Our Father In Heaven

The call brought news of a friend’s serious illness.  Hearing the pain in her husband’s voice, my emotions were stirred.  Then, my reflex was ‘let’s pray.’  After decades of walking with Jesus, prayer is like the air I breathe.  Could I pray better prayers? Yes!  Should I spend more time in prayer? Perhaps.  But, prayer often takes me to my Friend, my God.  The prayers of my life are like the other conversations I have; some short, some long, some joyous, others full of sorrow.  Paul said that he prayed often for the people he loved. "We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Thessalonians 1:2-3, NIV)

There is a misconception among Christians that keeps some from prayer. They think they must make speeches to God!  No, not at all. The Lord loves when we come to Him, even if it is the incoherent overflow of our troubled heart. Even a child can pray, and the simplicity of their prayers are worthy of our emulation. But, to think that all prayer must be of our own composition is like saying we could never borrow the words of a poet to express our love, joy, or appreciation.

I love the Lord’s Prayer and make it my own, not as an empty form, but as a pathway into His Presence.  What could be more comforting than to borrow Jesus’ own words: “Our Father, in heaven; hallowed be Your Name…” ?  Frequently the Psalms become my prayer book.  They move me to the depths of worship, praise, and intercession.  Praying them, again and again, changes my thoughts, lifting me up into His Presence.   Then, too, I use ancient prayer like this:  “Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy.”  I this breathe this simple supplication when I am deeply troubled or standing alongside of a person in crisis.

A way of prayer is taught in this passage. "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will." (Romans 8:26-27, NIV)  We enter into the Presence of the Holy Spirit and wordless prayer forms as we are moved by Him.  We may groan, we may yield to praying in the Spirit, speaking in a language intelligible only in Heaven.  Paul says that this is praying with our spirit, rather than our mind. "For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind." (1 Corinthians 14:14-15, NIV)  It is a mystical, but deeply satisfying, kind of prayer.

Christian, do you pray? The way we should live is summed up in the Word. Take this with you and think about it often today. "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, NKJV)  

Let us pray!

"This, then, is how you should pray:
”‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”

 (Matthew 6:9-13, NIV)