

How about you? Are you hopeful for the future? We live in uncertain times. The terrorism attacks of last September seems to have changed everything in our whole world which is not so secure as we were and the future seems uncertain. We're at war. War against terrorism and we've been at war against drugs for a long time. The war against AIDS and things are just uncertain in terms of the whole world. We've been a victim now of terrorism and it's disconcerting. Financially, things are uncertain. How's your 401 k doing this past week? Yeah if you're over 55, you're not laughing. Life can be pretty uncertain. Our country's divided. Are you allowed to say the Pledge of Allegiance here in Kansas? We're in the Bible belt down in North Carolina and I think everyone said it the last few weeks during the Sunday services. And its not just the world, it's not just the United States and our government, it strikes closer to home too. How's your family doing? Now with the divorce rate the way it is, can you be certain that in the next 2 to 5 years your family still be together. Spouses divorce and it's not just spouses. Kids leave home without looking back, knowing that they're not welcome back. Brothers and sisters don't talk. People die leaving families that haven't made peace. Life is pretty uncertain at times and its not just out there, it strikes at home too when you wake up and you've got chest pains. You can't walk and breathe at the same time or you go to the doctor and they find a lump or you hear the "cancer" word. Hope and the future. We live in uncertain times and we are tempted at times to lose hope when we look at the world.

Jesus disciples came to him and said, "Lord teach us to pray." And at this point the disciples had been with Jesus for about 3 years. They had seen the miracles, the signs and the wonders. They had been up north to Galilee where Jesus was very popular. Thousands came to hear him and they wanted to take him even by force to make him to be king and now they were going from up north to down south to Jerusalem and that's where Jesus'' enemies were. That's where the people who wanted to kill Jesus were. And Jesus said to his disciples, "The Son of Man must be rejected by the leaders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised." It was an uncertain time for the disciples too and they looked at Jesus and they saw confidence and strength and power and they saw Jesus praying and they said, "Lord, teach us to pray." The disciples were fearful. Jesus wasn't. How many times was that the case? I remember the time when Jesus was in the boat with the disciples when the storm hit and Jesus was asleep and would have slept right through except that the disciples were afraid because of the wind and the waves and they woke Jesus and said, "Don't you care that we perish?" And Jesus woke up and he rebuked the wind and he calmed the waves and the boat was safely to shore. The disciples knew in Jesus' confidence and strength. When they were anxious he was at peace. When they were worried about going down south to Jerusalem to where the enemies were, Jesus went down to a private place, a quiet place and the disciples came and said, "Lord teach us to pray." And Jesus taught them, he said "When you pray say: Father, Our Father." Every Sunday in the creed we say "I believe in God the Father, Creator. And if you really believe that the creator of heaven and earth and of the whole universe of all things seen and unseen, then it changes everything because God is your father and he's the best of all possible fathers, the most excellent father and he loves you more than anything. He loves you so much that he sent his only Son to suffer and die for your sins and be raised again for your salvation. God has revealed himself as our father. God has created a Father/child, Father/son, Father/heir relationship with us through baptism he's called us to be his own children. God is our Father.

