Talking to God…You would think it would be simple, right?  Yet, we struggle.  We don’t know what to say/ask.  We fall asleep or our minds wander.  We struggle to be discipled to pray every day, much less “without ceasing”!  We are unsure, not knowing if God is listening or if He will hear and answer.  It is good know that the LORD Jesus has given us guidance! 

What is prayer?

1.  Prayer is talking to God.[i]
2.  A solemn request for help or expression of thanks addressed to God or an object of worship.[ii]
3. Prayer is spiritual communication between man and God, a two-way relationship in which man should not only talk to God but also listen to Him. Prayer to God is like a child’s conversation with his father. It is natural for a child to ask his father for the things he needs.[iii]
4. Prayer is an offering up of our desires unto God, for things agreeable to his will, in the name of Christ, with confession of our sins, and thankful acknowledgment of his mercies.[iv]

Talking to God…You would think it would be simple, right?  Yet, we struggle.  We don’t know what to say/ask.  We fall asleep or our minds wander.  We struggle to be discipled to pray every day, much less “without ceasing”!  We are unsure, not knowing if God is listening or if He will hear and answer.  It is good know that the LORD Jesus has given us guidance!  Luke records a time when Jesus had been praying…

Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” ² And he said to them, “When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. ³ Give us each day our daily bread, ⁴ and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.”[v]

One of the disciples (who had likely been observing Jesus in prayer) asks Jesus to teach them to pray.  Jesus gives His disciples a guide, we know it as “the LORD’s prayer”.  These verses are not a mantra to repeat or a formulaic address to God that we borrow so that we have the right words.  No, Jesus is answering a request for instruction, he is teaching the disciples “how” to pray.  We might say these short verses give us Jesus’s guide to prayer.  Jesus give us:

A way to address God: “Our Father”

This is followed by five topics or petitions:[vi]

1. Hallowed by your name.
2. Your Kingdom come.
3. Give us each day our daily bread
4. Forgive us our sins
5. Lead us not into temptation.

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