Thoughts on the Divine Service
11. The Collect of the Day - Part 1
Dear friends,
In our walk through the Divine Service liturgy, we’ve arrived at the Collect of the Day, which means we need to speak a bit about prayer.
First, prayer is not a simple thing, but a mystery, an art and a discipline. It is a mystery in that the Holy Spirit takes what we pray and intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words (Rom 8:26), which means that we don’t even know the final edition of our prayer that reaches the Father’s ears (only that it’s much better); and it is a mystery in that the Father promises to answer our prayers, but we don’t know what the answer will be (only that it is for our best). Prayer is an art because it seizes upon what God says to us in His Word, then commends all aspects of life to God based upon His promises. Prayer is also a discipline because it requires self-control: the last thing the devil wants is you speaking to God, and so he will throw every temptation he can to stop you.
Second, prayer is a two-way conversation wherein God speaks first. Children know what to ask their parents because their parents have taught them what is good and what is not. Likewise, we know what to pray because the Lord teaches us in His Word.
Third, the best prayers are those that are based upon God’s Word (not our desires or feelings), whether they are prayers of thanks, praise or need. There’s an ongoing debate within Christianity about what form makes for good prayer. Some favor traditional prayers that have been used for centuries: in this case, one can take a prayer book, find a prayer on the appropriate topic, and make use of words that are tried and true. The danger of such prayers, of course, is that one can mouth them with one’s lips while daydreaming about something else. (This is not the fault of the prayer, but the one praying.) Others insist that the only good prayer is the one composed on the spot, expressing the desires of the heart in one’s own words. The danger of such prayers, of course, is that one’s desires may be opposed God’s Words, and sometimes it’s hard to find the right words. Once again, the best prayers are those which accurately respond to what He says in His Word. There are plenty of old, traditional prayers that do not do so (the Hail Mary, for instance), and plenty that do. There are plenty of off-the-cuff prayers that do so, and plenty that could have used an editor and doctrinal review.
That said, we arrive at the Collect of the Day. It’s pronounced CALL-ekt, but it’s the same spelling as the verb “collect” for a reason. A collect is a prayer that collects teachings and summarizes them. For instance, at the end of matins we pray the collect for grace, which is a prayer that summarizes how we are to live as God’s forgiven people. The Collect of the Day has a slightly different function: it collects the main themes of the Sunday’s readings into one prayer, and so the congregation prays them back to God. (To signify that the congregation speaks with one voice, the pastor prays out loud while all others pray silently.)
Let’s put it to the test. Last week, our gospel reading was Matthew’s account of the Triumphal Entry from Matthew 21:1-11. In that story, we heard of Christ our King riding into Jerusalem, righteous and having salvation, on His way to the cross. Reflecting on this, and knowing that we are saved from sin, death and hell by the forgiveness He has won, we rejoice that Jesus visits us in His means of grace with forgiveness, life and salvation.
The Collect of the Day for Advent 1 prays precisely for this:
Stir up Your power, O Lord, and come, that by Your protection we may be rescued from the threatening perils of our sins and saved by Your mighty deliverance; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Likewise, tomorrow is the 2nd Sunday in Advent, and the gospel reading is Matthew 3:1-12: there, John the Baptist preaches repentance because the kingdom of heaven is at hand, and he warns sinners to “bear fruits in keeping with repentance.” Reading this, we know that the kingdom of heaven comes to us because Jesus visits us in His Word and sacraments. By the work of the Holy Spirit we repent of our sins and rejoice to be forgiven; and, forgiven, we set about to do good works that please God.
This is exactly what the Collect of the Day for Advent 2 prays:
Stir up our hearts, O Lord, to make ready the way of Your only-begotten Son, that by His coming we may be enabled to serve You with pure minds; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Get the idea?
Often when I teach about prayer, I liken it to children remembering something their father has said and reminding him, “Daddy, you promised!” In the Collect of the Day, we remind our Father in heaven of His gracious promises. His promises are why faith delights to pray! And once faith has prayed that prayer and said amen, it’s just waiting to hear God articulate those promises in the Sunday readings which follow. In that respect, the collect whets faith’s appetite and leaves it saying, “We’ve just reminded our Father of His promises, and now we get to hear those promises from His own Word!”
There’s one more important aspect of the Collect of the Day, but I’ll save that for next week. In the meantime, give that prayer a good look each Sunday, rejoice to hear what God promises in the readings, and rejoice all the more that God always keeps His promises!