Prayer

Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong.

Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God.

God is in heaven and you are on earth,

so let your words be few.

A dream comes when there are many cares, and many words mark the speech of a fool.

When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it.

Ecclesiastes 5:1-5

Prayer is communication. We are asking someone to do something for us that we can’t do for ourselves. Remember that we are limited and unable to do things for ourselves, so prayer must be from a state of humility rather than arrogance. How would you ask someone for help? We tend to try to protect ourselves by saying things like, “I’m going to need your help on this,” which is not asking for help, but stating a fact. The request for help is implied, but not stated. We normally treat the statement as a request. How would you put such a request to God? Why is there a difference?

We are trusting in God as a person, not a force, not a distant object. We are approaching the throne with a request. But God is not just a king, granting favors. He is also a father raising children. Like any other father, he wants us to ask for things, and ask politely. Sometimes, He will wait until we ask so we learn to trust Him. Sometimes, He makes us ask repeatedly. If we ask for things and He says no, we learn about what we are supposed to be and do.

Prayer is also a tool. God has chosen not to write the whole of history with His own hand. Adam was created to be the ruler of creation under Jesus. God wants us to have a share in the running of the world. Most of the events that go on in the universe are indeed out of our control, but not all. It is like a movie in which the scene and the general outline of the story is set by the author, but minor details are left for the actors to improvise. Sometimes He wants us to physically do things, and sometimes He wants us to ask Him to do them through prayer. Asking God to do things was one of the tools available to Adam before the fall. With the fall, that privilege was severely restricted, but He still wants us to seek Him out.

Why should He listen to us? Why should the God who knows and sees everything listen to our ignorant requests? Partly to teach us to trust Him, partly to help us learn to hear Him, partly to help us learn what He wants for us.

It may be a mystery why He should have allowed us to cause real events at all. Causing them through prayer is no different than causing them in person.

What is it not?

• Prayer is hope with a beat to it.
• That’s a long wait for a train that doesn’t come
• Prayer is a magic wand
• Talking to the void
• Turning to God when you run out of other options
• A way to make God give you what you want
• Virtue signaling

What does the Bible say about prayer?

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s desire for you in Christ Jesus.

We are supposed to pray all of the time. Communication with God is supposed to be free and continuous. This can be as straightforward as a running dialog with Him in your head. There are times to kneel before Him in humility, and there are times it is okay to just talk to Him. Seek Him out. Tell Him that you are happy that the price of gas has dropped. Thank Him for the fact that your favorite flavor of yogurt is available in the store. Let Him know that you are sad that the people in the news are being so mean to each other. He wants to be involved in our lives.

Matthew 6:1-8

But when you pray, go into your inner room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

The word here for babbling also means vain repetition of empty words, prattling on endlessly and tediously. Babbling out endless mechanical rosaries would fit in this category. There is nothing wrong with rosaries, as long as you pray meaningfully.

Prayer is not what the world says that it is. Part of that is cynical mocking of what they don’t understand and part is anti-Christian behavior. Part of it is a need by people to “do” something to get God’s approval. We aren’t performing a ritual to appease God, but humbly asking for His help, for which we cannot repay Him.

Who should we pray to?

Consider the line of authority. We already established that the Father is the executive of this organization. Jesus is the Chief Operating Officer and the Holy Spirit is the Chief Information Officer. Jesus constantly refers to the Father as in charge. He intercedes with the Father on our behalf.

Jesus showed us what good prayer looks like in the Lord’s Prayer. In that template, He told us to pray to the Father (more later). Jesus also told us to pray to Him.

John 14:13-14

 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.

Pray to God and no-one else.

How do we know He is listening?

Because He promised to.

Psalm 55:16-17

As for me, I call to God (the Almighty ruler of the universe), and the Lord (the personal God of the covenant) will save me. Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and he hears (listens to intelligently) my voice. (note: constant, unremitting prayer; morning, noon and night)

Matthew 6:6

But whenever you pray, go into your private room, close the door and pray to your Father (not “pray to God”), who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Why do we pray? What should we pray for?

To Talk to God

Luke 6:12

One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.

Jesus spent a lot of time in the Bible praying and just talking with His Father. We need to do the same.

Complain to God

Job 1:20-22

At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.

Job 7:20-21

If I have sinned, what have I done to you, you who see everything we do? Why have you made me your target? Have I become a burden to you? Why do you not pardon my offenses and forgive my sins? For I will soon lie down in the dust; you will search for me, but I will be no more.”

It’s Ok to complain to God. It’s Ok to yell at Him. Don’t disrespect Him or curse Him or accuse Him of doing evil. But even if you do, He will forgive you if you ask. Also, don’t be surprised if He answers your objections (read Job 38-41, “where were you when I laid down the foundations of the earth?”)

Thank God

Luke 17:11-17

Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed. One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan. Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

1 Chronicles 16:34-36

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. Cry out, “Save us, God our Savior; gather us and deliver us from the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name, and glory in your praise.” Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.

Just like anyone else who does something nice for you, He would appreciate it if you just said, “Thank you.” It also helps us remember that He is the source of all good things and that we need to rely on Him rather than our own money, power or strength.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s desire for you in Christ Jesus.

This doesn’t mean we thank Him for evil, as though He did something wrong. We should thank Him for the challenge and for help and support through the challenge. We thank Him for the good things He has given us, and for the sure knowledge that anything that happens in this world is of limited importance, that He has paid for our sins, and that we can rest in the knowledge that eternity with Him is ours.

Intercede with God for other people

Genesis 18:22-33 (God is visiting Abraham in company of two men).

