Praying Like My Father Taught Me

 

 

I know I briefly posted this on facebook last week, but it has been so powerful in my prayer life I thought I would expound a bit more here....

 

A while back, I was trying to figure out how to fill my prayer time, and I was constantly finding myself caught up in asking for my needs and feeling like a portion of the richness that should be there was missing. So one morning I asked God about it, and he lead me to where the disciples asked him the same question...

 

"Lord, teach us to pray,"

 

So he gave us a perfect example of a template for prayer.Most of you, I'm sure, are familiar with the Lord's prayer.

 

Our Father, who art in heaven,

hallowed be Thy name,

Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done,

On earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread,

and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors,

and lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory,

forever and ever,

Amen.

 



 Instead of reciting the prayer word for word, I decided to break it down and make it more personal. As I have made a practice of this, my prayer life has been greatly enriched as I learn more of the heart of my Father.

 

Do you want to pray as our Father taught? Here's what I suggest...

 

Our - (or my) Thank God for the fact that he possesses you and you posses His Holy Spirit. There is a genuine personal aspect to the God we serve. He chose you in Him before the creation of the world.

 

Father - Not only is the relationship personal, we have an intimate connection with God as our Father! Praise him for this!

 

Who art in Heaven - His ways and thoughts are higher than ours, and he has full right to reign as God. Proclaim His Lordship, His Highness, His Power and Right to rule.

 

Hallowed be - His holiness no one can fathom. Praise Him for His holiness, and His grace to see past our sin and clothe us in His righteousness.

 

Thy Name - Proclaim the name of our Lord and Savior. He is Jehovah Shalom - our peace, Jehovah Jirah - our provider, Jehovah Rophe - our healer, Jehovah Tiskinu - our righteousness, Jehovah Nissi - our banner, the Prince of Peace, the Lamb of God, the Great I AM. Praise Him for who He is!

 

Thy Kingdom come - (not mine) Admit Christ right and Lordship over the earth and the heavens. Pray that all kingdoms (yours and any other unrightful kingdom) will be overcome by His power and rule.

 

Thy will be done - (not mine) Lay down your will at the foot of the cross. Open your hands and your heart to the heart of God. Search scripture, and pray God's will back to him. (He is willing that none should perish but that all should come to repentance....)

 

On earth as it is in heaven - Pray that God's will would be carried out in your life, in the life of your family, in your church, in your city, in this nation, and in our world.

 

Give us this day - God knows what you need in this moment, in this day.Praise Him for that. He tells us not to worry about tomorrow. Confess any anxiety you may be feeling regarding today or the future.

 

Our Daily bread - Ask God what it is that you need today and ask Him to meet those needs.

 

Forgive us our debts - Ask God to search your heart and know you, and see if there is any wicked way within you. (give Him time, and listen closely) Confess anything that He may bring to mind. Thank Him for His grace and forgiveness. Resolve to make right anything that may be between you and another individual.

 

As we forgive our debtors - Ask God to search you once again to see if there is any offense you are holding onto. Release the prisoner, forgive, and follow Christ's example of grace, choosing no longer to hold the hurt against the offender.

 

And lead us - Give God the steering wheel today. Ask Him to be your guide through each decision, in each moment, with each person.

 

Not into temptation - Realize temptation will come (especially if you are following Close to Christ - the devil doesn't like this). God always provides a way of escape. Ask that your eyes may be open to the way out and that you might have the boldness to take the way out.

 

But deliver us from evil - Evil exists, it's real, and it hates good. Take time to put on the full armor of Christ today before you face the battles ahead. (Helmet of salvation, breastplate of righteousness, shield of faith, sword of the spirit, belt of truth, feet fitted with readiness that comes from the gospel) Then ask Christ to be your rear guard.

 

For Thine is the Kingdom - (not my kingdom) Confess once again that Christ has the right to rule and reign. Pray that His rule would be evident and your kingdom would be subject to His.

 

And the Power - (not in my own strength) Confess that you have no power apart from Him. Pray that His power would be evident in your life and in the lives of those around you.

 

And the Glory - (not for my own glory) Pray that your life would be lived for the purpose of magnifying the Father and not yourself. Pray that His fame would spread as a result of how you live your life.

 

Forever and Ever - pray that this would be true not just today, but in every moment of every day that you live.

 

Amen - and Amen!

 

Do you feel like your prayer life has been lacking recently? I challenge you to try praying like Jesus taught and see what it can do for you!

 

Seek Him, Delight in Him, Know Him and be known!!!



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Escaping the Monster

I felt like no matter where I turned or how fast I ran, the monster was always chasing me. I was trying so hard to live in my new found freedom, but somehow these imprints of my past kept breaking loose of their chains, and though not catching me, would still make me feel like all my work was failing.

From my point of view, my actions had matched the "standards of holiness," yet, every time I turned around someone else was assuming that in the midst of that stressful situation, I would resort to former patterns: snapping at them, blaming, or getting angry. Before I even had a chance to respond in a new way, my old habits were slapped back on my chest like a scarlet letter I carried around. I couldn't escape it.

How do you escape the monsters of your past? The sin that has held you in condemnation for so long? The patterns and habits that everyone assumes are "just you." Or the feeling that you could never rise above failures so deep?

I was praying through this the other morning after a really tough day, and this is where I was lead....

- Take the road of humility. Confess. Maybe my life wasn't living up to all the standards I had assumed it was. Maybe these people saw something in me that I was blind to. My spirit and my actions may not have matched (though I was "doing the right thing," maybe my heart wasn't in it, and the heart is what really counts) So I searched my heart. Lord, show me the reality of what you see. He did! And some of it was ugly. 1 John 1:9 says that if we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. So I confessed. I got on my knees and got my heart right before God. Then I returned to these people, and got my heart right before them.

- Realize you are incapable. The book of Romans clearly states that all have sinned and there is no one who seeks God. I, in my humanness, have no bent to seek God, no power to pursue holiness, and no desire to see revival. When I come to this realization, I must daily, moment by moment, cry out, "GOD I NEED YOU!" It's when we acknowledge our reliance on Him that He comes. God loves to hear His people admit their need of Him. What I don't want to do is live in pride. If I think my pursuit of God relies on me, that's when I will fall!

- Rejoice that you are not condemned. There is therefore, now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:1. In Christ's eyes, we are washed under His blood and clothed in His holiness. The sins of our past are washed away as far as the east is from the west. He chooses to remember them no more and will not condemn those who stand right before Him. The sins of the past, whether one time or reoccurring, have been removed from your record once they have been laid before the cross of Christ. Even my former patterns of stress, striving, anger, assuming, and blaming no longer bind me. I am not held in the chains of my past! Praise the Lord.

If your heart is right before God, do not let the condemnation of others mark you. You are FREE!

That's how I escaped the monsters of my past...

Tomorrow, I will once again spend extended time seeking His face in my own life, in the lives of my family, friends, church, community and nation. I've been praying that God will raise up a group of believers who will also Seek Him Passionately and Wholeheartedly. WILL YOU JOIN ME?

By His strength, seeking Him. By His grace, pursuing His holiness. By His strength, desiring revival.
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