On Sunday mornings, I’ve been exploring The Lord’s Prayer through a series of sermons. Here are a few helpful ways to use this familiar prayer.
- Think of it as a way to get a cold engine started. Recite the Lord’s Prayer to “warm your spirit” so that you can more easily enter into your own prayer and time with God.
- Consider the meaning of each phrase. Ask yourself questions as: With this line, what am I asking God to do? What am I offering of myself when I say this part of the prayer? Is there something about the prayer that is unclear for me? Which parts are the easiest for me to pray and which are the hardest?
- Remembering that the Lord’s Prayer is a model for prayer, how might you adapt or rephrase the words that are in the prayer to make them more your own prayer or to fit your particular situation?
- Pray the Lord’s Prayer when your mind rebels against praying your own prayers. Praying something is better than praying nothing.
- Pray it when your heart is aching so bad that you can’t form your own petitions. It may become a channel through which God’s Spirit can flow to you.
When we pray, we are taking time to foster a relationship with God. We are sharing ourselves with the One who loves us and wants the very best for us. And God receives our prayers and helps to shape us and strengthen us as followers of Jesus Christ.
Grace and peace,
Pastor Steve