Pray Like This! How To Pray ‘The Lord’s Prayer’
What do you say to the Almighty God – the one who created the world?
Learning how to pray is a common struggle for believers. Even Jesus’ most dedicated followers struggled with this task. In fact, the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray.
Prayer obviously isn’t a skill that comes naturally to us, is it?
The good news is, Jesus gave his disciples – and us – a template for prayer. This template shows us who God is and how he wants us to communicate with him:
“The Lord’s Prayer” is one of the most famous passages in the Bible, and it’s been recited for ages. But was this prayer meant simply to be repeated? How can the Lord’s Prayer actually teach us to pray?
ACTION STEPS FOR PRAYING “THE LORD’S PRAYER” EFFECTIVELY
We all want to have a healthy and effective prayer life, right? So, let’s break down the Lord’s Prayer and figure out what each line says about where our minds should be while we’re communicating with God.
“OUR FATHER IN HEAVEN”
The first two words in our prayer template create a close and personal connection – the connection of a parent. A father wants his children to come to him. He wants to have regular conversations with them and be connected to them. The Almighty God has made us a part of his family!
Action Step: When you begin to pray, remember that God wants a personal connection with you.
“HALLOWED BE YOUR NAME”
The word “hallowed” means to keep holy or set apart. But what does it mean to keep God’s name set apart when you pray? Scripture tells us:
His name is POWERFUL (Prov. 18:10).
His name is FAMOUS (Phil. 2:10-11).
His name SAVES (Acts 4:12)
Those are some pretty unique characteristics for a name, aren’t they? The name of Jesus is incredibly special!
Action Step: Tell him how special his name is to you.
“YOUR KINGDOM COME”
When we pray, it’s easy to focus on our own difficulties. But a laundry list of complaints isn’t always the most productive of conversations, is it?
“Thy kingdom come” puts our own focus where it needs to be in our prayer – on spiritual things!
Jesus said, “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matt. 6:31-33).
That means when our focus matches God’s, we’ll see our laundry list start to naturally dwindle.
Action Step: Focus on the spiritual.
“YOUR WILL BE DONE, ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN”
So, we’ve focused our mind on spiritual things. What’s next? Well, we need to align our “will” – or our intentions – with God’s. When we tell God that we want his will to be done instead of our own, we’re aligning our desires and ambitions with his.
What a marvelous notion – to want what God wants! Why would we want anything else?
Action Step: Imagine what God has planned – and ask him to make it happen!
“GIVE US TODAY OUR DAILY BREAD”
Jesus said, “Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you” (John 6:27).
When we pray for our “daily bread,” we aren’t just saying we trust in God to provide for us physically. We’re also crying out to hear him and to receive that spiritual nourishment that brings spiritual life – His word!
Action Step: Ask God to provide for you both physically AND spiritually
“AND FORGIVE US OUR DEBTS AS WE ALSO HAVE FORGIVEN OUR DEBTORS”
Jesus said, “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matt. 6:14-15).
The prerequisite for forgiveness? Forgiving others!
There’s another benefit to forgiving others, though. When we verbally tie our own forgiveness to our promise to forgive others, it gives us that push we need to love our neighbor instead of condemning them.
This verbal acknowledgement paves the way to healing in our relationships!
Action Step: Repent of your sins and ask for forgiveness – for you AND for others!
“AND LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION; BUT DELIVER US FROM THE EVIL ONE”
The final line of the Lord’s Prayer speaks an underlying promise to God. We are declaring that we want our paths to be led by his spirit. We are giving our future to him!
Action Step: Tell God how you plan to commit your future paths to him
A TEMPLATE AND A PROMISE…
Jesus didn’t just give his followers a template for prayer. He also gave them a promise! He told them:
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”
And what a beautiful promise that is!