Luke 11:1-4 – Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.” So He said to them, “When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us day by day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins, For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one.”

On this occasion, the One who was fully God, yet fully man was PRAYING.  As God, He was prayed TO; as man HE PRAYED. By His own example, Jesus declares to us the importance of prayer.  Luke picks up on this more than the other Gospel writers as he records many instances of Christ praying: when He was baptized, he was praying; He withdrew into the wilderness, and prayed; He went up into a mountain to pray and prayed all night; He was alone praying; and soon after that, He went up into a mountain to pray, and as He prayed He was transfigured; and here now on this occasion He is praying!  His example inspired His disciples.  Can you imagine what it must have been like to hear Jesus pray?  His prayers would leave you with no doubt that God heard Him!  His prayers were powerful and effective, inspirational and intimate, faith-filled and focused!  As any respectful disciple would do, this one waited until Jesus finished praying and then said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.”  Having witnessed Jesus’s prayers, who wouldn’t want to learn how to pray from Him?

“Lord, teach us to pray…” is in itself a good prayer, and one that is much needed among Christians today!  The effectual earnest prayers of someone ought to motivate every one of us to holy emulation!  Jesus was already teaching them by example, but this lesson demands that His disciples hunger for the instruction enough to request it.  “Lord, teach me what it is to pray; Lord, inspire and motivate me to pray; Lord, direct me in what to pray for; Lord, give me a spirit of prayer and understanding of prayer that is acceptable to God; Lord, teach me to pray in proper words; Lord, give me a heart and wisdom in prayer, that I may pray as I ought; Lord, teach me what to say in prayer!”  So He said to them, “When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. Give us day by day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins, For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one.”
In His instruction on prayer, Jesus promotes several critical things to realize.  1) The pray-er must be awakened to the sacredness of the God’s dwelling and the hallowedness of the name and nature of our heavenly Father.  2) We are to realize that God’s RULE is missing until desired and asked for.  3) Recognize that God’s WILL is not being done here on earth the same way it is in heaven, and that’s not a good thing, therefore pray that God’s will may become OUR will.  4) Understand that God’s provision is a day by day matter and our prayers should follow this understanding.  5) We must also acknowledge that we need God’s forgiveness of our sins and so we should confess to Him.  6) Contingent upon our being forgiven is our forgiveness of all others who are indebted to us.  7) We ought to be mindful that temptation is a powerful force of the devil and we need God’s all-powerful leadership and deliverance in our areas of sinful tendencies and weakness.  Lord, teach US to pray, so that we may come to the full realization and experience of all these things in our lives and our prayers.
 

Thursday: Meet together with at least 1 or 2 other believers to enter the Throne Room of Grace.

 

Friday: Pray for the Good News families of the week: Ryan & Sara Hackett, Matt & Becky Hakes (Stevie, Lydia), Taylor Isselhard.

 

Saturday: Ask the Lord to teach you to pray and awaken you to the importance of prayer!

 

Sunday: Put into practice what Christ has taught concerning prayer – just do it!

 

Monday: Pray that God’s kingdom will come and His will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

 

Tuesday: Pray that you may be forgiven of your sins as you forgive others their indebtedness to you.

 

Wednesday:  Pray for God’s deliverance from temptation and the evil schemes of the devil.

Prayer Challenge:  Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another–and all the more as you see the Day approaching. – Hebrews 10:19-25

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