In a recent survey, 80 percent of Americans say they have prayed at one time. Yet, we struggle with prayer. Does God hear us? Is God tired of our pleas? Do our words seem superficial? Does prayer matter? How do we pray?
In a recent survey, 80 percent of Americans say they have prayed at one time. Yet, we struggle with prayer. Does God hear us? Is God tired of our pleas? Do our words seem superficial? Does prayer matter? How do we pray?
Many Christians throughout the world pray the Lord’s Prayer at least once a week in worship. But too often, this prayer is said from memory as a worship ritual without knowing what the prayer really means. In this series, we are examining the Lord’s Prayer to get a better understanding of its meaning so that when we pray it we will connect with God like never before. So what does the phrase “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name” actually mean?
In this series, we are examining the Lord’s Prayer to get a better understanding of its meaning so that when we pray it, we will connect with God like never before. So what does the phrase “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” mean for us?
“Give us this day, our daily bread,” is often where we want to jump first in prayer—our personal needs can feel so pressing and urgent. Jesus teaches us to pray first with the perspective of God’s Heavenly Kingdom, and then pray with confidence for what we need to sustain us each day. As we pray, we discover ways to partner with God to ensure others have their physical and spiritual needs met as well.
In this series, we are examining the Lord’s Prayer to get a better understanding of its meaning so that when we pray it, we will connect with God like never before. So what does the phrase “forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us,” actually mean?
We have been exploring the Lord’s Prayer and come now to the line that asks God to lead us “not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,” which has led to to some confusion. Is God in the habit of leading us into testing and temptation? We know that Jesus understood the lure of the evil one, who sought to derail his ministry. And Jesus knew that we, as his followers, would struggle personally with temptation and evil. Jesus also knew, as a society, we would be enticed by evil. We need this prayer, for ourselves and for our church, as we seek to follow the guidance of the Spirit and avoid the whispers of the Deceiver.
“For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever,” the closing line to the Lord’s Prayer, most likely was not originally part of the prayer that Jesus taught, but was added and recited by Christians by the end of the first century. With this shout of praise, we pledge to truly own this prayer and allow it to govern the way we think and the way we live, and ultimately how we follow Jesus into the world today.