When I was training as a life coach, one of the things I learned was not to ask someone to explain their plan to achieve what they wanted. While some people may already have a plan and want to work on it, many others find such a question inhibiting and a prelude to some sort of judgment or evaluation.
A better question is:
what do you think is your next step? It is an open question, but one from which a plan can unfold. Moreover, if you take one step up, even 8 inches above where you stood before, you may see things you weren’t previously able to see.
In a similar way, when we wonder about something’s relevance to our life, we are typically suggesting that our vantage point does not need any adjustment, that relevance should be demonstrated to us right where we are. Perhaps, however, relevance should be thought of as a discovery process itself on a journey with an improving view.
When Jesus invited his followers to pray for the Kingdom to come, it must have seemed to them a long way from where they lived, their problems and prospects. On a basic level, it must have seemed quite irrelevant to the life they lived, even if it was “religious.” Nonetheless, Jesus invited them to pray for it, because it is about more than the future.
When we think about Jesus’ prayer for the coming Kingdom, we should recognize that It is a hope that is not only about the future but also shapes life in the present. After all, hope offers direction and nurtures ambition in the present moment. It keeps us going in difficult times. When we ask someone what they hope for, we are asking about what ultimately and truly matters, what shapes their interests and motivates their actions. Hope matters.
Jesus invited us to pray for the Kingdom to come, a great hope.
It was a prayer with a long history through the Old Testament prophets. Even as the prophets spoke against injustice, they prayed for a kingdom of love, joy, and peace. The promise and vision of that Kingdom shaped their vision of the future but also their sense of calling in the present. The Kingdom was ultimately and profoundly relevant and grounding. Whatever the season or the challenges, their hope guided and sustained them. The prayer which Jesus taught was grounded in a long history.
In each of our lives, plans get changed, life throws surprises at us, and sometimes we find ourselves disappointed by where we are or the problems of our world. Jesus called us to step into a hope that can see us tough times as well as good ones. Jesus taught that this hope is not only something before us, but also where life itself is truly found. To live with such a hope brings out the best in us. The prayer for the coming Kingdom is not an escape or a fantasy, but an invitation to live a bigger life grounded in a great hope. Nothing could be more relevant.
