WWHIYP The Lord's Prayer

On Thursday, I downloaded some podcasts on prayer. I want to learn about prayer and I like to hear what others have to say. Well, I found a two-part teaching on the Lord's Prayer. And since I had just written about it two days before, I thought it would be good to listen to. When I heard it, I thought it might be good to share, but I wanted to pray about it.

The message is Damon Thompson from The Ramp ministry in Hamilton, AL. I've heard friends speak of him, but I had never heard him. He says some things that I thought about but I did not mention in my post Lord, Teach Us to Pray. I forgot to mention that we can use the Lord's Prayer/Disciples' Prayer as a pattern, but we can also pray that prayer. Damon says that back in the day, rabbis gave people short prayers to pray. Praying the same prayer promoted unity.

There are many good truths in Damon's teaching that can help your prayer life. There may be parts in it that we don't understand or agree with, and that's okay. Use the parts that you can. I pray that it will bless you.

There is one part in which he uses the analogy of having a fitness trainer help him plan his workout routine. Damon says how much time he could waste having access to all of the gym equipment, but not knowing how to use it. His trainer came in and wrote down the order of the machines to use, the amount of weight, and the number of repetitions. This program gave Damon's workout infrastructure. The prayer Jesus gave us also gives infrastructure to our prayer life. That's a cool way to explain it.

What would happen if you prayed the Lord's Prayer? Some days you may try to pray, but you won't know how to begin. Or you may begin and not know where to go next. What would happen if we just prayed the words that Jesus said? Or what would happen if we used those words as a model or infrastructure for our prayer?

The Lord’s Prayer (Part 1)

At the end of part 2, Damon explains how to pray each part of the Lord's Prayer for five minutes so that you have a 30-minute prayer time.

The Lord’s Prayer (Part 2)

The Lord's Prayer in five-minute sections

  I. Our Father in Heaven (approach God as Father)

     Pray:

¹⁴ For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. ¹⁵ For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” ¹⁶ The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, ¹⁷ and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. Romans 8:14-17 NKJV

⁴ But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, ⁵ to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.
⁶ And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” ⁷ Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

Galatians 4:4-7 NKJV

⁴ just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, ⁵ having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, ⁶ to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. ⁷ In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace. Ephesians 1:4-7 NKJV

 II. Hallowed be Your name (pray the names of God)

III. Your kingdom come; Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven

for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. Philippians 2:13 NIV

IV. Give us day by day, our daily bread.

a.     Ask for provision for the day for our families.

b.     Our bread – ask for provision for the community

c.     Ask for provision for those in need

V. Forgive us our sins as we forgive everyone who is indebted to us.

a.     Specific repentance.

b.     Releasing those who have wronged us.

VI. Do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

Pray out loud with me:

      Our Father in heaven,
      Hallowed be Your name.
       ¹⁰ Your kingdom come.
      Your will be done
      On earth as it is in heaven.
       ¹¹ Give us this day our daily bread.
       ¹² And forgive us our debts,
      As we forgive our debtors.
       ¹³ And do not lead us into temptation,
      But deliver us from the evil one.
      For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.