Prayer is relationship
Jesus insists that prayer is a personal and intimate relationship between God and the person praying. It is not a vehicle for impressing others. Whether in public or private prayer, one should have no thought in mind and no desire in heart but God.
The Lord's Prayer
Jesus taught the Lord's Prayer as a prayer for disciples. This prayer deals with God and His supremacy, gives Him rightful glory and worship. Then the person praying asks for assistance with needs for the maintenance of life. Forgiveness for past faults and failings is humbly supplicated. We ask God for protection and assistance in our battle on earth with the evil one, satan and his demonic cohorts. We thus invite God into every part of life, every nook and cranny. The 'Our Father' leads us to full communion in heart, spirit and mind with the beloved God Who created us.
Spirit of forgiveness
Jesus teaches literally that we ask God to forgive our sins in proportion as we forgive those who have sinned against us. If we harden our hearts to others, we need to beware; we are asking for the same judgement ourselves. The perfection of forgiveness is to forget the wrong which was done, and to forebear to brood on past hurts. A spirit of grudge-holding is not noble in the Eyes of the Lord.
Jesus is living Presence with us
In living the teachings of the 'Our Father' prayer, it is important to remember that Jesus is a living Presence with us. He is companion, our strength, our joy. We need to live each moment aware of how Jesus would view our thoughts, our actions. We need to live out our lives with the nobility and love taught to us in the Lord's Prayer.
Jesus taught the following during His Sermon on the Mount: "This, then, is how you should pray:
'Our Father, Who art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name. Thy kingdom come, Thy Will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day, our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one'." [1]
[1] Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 6, verses 9 - 14
With thanks to the Bible
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