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From the Pastor

A word from Pastor Bette… Lenten Image

Kneeling in Prayer

Lately, I have been thinking: is kneeling a requirement for prayer? I grew up in the Roman Catholic tradition, and as grade-school children, we spent much time on our knees. Those memories have helped shape me. They stir something inside me and am led to reflect again on what prayer truly is.

In the gospels, we see that Jesus made prayer a priority. Frequently, he withdrew to be alone with God. Here in the Garden of Gethsemane, I see both anguish and surrender. Luke tells us, “And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground” (Luke 22:44 NIV). Maybe prayer is not always peaceful. Sometimes it is wrestling. Sometimes it is costly obedience. Yet even in anguish, Jesus entrusted himself to the will of his Father.

As United Methodists, we speak of prayer as a means of grace—one of the ways God shapes and sanctifies us. I once heard someone describe prayer as a lifelong conversation with God. I love that image. Like any relationship, it requires time, attention, honesty, and trust. Prayer is not a performance; it is participation in God’s transforming grace.

Kneeling has long been a sign of humility and surrender. It expresses reverence before a Holy God. But I understand many of us are unable to kneel physically. Yet all of us can bow inwardly. The Lord looks at the heart—the place where pride softens, where resistance yields, where we say like Jesus did, “Not my will, but Yours.”

During this Lenten season, I find myself asking: what brings me to my knees on the inside? Where is God inviting deeper trust? Where is grace calling me to surrender? Lent is a time when we intentionally return to prayer, fasting, repentance, and self-examination—not to earn God’s love, but to open ourselves more fully to it.

My prayer for us is that we would grow in an authentic, living relationship with the One who first loved us. May we allow prayer to shape us into faithful disciples of Jesus Christ. And whether standing, sitting, or kneeling, may our hearts be bowed in trust before God.

Blessings and love to you during this sacred season of Lent.

Pastor Bette