There are a lot of different ways, it seems, to pray, and a lot of different things one can talk about while praying. How then, are we to know how we ought to pray? The disciples asked Jesus that exact question, after once again observing him at prayer, and were given a response similar to, but not the same as, the Lord’s Prayer. The Lord’s Prayer, as it is commonly known, comes from Matthew 6 and was given by Jesus during the Sermon on the Mount. This prayer template/example that Jesus shares privately with his disciples is a shorter and slightly different version of that famous prayer. What do we learn from the fact that Jesus answers with a similar but shorter and slightly different version of his most famous prayer when his disciples ask him how to pray? The topics in both prayers highlight for us that there are small number of broad topics included in any prayer, regardless of occasion, and the differences between the two tell us that Jesus was not interested in locking his disciples into a specific, word for word, prayer that they need to repeat, but instead a template from which their own prayers could be created. The three primary topics in the prayer are: The power/glory/dominion of God, the frailty of humanity (whether moral or physical), and the love/mercy of God in response. These three topics cover pretty much any prayer that you or I would need to make. Whether our prayers are public or private, out loud or only in our minds, we can always praise God for being God, ask God for help in our distress, and thank God for his loving kindness. The one thing that Jesus doesn’t do when asked by his disciples, “teach us to pray”, is to tell them specific things about when, where, or for how long, they ought to pray. This isn’t a chore to be checked off of a daily list, but a conversation with our heavenly Father. It ought to be regular, and it ought to be sufficient, but what that means will vary significantly from person to person and from time to time in our lives. It doesn’t benefit Christians to compare their prayers habits because it only leads to pride for those who prayer more/longer, and to discouragement for those who pray less/shorter. In the end, it is not quantity as much as quality that God desires, as we know from our own lives, a meaningful conversation is far more important than simple banter. The prayer example itself given by Jesus highlights our ability to call God, “Father”, our hope for his kingdom’s eventuality, our daily dependence upon him, our need for ongoing forgiveness from God to us, and from us to others, and our need for God’s guidance in our future. These are all standard things that we ought to be focused upon as disciples of Jesus Christ. To those for whom the prayers of the Bible, like the 23rd Psalm, or the dozens of prayers recorded by virtually all of the Bible’s main characters, feel especially poignant, go ahead and repeat them, utilizing the wisdom of others to aid your prayers, such prayers are recorded for a reason. At the same time, don’t neglect to speak to God in your own words, drawing upon what is weighing upon your God, for God has gifted you too with the Holy Spirit, you can call him Father as you simply have a conversation with your Creator.

• published: 02 Mar 2015
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