Prayer

‘When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that 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.

‘Pray then in this way:
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And do not bring us to the time of trial,
but rescue us from the evil one.
For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Matthew 6:7-15

As a pk, a pastor's kid, I learned the Lord's Prayer very early in my life. I don't even remember learning the prayer, it has always been there it seems. And being raised a Presbyterian, we said debts and debtors rather than trespasses and trespassers as we Episcopalians do. It is a prayer that falls off the lips, whenever I there is a worry or a fear, a prayer so much a part of me that it rises, unbidden sometimes, before I even know I am in need of prayer.

Jesus was teaching his disciples to pray, with simple and humble phrases. We acknowledge God's divinity and our need, seeking to forgive and forgiveness at all times. Prayer is a talk with our Creator, our most loving parent, who knows us and loves us even more than a parent can. We are instructed by God to be simple and honest in our conversation with the Almighty. God knows our need and invites us to be hu7mble enough to verbalize our need of prayer at all times.

May today be a day of prayer. May we find ourselves, at all times, humble of heart and mind to approach God. May the words tumble off our lips, silently and out loud, as we face each new challenge and every blessing we find. And may we be ever thankful for God's love for us, which calls us to be in constant dialogue with our Creator, and which invites us to be beloved children at the table of the Divine.