6 But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.
9 Pray like this:
Matthew 6:6 & 9 (NLT)
We have recently looked at how to develop true change in our lives by setting faith goals and spending quiet time with the Lord. Now I would like to point out one of the most important aspects in your walk of faith and your daily quiet time if you wish for lasting change in your life; prayer.
In Matthew 6, Jesus gives us “The Lord’s Prayer”. This prayer by Jesus is supposed to be used by us as a model when we pray. Jesus saw that we needed a method to our prayer, not a prayer in and of itself. Jesus says “pray LIKE this” not “pray these words over and over again”. It’s important to follow Jesus’ example and use this prayer as a means for us to change each and every day. Let’s look at the different components of prayer according to how Jesus wants us to pray.
1) “Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy.....”
Matthew 6:9 (NLT)
This is the part of the prayer that connects us to God . He is our Father and we are His children and as our Father, He loves us. Do you know just how much God loves us? He gave His Son up to die for you and me....that should prove His love. As a matter of fact, if God never did another thing for you and me EVER.....that one act validates the amazing love that God has for us.
And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Ephesians 3:17-19 (NIV)
2) “May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.”
Matthew 6:10 (NLT)
This statement is one of surrender. This is where we are to say that we would offer up our lives to be used for God’s purposes. We are to acknowledge that His plans come first. It’s very important that during your prayer time, as you are communicating with God, that you stop trying to include God in your plans and start asking Him to include you in His plans!!
Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.
Matthew 6:33 (NLT)
3) “Give us today the food we need,”
Matthew 6:11 (NLT)
This part of our prayer should proclaim our trust in God’s provision. We are telling God that we are expecting Him to meet all of our needs.
And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19 (NIV)
4) “and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us.”
Matthew 6:12 (NLT)
With this part of our prayer we should be receiving God’s forgiveness and releasing others – including yourself. It’s important to note that you need both components. If you are good at forgiving others but you are too hard on yourself and your past mistakes you are essentially saying that God’s forgiveness isn’t big enough for you. You must let go of any guilt and resentment that you may have for yourself or else you are going to find it difficult to move forward with any significant change in your life. If you accept God’s forgiveness but you don’t forgive others......well, the Bible has some harsh words for you.
5) “And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one”
Matthew 6:13 (NLT)
This is where we ask for God’s mighty protection. The Bible says over and over again that with God nothing is impossible and that we can do all things through Him. He gives us the strength to overcome temptation. When we try to overcome it on our own strength.......well, let me just tell you that I am living proof that is doesn’t work. The key is that when we are being overrun by temptation and the moment is upon us we must reach up to God. If we stop, physically stop, and pray for the strength to persevere then it will be given to us. My issue is that I know how good it might feel to let that temptation subdue me so I ignore the prompting of God to come before Him with my habits and hang-ups.
The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, He will show you a way out so that you can endure.
1 Corinthians 10:13 (NLT)
Did you get that pivotal nugget at the end? He will show you a way out!! He shows me a way out......it might simply be avoiding my gaze or changing the channel but it is still a way out. I think that many times we are searching for a miraculous parting of the Red Sea as a way out of our temptation. We may be unwilling to avert our gaze or make a healthier decision but make no mistake, those may be just as miraculous for some of us.
6) “For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen”
Matthew 6: 13b (NLT)
This, my friends is our prayer of victory!! We can be sure of our ultimate victory because the Bible says it will be ours! We know how all this is going to end (if you don’t read Revelation 22)! We know that Jesus is coming back and that the evil one will be vanquished forever. For those of us that count on the name of Jesus to get us into heaven, our eternal destination has been signed, sealed, and delivered!! Thank God right now for the ultimate victory that He has promised!!
Jesus modeled for us a pattern of prayer that will enact change in our lives. The thing is, we must do the things He has taught us. It is not enough to merely know how to pray. We must take action so we can realize God’s blessing in our lives and truly change in 2011. Some sobering words can be found in the book of James;
Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.
James 4:17 (NLT)
With this in mind, will you pray as Jesus instructed us to? Will you take action? Set godly faith goals. Spend some quiet time with the Lord each day and pray for true change. It will be yours!!
God bless and have a great week!
No comments:
Post a Comment