The men turned away and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the LORD. Then Abraham stepped forward and said: “Are you seriously going to sweep away the righteous with the wicked? (Yes, the tone is that adversarial) What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous ones who are there? Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right (justice)?” The Lord replied, “If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake.” Then Abraham spoke up again: “Now that I have ventured to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes, what if the number of the righteous is five less than fifty? Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five people?” “If I find forty-five there,” he said, “I will not destroy it.” Once again Abraham spoke to Him, “What if only forty are found there?” He said, “For the sake of forty, I will not do it.” Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak further. What if only thirty can be found there?” He answered, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.” Abraham said, “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, what if only twenty can be found there?” He said, “For the sake of twenty, I will not destroy it.” Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more. What if only ten can be found there?” He answered, “For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it.”  When the Lord had finished speaking with Abraham, he left, and Abraham returned home.

What is going on here? This is somewhere between Abraham chastising God and someone bartering in a fish market. Abraham is clearly worried about his nephew and wants to convince God not to destroy him, but won’t come right out and say it. So, he plays out this charade with God. God obviously knows what is going on, but plays along without mockery or censure, because He already knows what Abraham is trying to do and why. He allows Abraham to keep his dignity and uses it as an opportunity to teach Abraham about Himself. God knows what we want, what we need and why. There is no use trying to fool Him.

Interceding with God to help other people (especially the sick) happens throughout the Bible. Sometimes He grants prayers of healing, sometimes He doesn’t. Remember that He is doing good according to His definitions, not ours.

Pray for your enemies

Matthew 5:44

But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you

We need to pray for our adversaries for two reasons.

First, because we are told to love them, and it is clear that they need God’s help. If we truly love someone and recognize that they need help, we try to get them that help. We ask that God show Himself to them so that they can be saved.

Second, because that is one of the fastest ways to stop resenting or hating someone. If I pray for them, I will have to stop feeling the bad feelings for them. It won’t happen immediately – it will take time. But it will happen. If we go to God in prayer on someone’s behalf, we bring that relationship before Him as well, and He will start to heal it.

Help in battle

Please see the difference in the Bible between killing and murder in Specific sins.

1 Chronicles 5:20

And because they cried out to God in battle, they were helped against their enemies, and the Hagrites and all their allies were delivered into their hands. Because they put their trust in Him, He interceded for them.

It makes no sense to go into battle or do anything without asking God for help. We don’t have to be afraid of asking for anything. If it is in His will, or can be made to be in His will, He will do it. If not, He won’t. Don’t self-censor.

Ask for Wisdom

James 1:5-8

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault (reproach, upbraiding, criticizing), and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you ask in confidence, without doubting, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded (wavering, waffling, vacillating) and unstable (akatastatos –almost anarchic, a very strong word) in all they do.

Ask regularly for wisdom and understanding. This also helps us learn to ask in confidence and not waver or waffle. He may sharpen your insight. He may grant it in ways you don’t expect. The last time I did, I ended up going back to school. Asking God for attributes like wisdom or patience is like asking Him for big muscles. He is likely to buy you a gym membership so you can exercise the muscles to make them big. We tend to want the muscles without doing the work.

Ask for the Spirit

Luke 11:5-11

Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you go to your friend at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread because a friend of mine has come to me on a journey, and I have no food to offer him.’ And the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless persistence he will surely get up and give you as much as you need. “So, I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock (beat the door with a stick) and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. “What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? So, if you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

We are directed to ask for God to send us His spirit. There are a lot of ways that having His Spirit in us improves us and brings us closer to Him.

To make things right

 God is a God of justice, and particularly answers prayers to make things right.

1 Kings 17:19-24

Elijah was staying with a poor widow and her son during a famine. He provided flour and oil by a miracle each day. One day, the son became sick and died.

But Elijah said to her, “Give me your son.” He took him from her arms, carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him on his own bed. Then he cried out to the Lord, “Lord my God, have you brought tragedy even on this widow who has opened her home to me by causing her son to die?” Then he stretched himself out over the boy three times and cried out to the Lord, “Lord my God, let this boy’s soul return to him!” The Lord listened to the voice of Elijah, and the boy’s soul returned to him, and he lived. Elijah took the child and brought him down from the upper room into the house and gave him to his mother and said, “Look, your son is alive!” Then the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the Lord from your mouth is the truth.”

Luke 18:1-8

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable about their need to pray at all times and not lose heart. He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected men. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’ “For some time, he refused. But finally, he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or respect men, yet because this widow keeps pestering me, I will give her justice, so that she will stop annoying me!’ ”And the Lord said, “Listen to the words of the unjust judge. And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

Cry out to the Lord for justice and He will surely hear you. Not for help against perceived unfairness, but for justice. Be persistent. Sometimes God is trying to build our faith both by having us deal with the problem, but also by learning to ask repeatedly for things. Building muscles helps us deal with bigger problems later.

To submit to Him

Matthew 26:38-42

Jesus is in the garden of Gethsemane. He is about to be betrayed and begin the road to His execution.

Then he said to them, “My soul is consumed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be diverted from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation, for the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it this cup cannot be diverted from me unless I drink it, may your will be done.”

God is in charge. If we perceive that He is asking something of us, we can ask to be relieved of the burden. This may not happen, because there may be other reasons why we have to endure the trial at hand, some of which we cannot know. I was reading a story about a young missionary in Vietnam during the war who was escorted to a trash dump where five Christians were executed and buried. The sight so moved him that continued on a preaching tour he might otherwise have ended. Sometimes God uses our pain to improve us. Sometimes He uses our pain or death as an example for others. We usually won’t know the reasons why.

To ask for stuff

It’s OK to ask for things, just like when your children ask for things. Sometimes you say yes, sometimes you say no. But you want them to ask, and will give them good things as long as there is no reason not to.

We are asking God the Father for things in Jesus’ name. He has given us a power of attorney to use. Whatever we ask for in His name will be granted. In His name means that when we ask God, He is hearing us as though Jesus is asking. So the question we have to ask ourselves is, “Would Jesus ask for this?” More in the section on the limits on prayer.