Tony Campolo, the theologian, speaker, teacher, professor, writer puts it this way "God loves you so much that he carries a picture of you in his wallet." Can you imagine that or can you imagine the kitchen in heaven and on the refrigerator your picture is there. God loves you and he has revealed himself to be your father. He has established a father/child relationship with you. Father, and its not just father, it's Abba Father. A number of years ago my wife and I went to Israel to see the Holy Land in 7 days. Jesus spent how many years there? We got 7 days. The joke was we ran where Jesus walked. Well between holy sites we went to lunch. We went to McDavid's. A McDonalds knockoff. A McDavid's burgers and fries. And as we walked toward the restaurant an Israeli man came out and he was holding his bag of burgers and fries and eating fries out of the top. Typical American scene. A little boy came out yelling, "Abba Abba Abba Abba", Daddy Daddy Daddy Daddy. He wanted some fries so daddy swooped down and picks up the child and together they go out eating fries. Abba Father. Not so much the Lord's Prayer as the Daddy's Prayer. Remember our picture is on the refrigerator and in the wallet. There's a great deal of substance in the Lord's prayer. We could spend a year of Sundays talking about what Jesus teaches about prayer in the Lord's prayer. We could talk about the holiness of God's name and what that means for us who have been given that name. We could talk about the kingdom of God that It has come that it does come here and now and today as we gather around word and sacrament. And that it is yet to come. We could talk about the daily bread and today's Portals of Prayer covers that very well. We could talk about forgiveness, "Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us." We can talk about the fact that God does not lead us into temptation but delivers us from evil. But today its not so much what is taught not so much the substance but that Jesus taught his disciples to pray and why Jesus taught his disciples to pray and what our benefits are when we pray even as Jesus taught us to pray. Why did Jesus teach his disciples to pray? Because his disciples asked him. They saw Jesus at prayer and said, "Lord, teach us to pray as John the Baptist taught his disciples to pray." Why did the disciples ask to be taught to pray? Because they had observed Jesus they knew his confidence, his strength, his power even as he headed to Jerusalem to give his life as a sacrifice to saves us from our sins. When they were anxious, Jesus was not. When we look at the world we have reason to be anxious. When we look at Jesus and the Father we have reason to be confident. The disciples desire of confidence the strength and the peace that Jesus received from the Father when in his private place when he went away for prayer and they said, "Lord, teach us to pray."

You know text begins with, "Lord, teach us to pray" it end with stuff we tend to forget because we focus on the prayer itself. But the last few verses, Jesus teaches and says, "Which of you fathers, if your son asks you for a fish will give him a snake instead or if he asks for an egg will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" [Luke 11:11-13]

What does the Holy Spirit do? Calls, gathers, Enlightens, sanctifies and keeps us in the one true faith. It's the Holy Spirit the paraclete, the Comforter who helps us in our weakness for the spirit himself intercedes in our behalf with groans that words cannot express. The Holy Spirit enables us to trust God our Father, even when things in the world seem hopeless and uncertain. The Holy Spirit prompts us to remember the promises of God who loves us and who sent Jesus into this hopeless and uncertain world to suffer, and to die, and to be raised again for our salvation. God gives the Holy Spirit to you and to me through word and sacrament.

How about you? How's your future? You know Jesus taught his disciples to pray. Saying so that they might be hopeful so that they might face the future with confidence trusting in God their Father. And prayer is a powerful things. It's communication with God the Creator of the universe. The power of prayer is the power of God. He condescends to hear our prayers he invites us to come into his presence, promises to hear our prayer and acts upon them. The power or prayer is the power of God who hears our prayer. When we don't pray, we cut ourselves off from a certain benefit God promises to give. The power of prayer is also the power of god who speaks to us you see. Prayer isn't just about us talking to God. Its about us communicating to God and God communicating with us and part of prayer is listening and God speaks to us through his word and when we fail to hear His word and we fail to receive the sacraments well we cut ourselves off from other benefits there too. And when we cut ourselves off from the benefits, well then life is even more uncertain and less hopeful. God says, "Call up on me in the day of trouble and I will deliver you." [Ps 50:15] when we look at the world around us we have reason to be uncertain. It's pretty hopeless out there. Sometimes that hopeless or uncertainty becomes real close like when you find a lump or hear that you have cancer. But you are a child of God and he loves and he's got your photo in his wallet and on his refrigerator. So we have reason for hope in Jesus Christ who went to Jerusalem who suffered and died for our sins and rose again on the third day to give us life and salvation yes an eternity and hope and certainty for today. Jesus taught his disciples to pray, Jesus teaches us to pray so that we might be hopeful, so that we might face our futures with confidence trusting in God our Abba Father. Amen.

Let us pray, gracious God our heavenly Father we thank you that you love us so much that you sent Jesus to be our savior. Help us to face the future with confidence knowing that eternity is ours by grace, through faith in your son Jesus Christ. We thank you that you love us. Help us to love one another, even as you have loved us. Help us to share the good news. Help us to be people of courage strength and confidence that will demonstrate hopefulness and people will see that and look to us and learn from us the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ and salvation. Hear our prayer. In Jesus name, Amen.

Note: Rev. Paul Birner is the Senior Pastor at St. Peter's Lutheran Church in Canover, NC. He and Rev. Marrs are college friends from 25 years ago. Rev. Birner's grandfather, Rev. Ed Birner baptized Rev. Marrs in 1958