Talk to Him!
Written by Bethany LaShell
Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in 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, for ever. Amen (Matthew 6:9-13 KJV).
No matter what comes to your mind when you hear or read the Lord’s Prayer, it’s meant to be a model for us in how we talk to God on a regular basis. Jesus did not say, “You must say these exact words five times a day.” Nor did he tell his disciples they were on their own to figure out how to pray.
Prayer, at its most basic level, is communicating with God. Just like communication in other relationships, it’s not meant to be a monolog! While we may not audibly hear a response from God, when we meditate on his Word and sit silently and expectantly before him, he will answer us.
I’ve been convicted the past few years not just to pray more, but to figure out what prayer really means and how to pray more effectively. Many books have been written on prayer, and a simple internet search will yield dozens of prayer journals, yet that still leaves the discipline of the actual praying to the individual.
But, if you’re anything like me, you need a little help in starting the conversation with God. What should we call him? How do we approach him? Can we just ask for stuff like we’re reading a grocery list? How do we honor him with our prayers?
This is where the Lord’s Prayer comes in. If we can move beyond the rote familiarity of these simple words, we’ll find a framework to cover every type of prayer needed to begin our conversation with God. Let’s break it down phrase by phrase to help us get a sense of what we’re saying.
Our Father which art in heaven—We must keep in mind two things about who God is. First, he is our loving Father who wants what is best for us: “If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:11 ESV). Second, he is in Heaven, meaning we cannot lose track of the fact that we are approaching God Almighty, the Creator of the universe. So, we come to God acknowledging who he is and who we are in Christ.
Hallowed be thy name—We don’t use the word hallowed much anymore, but it means holy. We’re reaffirming God’s holiness and asking that in our daily lives, we not profane his character. We’re asking God to help us glorify his name with our words and actions. We’re also asking God to help us be grateful for the beauty that his name and character reveal.
Thy kingdom come—In one sense, we’re praying for God to change our hearts and to bend our plans to his. We’re asking God to shape our hearts through the Holy Spirit and through his Word, so we can be fully obedient to him. But we’re also looking ahead with longing to Jesus’ future reign during the Millennial Kingdom.
Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven—For many of us, myself included, this is the sticking point. We’re willing for God’s will to be done as long as it makes us happy. We want our own way. But just like a good mother doesn’t let her children have chicken nuggets, pizza, and ice cream for dinner every night because it isn’t healthy, God does not always give us what we want. He knows what’s best for us, and as we dwell on Scriptures and learn to rest in God’s character, we’ll come to realize, “in [God’s] presence there is fullness of joy” (Psalm 16:11).
Give us this day our daily bread—Notice Jesus doesn’t say we should ask for chocolate cake. He said daily bread. Daily means on time, not early and not late. Bread implies basic necessities, not luxuries. Does this mean we can never ask God for things that we don’t strictly need for survival? I don’t think so, but we need to remember that God is not a magic genie in a bottle. He’s a loving Father.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors—We all know we’re to confess our sins and ask for God’s forgiveness, but we often have trouble forgiving those who sin against us (in minor or major ways). Yet, “if we are holding a grudge, we should see the hypocrisy of seeking forgiveness from God for sins of our own” (Timothy Keller, Prayer, p. 116).
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil—Everyone faces temptations of various sorts multiple times a day. But do we invite temptation to join us at Starbucks? Or do we kick it to the curb? What’s the daily pattern of our lives? Prayer is the way to combat the temptation to sin: “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak’” (Matthew 26:41 ESV).
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen—This closing ascription brings the prayer full circle. After confessing our sins and bringing our laundry list to God, we return to his “complete sufficiency” (ibid., p. 117). God is “able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20 ESV). In that let our hearts be at peace.
One more note: the Lord’s Prayer is meant to be prayed in community. The pronouns are plural: we, us, our. Yes, it’s fine to pray these things for ourselves, but we must also pray with and for fellow believers.
How will you change your daily pattern of prayer based on rethinking the Lord’s Prayer?
Call to Action
Pray and Reflect on:
Matthew 6:1-15—the context of the Lord’s Prayer
Matthew 7:7-11—further instructions on being persistent in prayer
Ephesians 1:15-21—another example of prayer to follow
Reflections
Which part of the Lord’s Prayer struck you in a fresh way this week?
Which part of the Lord’s Prayer is the hardest for you to pray like you mean it and why?
How would you personalize the Lord’s Prayer?
