| Photo by Igor Rodrigues on Unsplash
In Matthew 6: 9-13, we have what we call the Lord’s Prayer. But what Jesus is teaching His followers of what real prayer is like. How many people can quote the Lord’s Prayer, but we do not really pray what Jesus is teaching us in this prayer:
“Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may Your name be kept holy. May Your Kingdom come soon. May Your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us today the food we need, and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one.” When we look at this prayer, we see the scope of what prayer should be like.
Worship – “Our Father in heaven, may Your name be kept holy.”
We enter His presence through worship. Worship is different than praise. Praise is thanking the Lord for all of His blessings, but Worship is thanking Him for His Presence in our lives. Worship is glorifying and praising His name above everything else. Worship is humbling ourselves before the Lord and realizing that He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!
Surrender to His Will – “May Your kingdom come soon. May Your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.” We must pray for His will to be done in our lives today! I pray that Your will be completed in my life today!
Needs – “Give us today the food that we need.” This is when we bring our needs to the Lord.” Realizing that the Lord supplies all my needs according to His riches in glory. We can come before the Lord and ask for what we need from Him today! Lord, thank You that you not only hear my prayers, but You answer my prayers.
“Forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us.” We need to realize that God forgives us of our sins, and we need to forgive those who hurt us, reject us, and come against us. We can only forgive when we realize all that the Lord has forgiven us of today. Lord, help us to walk in forgiveness today.
Spiritual strength – “And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one.” Jesus has provided the strength so that we can say no to temptation, and we do not have to give in to sin. “Resist the devil and He will flee from you.” That is why we need to realize that I need Him and His Strength in my life today!
Lord, help me to pray like You taught us how to pray! Help me to learn to pray and walk in spiritual victory.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Pastor Ronald Squibb has been the International Christian Center (ICC) Lead Senior Pastor at Staten Island, New York, since 2011. He draws many experiences from his over 40 years as a pastor and significant emotional life experiences.
His new book, Following the Journey with Jesus, which he co-authored with Daniel McNaughton, was recently published and is receiving rave reviews. His daily devotional appears in this publication.
