Teach Us To Pray

Summary The Christ Hymn ends in doxology, in an ascription of glory to Christ. This doxology, offered from the Father and the Spirit, is actually what raises Jesus from the dead. What can we do but join in this unending hymn? Episode 76 |  God's Doxology and Ours: The Christ Hymn Part 4 Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice President of Advancement and Theologian in Residence, this p...

Summary Like all poetry, the Christ Hymn of Philippians 2 is carried by metaphor and marked by distilled language. What is more, the Christ-Form is a distillation of the eternal language of love between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The poetry of this hymn leads only and always to prayer. Episode 75 | God Distilled: The Christ Hymn Part 3 Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice Preside...

Summary The first part of the Christ Hymn in Philippians 2 teaches us that God's eternal form, incarnate in Christ, is the form of self-giving love. Through prayer, we can not only see this form, but live it out as God trans-forms us. Episode 74 | Trans-Formed by Christ: The Christ Hymn Part 2 Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice President of Advancement and Theologian in Residence,...

Summary The preamble to the Christ Hymn found in Philippians 2, in which Paul calls us to "do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty conceit," seems to be impossible to actually live out. But, what if every little act of selflessness, every little death of self, becomes the soil of humility, the queen of the virtues? What if we invite the Master Gardener to tend the soil of our lives? Episode 73...

Summary The phrase, "Who knows?!", found throughout Scripture, features prominently in Joel 2:12-14. Praying this prayer is an act of childlike dependence, placing our trust in the God Who knows. Episode 72 | Trusting the God Who Knows Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice President of Advancement and Theologian in Residence, this podcast seeks to focus on the practice of prayer thro...

Summary John 20:11-18 tells the story of the appearance of the resurrected Christ to Mary Magdalene. At its core, this story is about turning to Christ when we hear him speak our name. This is also what prayer is all about. Episode 71 |  You are Named, You are Known, and that is Enough Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice President of Advancement and Theologian in Residence, this po...

Summary In this episode I continue to reflect on the story of Jesus' anointing by an unnamed Woman in Mark 14. This woman's understanding of Jesus is more aesthetic than it is cognitive. She longs for the form of Christ, a longing that is founded on her own brokenness. Episode 70 | Brokenness: Hers, His, and Mine Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice President of Advancement and Theo...

Summary Mark 14:3-11 is the story of an unnamed woman who anoints Jesus with costly ointment. If we pray this passage, we are opening our lives to be cruciform, to be akin to this woman's costly and extravagant devotion to King Jesus. Episode 69 | What the Gospel Smells Like: Praying with an Unnamed Woman Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice President of Advancement and Theologian i...

Summary 2 Kings 22 is the little known story of the prophet Huldah, a faithful woman whose interpretation of the Torah led to a great season of repentance. In this episode I pair that story with Maurice Sendak's  Where the Wild Things Are , and suggest how our own repentance can be sustained by remembering and returning. Episode 68 | Remember, Return, Repent Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Insti...

Summary The conclusion of the book of Genesis, with Joseph's words of forgiveness offered to his brothers, provides a profound parallel with the death of Jesus, and helps us understand and pray about God's redemptive work. Episode 67 | God Means to Impose Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice President of Advancement and Theologian in Residence, this podcast seeks to focus on the pra...

Summary In this episode, a joyful exposition of both Genesis 28 and Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven," I suggest that prayer is akin to Jacob's setting up of a pillar in acknowledgement of God's presence. Episode 66 |  Stairway to Heaven (Pt 2): The Slow Build Epic Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice President of Advancement and Theologian in Residence, this podcast seeks to focu...

Summary In Genesis 28, Jacob, the "fleeing deceiver," sees a vision of a ladder (or stairway) linking heaven and earth. The surprise of this story, which leads to prayer, is not about the dream itself, but in the Who, the When, and the Where. Episode 66 |  Stairway to Heaven (Pt 1) Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice President of Advancement and Theologian in Residence, this podcas...

