Pattern For Prayer

Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike.
Ephesians 6:18-19
Pray like this:
Our Father in heaven,
may your name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come soon.
May your will be done on earth,
as it is in heaven. Give us today the food we need, and forgive us our sins,
as we have forgiven those who sin against us. And don’t let us yield to temptation,
but rescue us from the evil one.
Matthew 6:9-13
Having a front-row seat to the life of Christ, the way he prayed captured their attention. Jesus had a habit of retreating from the demanding crowds and spending time alone in conversation with His Father, as seen in Mark 1:35. “And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.” Exposed to Jesus 24/7, the disciples concluded, “The thing we’ve got to figure out is prayer. Jesus has that going on!”  Jesus responded to the disciples by introducing what we call The Lord’s Prayer (Luke 11:2–4, Matthew 6:9–13).
They not only went to the right instructor, they also went with the right intent. This was more than a “how-to” request; it was a “give-us-the-desire-to-pray”. After noticing the pattern of prayer in Jesus’ life, they longed to see it in their own lives. They watched Him pause to thank His Father at various times and draw attention to the bigger picture (John 11:41–42).
Before He even gave them the pattern of The Lord’s Prayer, Jesus encouraged them with the words, “When you pray.” Not “if you pray” but “when you pray”—Jesus expected the disciples to pray. Driven by circumstances or as a spiritual discipline, He knew His own would turn to the Father in prayer.

When the disciples asked Jesus, “Lord, teach us to pray,” that simple request was in and of itself praying. Make it your persistent prayer for a few days. Ask Him out loud. If a specific direction or thought doesn’t come to mind, read and reflect on The Lord’s Prayer. Spin off from certain verses of Jesus’ prayer, and expound with your own words.

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