And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. [Luke 18:1 (ESV)]
I began my prayer with, “Lord, you’ve got to…” but got no further. “God doesn’t ‘got to’ do anything!” said a still small voice and the Spirit’s point was well taken. By beginning with an impertinent demand like a selfish petulant child in a toy store, I showed chutzpah of the worst kind and began again.
From the Yiddish word khutspe, meaning impudence or gall, Leo Rosten’s classic definition of chutzpah is, “that quality enshrined in a man who, having killed his mother and father, throws himself on the mercy of the court because he is an orphan.” The brazen way I started my prayer displayed chutzpah’s negative characteristics of rudeness, impertinence, presumption, insolence, and arrogance.
A little chutzpah, however, isn’t necessarily bad. On the positive side, chutzpah includes the qualities of fearlessness, pluck, mettle, and boldness; it questions, challenges assumptions, speaks up, and stands its ground. Chutzpah, at its worst, is rude, disgraceful, and harmful. At its best, however, this combination of audacity and gumption can bring glory to God’s name. This difference is in motivation—rather than being done for personal gain, “holy chutzpah” is done to reveal God’s kingdom on earth.
Moses showed holy chutzpah on Mt. Sinai when he debated God about the destruction of the Israelites and Abraham showed chutzpah when he negotiated with God over the complete destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. When Jacob wrestled with God, the man persisted despite a dislocated hip until he’d received a blessing! That’s chutzpah!
In Cana, Mary showed chutzpah by expecting Jesus to solve a wine shortage when the problem wasn’t His to solve and His power was unknown to others. The Syrophoenician woman certainly showed chutzpah by challenging Jesus after he denied her request to heal her demon-possessed daughter. Think of the chutzpah of Bartimaeus, the blind beggar who, despite a scolding by the crowd, persisted in calling out to Jesus; the woman with the bleeding disorder with the audacity to come out in public and the gumption to touch the fringe on Jesus’ robe; and the parents who ignored the disciples’ rebukes by bringing their little children to be blessed by the Lord!
A pastor friend frequently says, “Ours in an audacious God; we should honor Him with audacious prayers.” Do we? When King Hezekiah fell ill, Isaiah told him he would not recover. Unwilling to accept his fate, the king had the chutzpah to ask God for more years. God heard, healed him, and Hezekiah lived another fifteen years! What if he hadn’t asked for those years? Consider how different his story and those of people like Moses, Abraham, and the Syrophoenician woman would have been if they hadn’t had the chutzpah to make their audacious pleas and petitions! Ours is a big God for whom nothing is impossible! Let us come before the Lord, not with arrogance and impudence, but with boldness, humility, respect, and faith.
Praying recklessly brave prayers humbles me, reminding me of both my own great need and his great strength. In asking him for big, impossible things, I expect my dependence on him to grow, my willingness to take risks for his kingdom to increase, and my intimacy with him to deepen. [Lisa Schrad]
Devotions of the Heart 