Summary Luke 2 is the wondrous story of the shepherds hearing of Jesus' birth from the chorus of angels. As we trust in this story we are formed by it; we are "made better," which is what Handel hoped would happen for those who listen to his oratorio,  Messiah . Episode 64 | The Light Has Come: Angels, Linus, and Why I Believe Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice President of Advanc...

Summary Movement 9 of Handel's Messiah combines two texts from Isaiah, one which proclaims that the exile is about to be over, and one that celebrates that the exile is over. This combination of passages is a beautiful juxtaposition that orients us in betweenness, which is what Advent is all about. Episode 63 | The Light Has Come: The Darkened Between Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's...

Summary In this episode, I explore Isaiah 9:2 and Handel's interpretation of that text in Movement 11 of Messiah. Advent is all about light, which means it is also all about darkness. This dialectic is beautifully explored by Handel in the way he juxtaposes major and minor chords. God's light is how we pray in the darkness. Episode 62 | The Light Has Come: Seeing the Light Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer...

Summary Psalm 127 is a wonderful and beautiful prayer about work. All of us long for our work to somehow remain, or endure, and praying this psalm is a way of praying about God's glory, which can act like the mortar for whatever it is we are building through our work. Episode 61 | Soli Deo Gloria: God's Glory and Our Work Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice President of Advancement...

Summary Psalm 19 brings together God's work as creator and God's work as lawgiver in a beautiful hymn of praise that not only conveys the unity of God's creative work but also invites our praise. Episode 60 |  Psalm 19: The Starry Host Above and the Moral Law Within Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice President of Advancement and Theologian in Residence, this podcast seeks to focus...

Summary Jesus' parable of the Lost Sheep is the first of three parables in Luke 15 about lostness. This parable is abound being found by God, and also about leaving the ninety-nine and going after the one, a journey that may be costly but that also leads to joy and freedom. Episode 59 |  The Ninety-Nine and the One: Following the Good Shepherd Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice Pr...

Summary Jesus' parable of the "Rich Fool" in Luke 12 is about money, and about a lot more than money. It's about what we put our store in–where we place our hope. In prayer, we can pay attention to the conversation we are having with ourselves about the barns that we are building. In prayer, this conversation can be scripted by God rather than by the culture in which we live. Episode 58 | God Love...

Summary Jesus' story about the Samaritan who showed mercy to the wounded man on the road is not simply about being a good human. It's actually about who God is. It's about the eternal story of God, and how we can live this story out in our lives, through prayer. Episode 57: God Loves Work: The Good  Merciful Samaritan Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice President of Advancement and...

This is the first of four episodes guided by four parables of Jesus. It is meant to be used alongside a devotional called God Loves Work: Work and the Parables of Jesus. The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector is a simple and convicting story that will shape our lives drastically if we do not just read it, but pray it. Episode 56: God Loves Work: The Pharisee and the Tax Collector Hosted...

Psalm 139 is one of the most powerful prayers in the Bible. It's also daunting, because David prays about how God knows every thought and is present everywhere, always. In prayer, we can wrestle with this knowledge, and come to trust the God who knows us fully and loves us fully. Episode 55:  Fully Known and Fully Loved: Praying to the God Who Knows Everything Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Ins...

Summary Teach Us to Pray is on Summer Break! Meet our podcast producer, Naomi Hartman, and stay tuned for new episodes starting August 18.  Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's  Vice President of Advancement and Theologian in Residence, this podcast seeks to focus on the practice of prayer through scripture as a primary way to know, trust, and rest in God in our daily work and life. I wou...

SUMMARY Psalm 34:8 is a very surprising line from David: "Taste and see that the Lord is good." What does it mean to taste God's goodness? Praying this prayer can help us perceive God within our embodied lives, in community, and, in particular, in the course of risky action. Episode 53: Taste and See That the Lord is Good: Bodies, Community, and Risk Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer, Denver Institute's Vi...

Psalm 27 orients us to God's presence, and calls us to practice that presence in every moment of our lives. This is what "Coram Deo" means, "before the face of God." What if we lived every moment with the awareness that we are in God's presence? Episode 52: Before the Face of God: Practicing God's Presence Hosted by Jeff Hoffmeyer,  Denver Institute's Vice President of Advancement and Theologian i...