God invites us to believe that He is our real Father and we are His real children, so that we will pray with trust and complete confidence, in the same way beloved children approach their beloved Father with their requests.

To repent and ask forgiveness

Acts 8:17-24

Simon was a sorcerer in Samaria who was very popular. He believed and was baptized by Philip. Peter and John came to Samaria to preach and pray that the new believers receive the Holy Spirit.

Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. When Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money and said, “Give me also this power as well so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” But Peter answered: “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. Repent of this depravity and beg of the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive you for the intent of your heart. For I see that you are poisoned by bitterness and captive to unrighteousness.” Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.”

Peter was trying to get Simon to repent – change his thinking. He wanted him to repent and ask forgiveness for the intent of his heart – not for having the thought, but for acting on it. Did Simon repent? No. He treated Peter like a local priest that cursed him – he asked him to remove the curse. He didn’t acknowledge his problem and seek forgiveness.

Luke 18:9-14

To some who trusted in their own righteousness and despised others, Jesus told this parable: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers (swindlers, extortioners), evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and pay my tithe of all I receive.’ “But the tax collector stood at a distance, unwilling even to lift up his eyes to heaven. Instead, he beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

God is willing to forgive us. He will do anything to forgive us, even die. But we have to ask in humility and do our best to forgive others as we want Him to forgive us. There is no slightest suggestion in any of Scripture that forgiveness is offered on any other terms.

What are the limits on prayer?

Prayers are not always granted in the literal sense of the word. This is not because prayer is a weaker way of doing things, but because it is a stronger way. When it “works” at all, it works unlimited by space and time. That is why God has retained a discretionary power of granting or refusing it; except on that condition prayer would destroy us.

It is not unreasonable for a commander to say, “Such and such things you may do according to the Standard Operating Procedures. But such and such other things are too dangerous to be left to general rules. If you want to do them you must come and make a request and talk over the whole matter with me in my office. And then – we’ll see.”

The promise to grant prayers is dependent on implied conditions. When we pray, we must be:

-Completely confident that God is able, if willing, to do what we are asking Him to do

-Completely confident that He is listening and seriously considering our request

-Gathered together in the name of Christ

-Asking for something which is not the request of the natural man but the spiritual man, and

-Asking it in entire submission to the will of our Father in heaven (willing to be told ‘no’).

In the absence of those conditions, He may say, “No.” He may grant our request in a way other than that which we desire, or we might suddenly find ourselves afflicted with problems or trials to help us correct our approach. For example, if we are asking for something in greed, He may well choose to make us poor to remove our fixation on money.

What happens when you ask for silly stuff?

Sometimes He refuses, sometimes He is just silent, waiting for us to see the silliness of our request. If we are stubborn and willful, he may grant it, to teach us a lesson.

Wrong uses of prayer

Self-righteousness / virtue signaling.

Showing how righteous I am, whether in front of other people or only to myself

Matthew 6:5

And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.

The hypocrites stood up to pray that they might be seen praying by men, and seen to be righteous. That isn’t prayer. It is theatre.

Asking self-centeredly to support pleasure or get good things simply for the sake of having them.

James 4:1-3

What causes battles and controversy among you? Don’t they come out from the sensuous passions at war within you? You lust after and long for what you do not have. You murder and covet but you are unable to obtain it. You quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask. And when you do ask, you do not receive, because you ask wrongly, that you may waste it on your pleasures.

God wants to give us things, but they have to be things that support the kind of life He wants us to live. Every once in a while, it’s okay to ask Him for something for a treat, but just like with a child, if the requests for treats get too frequent, He may act to correct our misunderstanding.

Praying for the dead

There is no Biblical justification for praying for the dead. This is a Catholic doctrine based in the book of Maccabees and various extrapolations from the idea of purgatory.

Pray to the dead

Don’t do it.

Deuteronomy 18:10-12

God is setting the stage for Israel moving into Canaan and providing justification for the way He will have them drive out or kill the current occupants.

Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire, practices divination or magic, interprets omens, engages in sorcery, or casts spells, consults a medium or familiar spirit or inquires of the dead. For whoever does these things is detestable (disgusting) to the Lord and because of these detestable things the Lord your God is driving out those nations before you.

1 Timothy 2:5

For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time.

King Saul got into trouble when he asked the medium at Endor to call up the spirit of Samuel to ask his advice. Please see 1 Samuel 28. Samuel told King Saul in no uncertain terms how wrong he was.

This prohibition includes praying to the saints. The Catholic Church will tell you that they are not dead, so we can legitimately ask them for help. The Bible makes no such distinction. Dead is dead. There is a fixed gulf between the living and the dead that we are not allowed to cross, even with prayer. We don’t pray to angels. The only one we pray to is God, in the name of Jesus.

Manipulate People

Don’t use God or prayer to manipulate people. Don’t threaten people with God or pray at them. This is a matter of hypocrisy and charity more than prayer. We need to treat each other with love, not hate, particularly not hate disguised as love.

What does it look like when he answers? What does it mean when nothing seems to happen?

There is a story of a bishop who went to the altar and prayed, “Our father who art in heaven…”  God answered, “Yes?”  The bishop fainted.

We don’t expect God to answer, and that is part of the problem. God hears every prayer. He answers every prayer request using one of three answers: Yes, no, wait. Sometimes we hear Him, sometimes we hear, see, feel nothing. Sometimes, things just work out smoothly. Sometimes, things seem to not work out at all, or you have that vague feeling of not-rightness. Part of our growth as Christians is learning to hear God. Part is learning what it looks like when God is putting the brakes on what I’m trying to do and when He is pressing the accelerator. The first step, of course, is sitting down and shutting up. Sometimes God speaks to us in words. Be very careful of this, and make sure that the voice you hear is not yourself, telling you what you want to hear or that it is not a demon telling you things.

1 John 4:1

Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

A good rule of thumb is to compare what you hear with scripture. God will never contradict Himself.

