The Relationship of Prayer

[9] Pray then like this:

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. [10] Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. [11] Give us this day our daily bread, [12] and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. [13] And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

~ Matthew 6:9-13 ESV

The Lord’s Prayer is more than a set of words—it’s an invitation into the heart of God. Jesus didn’t just teach us what to pray or how to pray. He showed us that He came to be the Way for us to be able to pray to Our Father.

“Father” reminds us of our identity—we are God’s children, beloved and cherished.

Notice how Jesus begins his teaching to his disciples…not with a title of grandeur, but of affection:  Appa / Abba (it's pretty universal). You cannot get any more personal.

Without question, prayer is a spiritual discipline, but it is just as much a relational communion. And while it is so easy to neglect and squander, when we return to sweet fellowship with our Abba through prayer, the Father is always waiting to delight in us!

Prayer starts with and ends with relationship, not performance. Relationship  Therefore, before we ask for anything, let’s remember who we are speaking with.

But one more thing before I let you go. Let’s dare not forget the possessive adjective, “our”. This hit home for me in an experience I had 13 years ago while I was ironically, readying to lead (all-the-while dreading) a corporate prayer gathering with my churchplant family. Here’s the journal blog entry:

[Friday, March 16, 2012]

Dear Maranatha,

CPG Tonight @ 7:30pm (if you need a shuttle pickup, please call 201-298-3377) *CPG = corporate prayer gathering

So the other night, Owen anxiously volunteered himself to pray for our family dinner. He did so because he likes to pray, which is to our delight, but also because he's always excited to eat (this also delights us).

His prayer started off strong with as much passion a hungry six-year old can muster, "Dear Gawd... thank you for the gospel and God's glory. And thank you that Jesus died upon the cross for our sins. Please help those who don't know the gospel to know it, and please help those who don't know you be saved. And please help the children in China have milk and food..."

But then he got stuck, and he really struggled with not knowing what to pray for or even say next. And as he stopped mid-thought and stammered with a succession of "And... and... umm... and... uhhh... and..." I sensed him getting discouraged and even slightly upset that the words were no longer flowing with ease (I'm sure he was also frustrated for being the reason our meal was delayed!).

At that moment, as I was about to bail him out, his big sister Bethany chimed in with, "And thank you so much for mom preparing for us this yummy dinner" and almost simultaneously his bigger sis’ Madelyn offered a "Please help us to love each more self-lessly because You sacrificed Your Son for us..." and soon it became this corporate, family affair-prayer as Diane and I also pitched in. The brief moment was truly glorious, and the dinner was dee-lish!

As one member of the body struggled to pray, we struggled together as a family and through the experience, God revealed his heart for us as a family. Owen needed his family to help him as he faced some difficulties even as he was attempting to pray.

And as much as I'd like to say I never struggle with prayer, I'd be lying through my teeth! My prayer life seems so ineffective and shallow and contrived. So this is one of the reasons why we pray together as a church family...we hope to experience praying for one another altogether, but we also gather like this to experience God using another to help us in our time of not knowing how to pray or what to pray for. This is how God has designed us to live life, as a community of God's redeemed people, loving and serving the body of Christ sacrificially and engaging the mission prayerfully because He is our Father.