TEACH US TO PRAY

Luke 11:1 One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples."
 2 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 Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation. '"

Matthew 6:13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

 The disciples had just observed Jesus praying and they ask Him to teach them how to pray.  Jesus' response begins with "when you pray"  that means He expected them to pray.  It also means He expects us to pray.  He had showed them by His example that prayer was important. 

Jesus seems eager to teach them and He starts by teaching them who to address their prayers to.  "Father"  When we call someone father we have to have a relationship with that person.  Jesus is teaching that we have a child/parent relationship with God.  He is our Father and since He is Holy and Good the relationship is an intimate one.  

How does one come to have a relationship with God.  The Bible teaches in

Romans 10:9 That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved) it is through believing and confessing that we become children of God.  We confess He is Lord and believe He rose from the dead! then a relationship is formed.  If you do not have that relationship,  God is extending and invitation for you to Confess and believe and He will be your Father.  Here is a short prayer you can say to come into this relationship with God.  "God I confess that I am a sinner and I have done things that do not please you I want to ask for your forgiveness of my sins and I accept Jesus as my Lord and savior.  I believe He died and rose again from the dead so I can have eternal life.  Thank you for making me your child.  In Jesus' Name Amen!"Just as a child can not walk up to a stranger and call him father, we also need to have this relationship as we come to prayer.   

Some people have a hard time seeing God as a Father because of the broken relationships they had with their earthly fathers.  Maybe your father was abusive, absent or just didn't care or provide for you like he should have. Like I said earlier our God is a Holy and Good He is not like a human being His love is perfect and it does not depend on anything we do or don't do, He offers it to us freely.  So let your hurts go and receive God's free love which He has given to us in abundance  1 John 3:1 says " How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. "  He doesn't just love us a little bit He has lavished His love on us that means He has given us His love without measure.   He desires to heal your wounded heart.  Receive this love so you can begin to pray "Father"

We will look at the next Phrase next time!

Prayer: two way Communication!!

Sometimes I forget the definition of prayer and come to God with a list of my needs.  let us begin by defining prayer.
Prayer is a two way communication between a child of God and God.  When we communicate with our loved ones we talk and we listen to them.  Prayer should not be any different.  God is delighted when we come to Him in prayer He loves to hear our voices ( Song of Solomon 2:14)  He invites us to come and communicate with Him.
It is so easy to come with a list of our needs and wants as if we are going to the grocery store.   It is easy to talk to God and neglect talking with Him.  He also has things He would like to say to us.  I think sometimes we are afraid that if we listen to God He will tell us things that we do not want to hear ( and sometimes He does) and other times we just don't think about listening to Him.  I have experienced that even when God wants to correct me and tell me things that I would rather not hear, He still has a way of building me up in anything He says to me.  He is a good Father and His words to us are always life giving.  If He wants to correct us , rebuke us and challenge us, He does not do it in a way that will shame us.  He does it in a way that builds us up!
In the Bible we see Jesus Challenging  His disciples Matthew 16:13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?"
 14 They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets."
 15 "But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?"
 16 Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."
 17 Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.  He asks them who they think He is and when Peter answers He Blesses Him.
God will do the same to us He will correct us, Challenge us, and even rebuke us and it will all be done in a way that shows His love for us.
God wants to hear from us and we should also desire to hear from Him for He is a good Father who teaches and instructs as He corrects, rebukes and challenges.  "Psalm 32:8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you."
I have also experienced words of encouragement from the Lord, sometimes when I have been feeling low He has reminded me that He loves me!  That is just like a loving parent who encourages his or her child and tells them that he or she loves them.  When we don't take time to listen we lose because we don't get to hear what He has for us.  How is your prayer life?  Do you have listening time build into your prayer time?
After we listen we need to respond to God.  We can respond with praise, worship, thanksgiving, repentance,and making commitments as His word requires of us.  Don't just talk, take time to listen and then respond accordingly!  This will be true prayer.