Some examples of people who obeyed visions or listened to voices that contradicted what God said include Mohammed and Joseph Smith (Mormons). These people created new ideas of God based on visions or revelations that cannot have come from God, who never contradicts himself, nor ‘completes the picture’.

Some examples of people who deceived themselves include Arius, who taught that Jesus is not fully God and Sabellius, who taught that God is not three persons. They got so wrapped up in their own knowledge and wisdom and so intent on protecting the sanctity of some aspect of God that they strayed too far in the opposite direction.

When we pray, we don’t have to explain anything. He prefers for us to ask in prayer, but He knows. He will put our request in correct relation to our current situation, our future (including eternity), the people involved and their future, and many other possible implications that we can’t see. What may seem like a reasonable request may cause problems later for us or for someone else. We can’t assume that He isn’t listening when we pray because we don’t seem to get an answer, or don’t get the answer we want.

God answers prayer to make himself known     

1 Kings 18:17-39

Elijah went to meet evil King Ahab of Israel.

When he saw Elijah, he said to him, “Is that you, you troubler of Israel?” “I have not made trouble for Israel,” Elijah replied. “But you and your father’s house have, for you have abandoned commandments of the Lord and have followed the Baals. Now summon the people from all over Israel to meet me on Mount Carmel. And bring the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s (Ahab’s queen) table.”

So, Ahab sent word throughout all Israel and assembled the prophets on Mount Carmel. Then Elijah went before the people and said, “How long will you hop between two sentiments? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.” But the people said nothing. Then Elijah said to them, “I am the only one of the Lord’s prophets left, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets. Get two bulls for us. Let Baal’s prophets choose one for themselves, cut it into pieces and put it on the wood but not light the fire. I will prepare the other bull and put it on the wood but not light the fire. Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord. The god who answers by fire—he is God.”

Then all the people said, “What you say is good.” Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one of the bulls and prepare it first, since there are so many of you. Call on the name of your god, but do not light the fire.” So, they took the bull that was given them, prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning till noon, shouting “O Baal, answer us!” they shouted. But there was no sound and no one answered as they leaped around the altar they had made.

At noon Elijah began to taunt them. “Shout louder, for he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.” So, they shouted louder and slashed themselves with swords and spears, as was their custom, until their blood gushed out. Midday passed, and they kept on raving until the time for the evening sacrifice. But there was no response, no one answered, no one paid attention. Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come here to me.” They came to him, and he repaired the altar of the Lord, which had been torn down. Elijah took twelve stones, one for each of the tribes descended from Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord had come, saying, “Your name shall be Israel.”

With the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord, and he dug a trench around it large enough to hold two seahs of seed. He arranged the wood, cut the bull into pieces and laid it on the wood. Then he said to them, “Fill four large jars with water and pour it on the offering and on the wood.” “Do it again,” he said, and they did it again. “Do it a third time,” he ordered, and they did it the third time. The water ran down around the altar and even filled the trench. At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped to the altar and prayed: “Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your slave and have done all these things at your command. Answer me, Lord, answer me, so this people will know that you, Lord, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again.” Then the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench. When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, “The Lord—he is God! The Lord—he is God!”

We exist to glorify God, and to make His name manifest and holy in the world. We need to pray in the confidence that He will not let us down.

What does it look like when he answers? What does it mean when nothing seems to happen?

Rather than give us a dramatic answer to our requests, God sometimes just gives us the wisdom to see what He wants us to see. Once we learn to see things as He wants us to see, we don’t have to ask His help as often – we can talk to Him about other things. We have grown. Most people learn what God wants them to do by study and reason.

The right way to approach things is usually clear, we just don’t want to do it. We should pray for the strength to do what needs to be done as well as the wisdom to know what to do. Being Christian is costly, especially in terms of secular positions or relationships. We will be held accountable for how we act.

How long do I have to wait for an answer?

Until He is ready. Time is not the same for God as it is for us.

2 Peter 3:8

But, Beloved, do not let this one thing escape your notice: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness but is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

God is outside of time. He sees everything across time and space at once and coordinates many, many things to accomplish His will. This often means that there will be delays for individuals at certain times.

Remember too, that God is raising children. You have to teach children to be patient. God will answer in His own time. Sometimes we seem to get no response, but the reason for that becomes clear days or even years in the future.

Ask for a sign

It’s okay to ask for a sign. Sometimes He will grant one, sometimes not. God knows we are listening with a faulty radio with a bad antenna and weak reception. Ask Him to clarify what He is trying to say. Be careful that you are seeing what is out there, not seeing what you want to see.

Judges 6:36-40

Gideon said to God, “If you will save Israel by my hand as you have promised— look, I will place a wool fleece on the threshing floor. If there is dew only on the fleece and all the ground is dry, then I will know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you said.” And that is what happened. Gideon rose early the next day; he squeezed the fleece and wrung out the dew—a bowlful of water.

Then Gideon said to God, “Do not be angry with me. Let me make just one more request. Allow me one more test with the fleece, but this time make the fleece dry and let the ground be covered with dew.” That night God did so. Only the fleece was dry; all the ground was covered with dew.

As with any other prayer, ask with confidence, sure in the knowledge that God can, whether or not He will do as you ask.

What do I do if I don’t get what I am asking for?

2 Corinthians 12:1-10

I must go on boasting. Although there is nothing to be gained, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord. I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know—God knows. And I know that this man—whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows— was caught up to paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell. I will boast about a man like that, but I will not boast about myself, except about my weaknesses. Even if I should choose to boast, I would not be a fool, because I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain, so no one will think more of me than is warranted by what I do or say, or because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

If He doesn’t answer in the way you expect, be sure to ask yourself “Why?” It is important that we learn what He is trying to teach us about ourselves and how we relate to Him. Did I ask with the right spirit? Am I asking for my own benefit rather than His glory? Am I asking with little hope of a positive response?

