(4 minute 53 second read)

I need to confess something…

Throughout my life, I have always struggled with consistent prayer.

And honestly, I only have myself to blame.

“I’m too busy,” I’ll say. “Not right now,” “Oh shoot, I forgot to…”

What’s crazy about all of these statements is that all of these are me saying:

“God, you need to fit into my schedule. My life is so dang busy and there are so many important things going on and things I need to do and I’m doing it all without you.”

I’ve been particularly convicted recently, and it led me to try and figure out why I even should be praying in the first place.

Does God actually hear what I say? What is the purpose? What do I even say? Why is God not answering my prayers?

Fortunately, the disciples regularly saw Jesus in prayer.

In Luke 11 Jesus had finished praying and one of his disciples approached him and asked him how to pray, and when asked about it, Jesus taught them exactly how to do it.

Luke 11:1-2 and Matthew 6:9-13 both mention what we commonly know as “The Lord’s Prayer.” Likely you’ve heard it before, and I am sure a handful of you have it memorized.

“Pray then like this: "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”

They learned that prayer is a critically important part of their relationship with the Father.

Jesus clearly made prayer a consistent companion to his ministry, and seemingly often looked for every opportunity day or night to converse with the Father.

It’s the means in which God opens up a dialogue with us — it’s not a one-way conversation with us speaking to God, or even worse, a conversation with ourselves in our own head….

It’s a time when we speak to God and we submit ourselves to Him in that time, and we can hear Him speak to us as well.

It comes down to our approach and attitude.

I won’t address every verse/word in the prayer Jesus outlines… But these points matter to our prayer life, and thus, our relationship with God.

It’s interesting that in Luke 11 when a disciple asked Jesus to teach them how to pray, Jesus responds with “² And he said to them, “When you pray, say: …”

Did you catch that?

How easy would it have been for Jesus to pass up that intro phrase?

It’s not “Should you decide to pray,” “If you decide to pray,” or “If you find the time to pray.”

Our first point should be mindful of our effort in prayer.

We should look for opportunities to engage in an active prayer life.

Jesus presupposes that we do.

If you grew up in a Christian household like me, you always knew that prayer was found 1. In church 2. Before a meal 3. Before bed — and some of us will add before a test.

If we’re not careful, we tend to associate the occasion for prayer with the purpose for prayer.

Imagine if you had a friend or family member who only called you when they needed something (I’ve been that friend/family member…)

It’s a selfish way to approach relationships, yet we do that all the time with God.

If I only pray when an urgent need gives me the desire to communicate, I treat God no differently.

That is why I believe Jesus said “When you pray:”

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; Philippians 4:6

We pray because God’s word calls us to pray, not when only certain circumstances dictate it — because all circumstances warrant prayer.

We’re called to pray without ceasing. (1 Thess 5:16-18)

God has revealed himself to us, and we pray to know His will for our lives.

Jesus’s instructions now model that in the prayer he lays out:

“Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.”

Notice that we pray to The Father.

The Spirit gives us the words to pray (Romans 8:26).

And Jesus gives us the ability to approach boldly to the throne of the Father (Hebrews 4:16).

The word for Father is the same word for a loving, earthly father who desires to care for his children and desires to hear our struggles and needs.

(I won’t get into detail for the “Hallowed be Your name” part for the sake of brevity)

“Your Kingdom come…”

Jesus’ Kingdom IS coming — it’s promised to come. If that is the case, why does Jesus teach us to pray for things that God has already made up his mind on?

This question was challenging for me to wrap my head around when it came to prayer. God seems to not change His mind (1 Sam 15:29), and out of God’s sovereignty…

What he determines to do, he will do. And what he determines not to do, he won’t do.

This is followed by the most important part of this prayer in my opinion, and serves as the explanation:

“Your Kingdom come, your will be done.”

We are praying to align our will to the Father’s, and not the other way around.

We bring our requests and petitions to Him even before we know His will.

But in the course of our prayer life, we should pray for His will and His plan for the creation and our lives, and then allow the Holy Spirit to conform our will to His.

As we grow and mature in our spiritual walk, we will find increasingly that our will will become His will, and we will pray for His plan and not our own.

This is where I will leave it for this newsletter, and will have a part 2 coming out on the second half of it.

And believe me… It answers many questions that we have about prayer, and it gives us real, tangible examples that we can think about as we pray.

It’ll be in your inbox next Monday the 24th.

So, I write this as someone who has routinely struggled with prayer, especially recently, and I am reminded that prayer needs to be a part of my life.

It needs to be a part of yours too.

Don’t let God get your leftovers as I have recently.

Make time to pray, just like Jesus did.

He is our example.

Until next time…

Thank you.

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