Our Father...

“…. one of His disciples said to Him, "Lord, teach us to pray…."

Luke 11:1 (NKJV)

I am in awe of people who can pray effortlessly. Their prayers are so heartfelt. When I try to pray aloud, I feel like I’m making up the words as I go along and wondering if I’m “doing it right”. I’m more comfortable writing prayers. The gospel of Luke tells us that the disciples also had difficulty knowing how to pray.

“So, He said to them, ‘When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us day by day our daily bread.  And forgive us our sins, For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not lead us into temptation but deliver us from the evil one’." (Luke 11:2-4 NKJV)


The more I say the Lord’s Prayer, the more I see how this one prayer sums up every lesson in the Bible: God’s sovereignty, love, provision, trust, mercy, forgiveness, protection, deliverance. The Lord is teaching us to reach out to Him, telling us He’s approachable. He shows us in verses 9 and 10 how to do this: "So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.”

Our Christian journey is not a solo walk. In addition to our fellow Christians, the Lord himself walks with us, guides us, and welcomes us-- but it must be us who do the “asking”, “seeking” and “knocking” with anticipation and a sincere heart. We do this through trusting the Lord and by one of our means of communication with Him----prayer.

Prayer

Lord, I know that when I ask, You answer me. When I seek Your face, I will always find You. And when I knock, You open the door. You always answer my prayer. And in the times the answer doesn’t look the way I thought it would, help me to understand that when I ask for something that is not in Your will, Your “no” or “wait” simply means that Your will for me is far greater and more loving than anything I ever could have imagined for myself. Thank you, Lord.