Trust that even if He answers “No”, He will still work for the good. Possibly a good, possibly good for me or some other specific person, but most definitely the good. There is often disappointment if I think He answers “Yes”, but in hindsight I realize He answered “No.” We deceive ourselves all the time and hear what we want to hear. Pray for wisdom and guidance. He knows we are imperfect and will work with us as long as we are trying our best to work with Him.

If God says no, we need to respect that. Otherwise, He may let us have our way. That may not work out so well in the long run.

How should we pray?

Often

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Matthew 14:23

After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray.

Jesus frequently went off by Himself to pray. He talked to His Father a lot. We don’t know exactly what He talked about, but we can guess that He was telling His Father about His day, about the challenges He faced and the triumphs. He was probably also getting guidance about the next day.

In secret, alone, quietly

Matthew 6:6

But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

If we pray in secret, God will answer us openly. One advantage to praying by yourself in a quiet place is that you can actually hear God when He chooses to speak. This is extremely difficult in a group setting. One of the hardest things for us to do as humans is to be still in body and in mind. This is even more difficult with the way we have trained ourselves to function in this information age. If we are constantly being bombarded with sound or visual information, anything God has to say will be simply drowned out. This is not any failure on His part, but a negligence and disrespect on our part bordering on insolent arrogance. We then have the nerve to complain to Him that He never answers us, or if He does, we can’t hear Him. Learn to be still.

1 Kings 19 – Elijah was praying

The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord. Behold, the Lord is about to pass by.”

And a great and mighty wind tore into the mountains and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a still, small voice. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.

Suddenly a voice came to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

God shouts to get our attention, but will not shout to talk to us. It makes sense, we don’t shout to our children – we just talk to them. Elijah knew that God would speak softly, so prepared himself to listen. He didn’t even leave the cave when the great and mighty events took place that heralded the Lord’s coming. But when he heard the still, small voice, he covered his face in humility and approached God to hear what He would say.

That is how we need to approach God. We need to quietly listen.

Pray as a group – His people – His church

Matthew 18:19-20

“Again, I tell you truly that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”

If we meet together as a group – even a group as small as a husband and wife, He will honor that assembly with His presence as He would honor any part of His church that meets. He will join them and intercede for them with His Father as high priest.

Pray in the Spirit

Romans 8:26-7

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 through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.

Even if we don’t have the words, we can just kneel before God and cry (or whimper) or growl, if we are too angry to speak. The biggest thing is to take it before God. You can pray anywhere at any time. You don’t have to come before God in ‘the right way’. God allows us to yell at Him, cry at Him, be angry at Him, be frustrated with Him or just hurt at Him. He loves us so much that He will put up with a lot. If we disrespect Him, He will forgive us, but we have to come back and ask – not in horror or shame, but in embarrassment, just like if we have yelled at a spouse or a good friend, confident that we will be forgiven. As long as we ask Him with the understanding that we are asking for what we believe Jesus would ask for, we can ask for anything, trusting that he will censor the requests. He will always act for the good.

We need to pray in confidence

James 1:6-8

But when you ask, you ask in confidence, without doubting, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is wavering and vacillating, and unstable in all they do.

Mark 1:40-41

“A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” Jesus was full of compassion. He reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed.

1 John 5:14-15

This is the bold confidence we have before Him: if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.

The implication here is that if what we ask isn’t of His will, He either simply ignores it or answers “No.” If we decide that He will decline the request before we even ask, He will honor that decision. Let Him decide how to respond. On the other hand, if we are hesitant to even ask because we suspect that what we are asking isn’t right, it is probably better not to ask. God will teach us what is right if we listen. He has given us a very sensitive conscience that tells us more than right from wrong. It also tells us when we are straying from Him. Listen to it. If there is any doubt, think some more, read the Bible and pray for wisdom. We need to be sure of what we’re doing. He will teach us if we give Him the opportunity.

Mark 11:22-25

Jesus cursed a fig tree because it had no fruit. The next day, the fig tree was withered from the roots. The disciples were amazed.

“Have faith (total trust and confidence) in God,” Jesus said to them. “Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and has no doubt in his heart but believes that it will happen, it will be done for them. Therefore, I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”

When we pray, we have to ask in confidence. We have a tendency to ask timidly, “If it’s OK with you, of course…” We need to ask firmly, in trust and expectation of results. If He says “No”, we will deal with that as with the confidence in a parent who will only say no if there is a good reason. Many things in life can be made possible without consequences – we just have to ask. This means that we have to get out of the habit of timid prayer. Pray in the same manner as the leper. “I know you can, if you are willing to do it. Please do it.”

Above all, act. Act on the answers you receive. Trust Him that if you go astray, He will set you back on the path. If you feel that He has presented an opportunity for you, take it. Ask Him to close it off if it isn’t what He wants you to do. He will. Don’t be paralyzed into inaction by doubt, worry and “what if?” Wait for an answer, then follow it.

The Lord’s Prayer

The most famous of the prayers we have is the one Jesus taught us to use, the Lord’s Prayer. Many people have it memorized. This is a model for prayer. We can use it as a prayer, but should also look at in terms of an example of how a prayer should be structured.

It is a daily prayer. It how we should talk to God every day. In it, we submit ourselves to Him, remind ourselves of our place in relation to Him, trust in Him for each day’s support, ask for His forgiveness, commit to forgiving others and ask Him to help us deal with the problems each day presents.

It is not a complete model for everything we have to communicate to God. In it, we don’t thank Him for anything and we don’t repent for individual sins. We also don’t request specific things from Him.

The Lord’s Prayer is intended to be a daily prayer that reaffirms our daily walk with Him. It is maintenance for our relationship.

There are two versions of the Lord’s Prayer. One is in Matthew and the other is in Luke. They are slightly different. This is okay, if you keep the above considerations in mind.

