In his 1996 album, Willie Nelson tells the story of a regret filled soul in his song "Too Sick to Pray." Upon first listen, you instantly think this is a person making excuses for a life lived in disdain. After a few more spins, what the listener begins to hear is a person who recognizes who they are and recognizes exactly where and who they are.

The person in question admits what many of us can't confess. Our own posture of life kept us from an internal and personal relationship with God founded in prayer.

In Matthew 6, Jesus tells us 3 tales of warning. Each of them focuses on external actions devoid of self-awareness.

"Watch out! Don't do your good deeds publicly, to be admired by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven. 2 When you give to someone in need, don't do as the hypocrites do—blowing trumpets in the synagogues and streets to call attention to their acts of charity! I tell you the truth, they have received all the reward they will ever get. 3 But when you give to someone in need, don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. 4 Give your gifts in private, and your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.

5 "When you pray, don't be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly on street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them. I tell you the truth, that is all the reward they will ever get. 6 But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.

7 "When you pray, don't babble on and on as the Gentiles do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again. 8 Don't be like them, for your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!9 Pray like this:

Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. 10 May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today the food we need, 12 and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. 13 And don't let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one. 14 "If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you.15 But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.

16 "And when you fast, don't make it obvious, as the hypocrites do, for they try to look miserable and disheveled so people will admire them for their fasting. I tell you the truth, that is the only reward they will ever get. 17 But when you fast, comb your hair and wash your face. 18 Then no one will notice that you are fasting, except your Father, who knows what you do in private. And your Father, who sees everything, will reward you. NLT

In this long passage, Jesus details the 3 behaviors of people focused on an external, public relationship with God. He uses a pretty hard term, hypocrite, to describe the behavior. Historically, a hypocrite is an actor, a person focused on playing a role for a specific purpose.

But Jesus wants something very different for us.

We were made not to act, but to live.

And that is exactly where we will find ourselves in this passage. See you Sunday