How do I pray?  What do I say?  What do I include?

Matthew 6:9-13

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.

This passage of Scripture is known by heart by millions around the world and was Jesus’ response to his disciples on “how should we pray?”  Much has and could be said about the Lord’s Prayer but it’s essentially a guideline for believers on how to pray.  Here are some really quick reflections from me:

• It begins with Our Father – how beautiful this is.  It speaks of belonging, relationship and intimacy.  God knows us before we even utter a word. It also says where our Father is – in heaven.  This brings such perspective to us here on earth.  We serve a big and capable God! The prose then suggests we spend some time honouring, revering God’s name because he is holy.
• Verse 10 speaks of praying for God’s kingdom to come, ie, God’s will here on earth.  God’s purposes to be fulfilled in the manner in which they are they are in heaven.
• It’s interesting to note that we get about halfway through the prayer before we begin to pray about “us”. Firstly, it suggests praying for our daily bread or what we need to get through today.  That God would sustain us today in whatever we face. We are reliant upon him
• Verse 12 gives us an opportunity to seek God’s forgiveness as well as us reflecting on those who may have wronged us and also need our forgiveness.  So, we have a clean slate before God and others
• The final verse reminds us that we have an enemy, the devil, that we would not succumb to temptation but be delivered or set free from his influences. It’s worth spending a little time praying into this too

Dear Lord, thank you for privilege of prayer – that we can talk to you as our Father.  Please help us to draw closer to you each day as we pray.  Amen

Written by Ps. Ainslie Woods