Matthew 6:9-13

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.

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from the evil one.’

Luke 11:2-4

One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples requested, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”

He said to them, “When you pray, say:

‘Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come.

Give us each day our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.

And lead us not into temptation.’”

Note that Jesus didn’t tell them that this is what you should pray, but that this is how you should pray. This is a pattern to follow rather than a formula for recitation by rote.

The pattern:

• Honor God by naming Him as family and as God
• Commit to doing His will rather than your own
• Ask God to provide each day for the needs of the day
• Ask His forgiveness
• Promise to forgive others (this would be a good time to stop and forgive others if you haven’t)
• Ask God to spare us from His trials or provide us the strength to deal with them
• Ask God to spare us from the trials and temptations of the evil one

Note the omission of, “for Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory for ever and ever, Amen.” This text was added by the early church a few years after the Gospels were written. It is completely true and follows the model of the rest of the prayer but it isn’t part of the original text. The church has continued to include it for the last two thousand years, so continuing to use it is fine.

One thing to note is that the language is plural, not singular. Jesus could have presented an individual version of the prayer to the group, but instead directed them to pray corporately. This does not mean that you should not pray when alone, nor that you shouldn’t use the Lord’s Prayer by yourself. It only means that the assumption is that God’s people would get together for prayer and worship.

Remember that the Lord’s Prayer is not all of prayer. It is a model for a specific prayer, but there are other prayers that are also required: Thanks, praise, confession of sin and request for forgiveness, prayers for the sick, prayers for the nation etc.

The other thing to remember is that none of the disciples grew up speaking Greek. They were all working in another language, so every once in a while, there is some oddness in the language usage. Each author is self-consistent, however, and the meaning is usually very clear in context.

It is very, very important to remember that when we come before God in humility, we come before Him as flawless, perfect. We know that we always come before God as broken beggars asking for a handout because we recognize our true state, but when we come before Him in prayer, we come as children talking to their Father. We see all of our issues, faults and problems, but He sees us through the Cross, so all He sees is perfection. We should be confident in our perfection when we talk to Him.

Our Father

Literally: our father

This addresses God by relationship, not name. God reminds us that we are adopted into His family. At the time, though, ‘father’ meant very different things than it means today.

The father was the absolute head of the household. What he says, goes. Children were expected to obey without question and show respect at all times. The father can be loving and generous, but must be approached with respect. Jesus used this illustration in the prayer rather than that of royalty because we are truly members of the family, with the right to an audience at any time. No other religion in history has such a relationship with God. The polytheists had gods, but they were distant and capricious. The eastern religions are either polytheist or atheist (Buddhism), worshiping a system rather than a deity. Judaism recognized God as ‘the God of our fathers’, but refuses to use His name – there is no relationship there. The god of Islam is distant and capricious. He is a person, but not a person to whom we can relate. To dare to call the God of all creation ‘father’ is the most grossly insubordinate and disrespectful act conceivable to most religions. Think about the disciples’ reactions to being told they are in the family and can call God ‘Daddy’. Of course, ‘Daddy’ meant something closer to ‘Daddy, Sir.’ Respect was always required

This phrase also reminds God of His responsibilities as a father. It claims the relationship and asserts the status of beloved child. He doesn’t need reminding, but what we are doing is something like claiming some part of an agreement, much like a lawyer might cite a law or part of a contract in court. We are claiming that:

• Jesus promised that God the Father would hear our requests because we are in the family.
• God, like any father is responsible to support us and take care of us.
• God is responsible to train us and raise us right like any parent. This includes granting some requests, modifying some and denying the others for our own good, as well as for the good of His plan.

We are affirming that:

• We submit to Him as a dutiful child.
• We accept His authority as complete and final.
• We acknowledge Him as the source of everything we have and everything we are.

Who art in heaven

Literally: in heaven

This was part of the pattern of reference to God throughout the Old Testament. It reminds us that He is in heaven and we are on earth. There is a little bit of ‘know your place’ and a little bit of ‘remember His place’.

So far as Matthew is concerned the words ‘on Earth also as in Heaven’ can be taken together, so that what He told us to say in prayer would run thus:

Holy be Your Name on Earth also as in Heaven;

Your Kingdom come on Earth also as in Heaven;

Your Will be done on Earth also as in Heaven.

Holy be Your Name (on earth as it is in heaven)

Literally: purified or consecrated be Your name (including Your reputation), both on earth and in heaven.

The name of God is holy by definition. Please see Who is God. We are reminding ourselves of this and giving due reverence to Him, acknowledging His holiness, particularly in relation to us.

The way this is written, it refers to an action taken in the past that drives this present action. This means that ascribing holiness to God’s name is ancient – Your Name is holy, as it has been since the beginning.

We are reaffirming that God is holy, due obedience and reverence. We are also promising to live in a manner that does not dishonor Him. We bear His name as His children, and when we do not live in a manner that reflects that holiness, we defile His name.

We are also praying that God will make His name holy among us as well. We are committing to that.

Thy kingdom come (on earth as it is in heaven)

Literally: Your kingdom or rule come

This is written as a command or instruction to a third person (Someone help that person!) It is a cry that God’s rule should come to pass. It might be better translated as “May your kingdom come on earth and in heaven!

This also refers to an action in the past that led to this present action – May Your Kingdom, established at the beginning, come!

Importantly we are also acknowledging the rule of God as King as well as Father.

Matthew 6:24

No one can be a slave to two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money/wealth/riches/possessions.

We are committing to serve Him as King, as is His right. In the United States, we have lost the idea that anyone has the absolute right to our obedience. This is what we are committing to here. If you aren’t willing to obey God as King, with absolute authority over your life, then you misunderstand the Bible and how it clearly describes our relationship with Him. Of course we will fail to obey as we ought, but we have to try. Constantly. We have to constantly beat back our desire for autonomy. We have to kill it. The throne at the center of our hearts has room for only one person. If I am in it, God cannot be.

Matthew 16:25

For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.

If God is King of the Universe, why are we telling Him to bring His Kingdom? Won’t He do that anyway?

Deuteronomy 4:39-40

Acknowledge and take to heart this day that the LORD is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other.  Keep his decrees and commands, which I am giving you today, so that it may go well with you and your children after you and that you may live long in the land the LORD your God gives you for all time.

We are actually committing to keeping His commands and supporting the work of bringing the Kingdom.

The LORD is King of Heaven and Earth– where should He be said to rule?

-Thy kingdom come to me. How? How can I help make this happen?

-Thy kingdom come to us (His people) How? How can I help make this happen?

-Thy kingdom come to the world. How? How can I help make this happen?

Ecclesiastes 11:5

As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14

Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter:

Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind.

For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.

We need to follow His commandments even though we cannot expect to understand them.

He understands us, so we can trust that when He brings every deed into judgement, He will speak the truth. We will be surprised by how much we have lied to ourselves in rationalizing things. He knows it is impossible for us to meet His standards, which is why we need forgiveness and grace.

Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven

Literally: Your will/desire come to be

This implies creation rather than rearrangement

This is also a cry to a third person.  It is a cry that God’s rule should come to pass. Might be better translated as “May Thy will be done both here and in heaven!

God’s will is done in creation through Jesus – are we praying that Jesus’ work be fruitful? All creation was through Jesus:

John 1:1-5

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

Jesus prayed in Gethsemane that the Father’s will be done. What do you think is the difference between how God’s will is accomplished in heaven, and how it tends to happen on earth? For the most part, God chooses to make His will done on earth through His people. In this part of the prayer, we are crying out that His will should be done (presumably by someone else), but we are also committing to support that work ourselves.

-Thy will be done to me / by me / for me. How? How can I help make this happen?

-Thy will be done to us (His people) / for us / by us. How? How can I help make this happen?

-Thy will be done in the world. How? How can I help make this happen?

What about if I feel that my life should be different? Does this mean that I can’t pray that my life change? No. You can always ask God for change. He will always carefully consider your request and answer according to His best will for you.

Sometimes, God is waiting for us to ask Him to unleash His power. He can (and will) destroy and interfere with every evil will and all evil advice which will not allow His Kingdom to come, such as the Devil’s will, the world’s will and will of our bodily desires. He will NOT interfere with our will. He will strengthen us by faith and by His Word and keep living by us faithfully until the end of our lives. Even if we walk away, He will keep calling us to come back.

If I don’t say, “Thy will be done” He will say it to me. That is the sentence of condemnation at Judgment.

Give us our daily bread today.

Literally: Give us the day our sufficient bread

Matthew 6:25-34

“Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look carefully at the birds of the air; they do not sow or harvest or gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who among you by worrying can add a single hour to his lifespan? “And why do you worry about clothes? Consider how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory was adorned like one of these. If that is how God clothes the vegetation of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will he not much more clothe you—you who lack confidence? Therefore, do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans strive after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek primarily the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

What does this mean? We are actively trusting God to provide for our needs each day. This does not mean that He should give us a lot of money to see us through the next year, but that we should trust Him each day for that day’s needs, both physical and spiritual. The request is that He provide for us as is our right as His children (please give me my dinner). The implication is that we should thank Him for doing so.

This is as much a statement of need as it is a plea to God. This reminds us that we need Him to provide for us, reminding us of our place.

What does “Daily Bread” mean? Everything that nourishes our body and meets its needs, such as: Food, drink, clothing, shoes, house, yard, fields, cattle (goats), money, possessions, a devout spouse, devout children, devout employees, devout and faithful rulers, good government, good weather, peace, health, discipline, honor, good friends, faithful neighbors and other things like these.

We are asking Him to provide for our sustenance, not for our pleasures. Bread, not Nutella, jam, butter, cheese etc. Provide the necessities, not the luxuries. He will bless as He sees fit (and He usually does). Remember too that His blessings are a gift, not a right.

What about the people who don’t pray this prayer? Who don’t know or respect God. Does He keep the rain, or the harvests from them?

Matthew 5:44-45

But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

Why do you think God allows needy times to come? God takes His blessings away if He thinks we need to learn a lesson about thankfulness or trusting Him. He may also be using us an example for others. As Christians, we are always on display.

Where will you look for help in needy times?

Psalm 121

I lift up my eyes to the mountains—

where does my help come from?

My help comes from the Lord,

the Maker of heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot slip—

he who watches over you will not slumber;

indeed, he who watches over Israel

will neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord watches over you—

the Lord is your shade at your right hand;

the sun will not strike you by day,

nor the moon by night.

The Lord will guard you from all evil—

he will preserve your soul;

the Lord will watch over your coming and going

both now and forevermore.

Don’t look to the hills for your help. Look to the One who made them.

Remember the Manna in the wilderness. Each person gathered what they gathered, and it was always just enough – the perfect amount.

Don’t trust in things.

Luke 12:14-21

Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”

And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’

“Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” ’

“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’

“This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”

God blessed him, and he stored up his blessing against his retirement rather than to do God’s work and trust Him year to year. He was serving mammon rather than God.  If you trust Him for it, He will provide. If He provides excess, look to see if He provides opportunities to help other people. He might also be providing the excess to cover an upcoming expense – like a new roof.

Give us today the resources we will need to face the day and perform the tasks You will require of us.

And forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sins against us

Matthew:  Forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors

Luke:  Forgive us our sins for we also forgive everyone who owes us.

The two versions are substantially the same, even though they use different words. The word for debt in Matthew can be taken to mean a moral debt. The key is the requirement of forgiveness. We will not be forgiven if we do not forgive.

How often should I forgive someone who repeatedly offends me?

Matthew 18:22

Then Peter came and said to Him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.

Jesus isn’t telling us not to keep a tally. He is telling us to do it so much and so often that we lose track. He is telling us that our fund of forgiveness should be unlimited. If the fund of forgiveness I use to those around me is unlimited, the fund of forgiveness God uses with me will be unlimited.

Luke 6: 37-38

“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.”

Please note that “Do not judge” here means we are not to judge people. We are, however, supposed to judge their actions. We are specifically called to do that. Please see Chapter 11 – Specific sins.

If we forgive grudgingly with bad grace, so will God forgive grudgingly with bad grace. If we forgive freely with a good heart (good luck with that!) that’s how God will forgive us. He will help us to do that if we ask Him.

Matthew 18:23-35

“For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. “When he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. “But since he did not have the means to repay, his lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment to be made. “So the slave fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.’ “And the lord of that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt. “But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay back what you owe.’ “So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to plead with him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you.’ “But he was unwilling and went and threw him in prison until he should pay back what was owed. “So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their lord all that had happened. “Then summoning him, his lord said to him, ‘You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. ‘Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you?’ “And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him. “My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart.”

It doesn’t matter if they are penitent.  Don’t wait until they ask for forgiveness before you forgive them. Did Jesus wait for us to ask for forgiveness before He paid our debt? In any case, refusing to forgive someone is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die – it will only hurt you.

God has promised forgiveness wherever there is repentance; He has not promised repentance wherever there is sin. That is between them and God. Remember that every sin counts twice – once against you, and once against God. Forgive them your part and let God deal with the rest.

So what is a sin? Please see What is sin and Specific sins.

Please note the difference between forgiveness and excuse. “Forgive me” is a completely different request than “excuse me”. Please see Salvation.

Lead us not into temptation,

Liteally: Lead us not into temptation

Temptation – trials, tests, specifically of the soul, not the body. Satan has been given permission to do stuff to us. We don’t know what, and we don’t know why. We can guess that it is to force us closer to God. Just because Satan is working according to God’s plan does NOT make him good. He is the author of sin and evil and must be rejected. This is a petition to give us strength to stay strong in the face of temptation and not to allow us to face temptations stronger than we can handle. Whether we choose to handle them is a different matter.

For more on sin and temptation, please see What is sin.

God tests us to help us grow. He allows Satan to trouble us to teach us to rely on Him. This is why we are commanded to ask God to lead us not into temptation beyond that which we can withstand. We ask Him to deliver us from evil when we call on Him to do so.

James 1:13-14

When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed.

We are also asking God to help us when we tempt ourselves. Does Satan need to provide a demon to tempt us? No. He is living rent-free in our heads. We do most of his work for him.

1 Corinthians 10:13

No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

This will not, nor should it be considered a request for God to eliminate all problems from our lives.  This does ask God to help us learn the lesson of humility and dependence on God so we don’t have to keep relearning it through more trials. ‘Don’t give up on us, but continue to work on us to return us to what You want us to be/become.’

Can there be good temptation? Absolutely. I can be tempted to do things that are not bad themselves, but are not what I am supposed to be doing. They become temptations just as much as I let them draw me away from God’s law/will.

The overwhelming majority of the temptations I encounter are self-inflicted. We are sinful, broken creatures who routinely allow our desires to overwhelm our reason – our understanding of what God wants for us or has told us to do. We lie to ourselves, rationalize and justify what we want to the point where we have convinced ourselves that we aren’t ‘really sinning’.

Romans 7:15-23

I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me.

Think carefully: Do you want to do what is right? Yes

Does some part of you still like to do what is wrong? Also yes

How do you resist temptation? Prayer and the word of God. At the name of Jesus, the Devil will flee.

How do you learn to resist that temptation? Practice

What is the best way to respond to it? Keep on beating it back (Whack-a-mole)

So how are we supposed to deal with temptation? Please see Temptation.

But deliver us from evil

Matthew: but deliver us from the evil one

In Luke the words ‘but deliver us from Evil’ are omitted.

We pray in this request that our Father in Heaven will save us from every kind of evil that threatens body, soul, property and honor.

We don’t pray, “Don’t allow us to encounter evil” but “deliver us from evil.” God doesn’t deliver us from evil by preventing the enemy from attacking us through any of his own wiles or those of the ministers of his will, but when He helps us successfully make a firm stand against evil.

We are not supposed to fight the devil, but resist him.

James 4:7-10

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

Satan is very much stronger than we are, smarter and vastly more experienced. Folk tales about people outwitting the Devil are fiction. He is more than just a fallen angel. He is a rebellious archangel – greater even than the angels. We are very small and very weak in comparison. That is why we are to rely on God’s power rather than our own.

Jude 1:9

But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not presume to bring a blasphemous judgement against him, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!” 

Even the archangel Michael didn’t go toe-to-toe with Satan, but relied on the name and authority of God. We are nowhere close to Michael’s strength. Best just to take refuge in God and give the devil a wide berth.

We pray in this request that God will protect us and save us. We pray that He will not let the Devil, the world or our bodily desires deceive us or seduce us into sin, shame or vice, and so that we will be victorious in the end.

The other half of this petition is a plea to God that He will forgive us when we fall, and help us learn not to fall next time. When we fall to temptation, we can easily become trapped, so we are asking Him not to allow us to remain trapped in the swamp, even if we got there through our own bad choices.

Amen.

We end our prayers with the word Amen. Sometimes, we add, “in Jesus Name.”

We pray in Jesus’ name because that is what He told us to.

John 14:13-14

And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, and I will do it.

‘Amen’ comes from the Hebrew ‘Aman’ – to make firm or reliable (Make it so). It was a standard way of calling on God to honor the request.

We can be absolutely certain that such prayers are acceptable to the Father in Heaven and will be granted, that He Himself has commanded us to pray in this way and that He promises to answer us.