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MIDWEEK A PRAYER FOR US If you want to receive email devotions or news of things happening at Hope On the Inside, please click here and just fill in your email address.
This morning, I sent you a prayer of unity modeled after the Lord’s prayer. I want to speak about that tonight. The Lord’s Prayer that is.
Luke 11:2-4 2And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth. 3Give us day by day our daily bread. 4And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.
Say “Our Father” We could stop right here and have enough for a whole message. Most of the time (if not all) when we pray, we are really saying “My Father” and praying an individual prayer. And, there has to be individual prayer—a time when we go into our prayer closet and pray alone and secretly and God will reward each one of us openly.
There is also a time when we pray corporately and we can do that even on the internet by agreeing in prayer, which is why I sent out that model prayer this morning.
But we can also pray individually as a group? Confusing? Not really. We are all joined to one another—part of the same Body and we have also become a congregation of believers who worship together every week. So, when we pray, we need to keep the others in mind and ask on behalf of one another—not just ourselves and our own family.
We in this Body care for one another because we are part of each other. What happens to one of us really affects all of us. What happens in Idaho or Washington affects me down here in Florida and our brothers and sisters all over the world. And, what happens across the world affects each of us.
Say “Our Father” Let’s realize all the time that we are praying to our Father—not to a far away distant Potentate who is not interested in our daily affairs. He is our Abba Father—our Daddy. He cares intensely about us and He is protective of us. Never doubt it. He paid a great price to make us His children; He gave His Son for us while we were still sinners. How much more will He give to us now that we are His own children.
“Which art in Heaven” God the Father is on His throne in Heaven. Jesus sits at this right Hand where He makes intercession for us with the Father. And the Holy Spirit dwells within us—individually and corporately. The Holy Spirit knows our needs and will pray through us and give us wisdom. He will bring all things to our remembrance.
But, bringing something to our remembrance requires that we learn it to begin with. We can’t remember what we never learned. We need to study His Word.
“Hallowed be thy Name” God’s Name is Holy and He wants us to keep that in mind. His name is not just part of a formula we rattle off in prayer; it is holy and sanctified (which means set apart) and not to be spoken lightly, but rather, praised and Glorified.
People around us often use the Lord’s name as a swear Word, but that’s not the only way we take the Lord’s Name in Vain. Let’s make sure we honor His Name.
“Thy Kingdom Come” Too many people in this world are busy adding to their own kingdoms. There are rulers of nations who are especially trying to do this and I could name a whole bunch of them here, but I won’t. We just have to make sure that WE aren’t doing this ourselves. God wants to bless our lives but He wants to build HIS kingdom. He wants His Kingdom to be brought to this world through us—for the Kingdom of God is within us.
“Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven” God’s will is already being done in Heaven. He wants for us to pray that it be done on earth. We give up too easily concerning this because we see all the evil and worldliness and willfulness around us and we just want to throw up our hands and sigh. We should not give up. We are the ones who are to pray for God’s will to be done on earth. Who else will do it if not us?
We need to pray that His will be done in each one of us and by each one of us. Not my will, Lord, but Thine. We need to want His will and even that requires prayer. But He is the one who promises to work in us both to will and to do—IF WE PRAY.
We need to do more than give God a shopping list for our OWN wants and needs. And speaking of needs…
“Give us this day our daily bread” This, Of course, has a double application—temporal and spiritual. We want God to give us food to eat for today—literally. But we also want spiritual food. We want revelation from His Word—for TODAY. The problems of tomorrow and next week are to be dealt with then. Today we deal with and ask for provision for TODAY…one day…24 hours. And we expect to receive what we ask for.
“And forgive us our trespasses” Without forgiveness of sins, God won’t hear our prayers. He has provided a way of forgiving and cleansing. We CONFESS our sins and His Blood cleanses us from all sin. We REPENT of our sin and turn from it. God wants to forgive us, but sometimes, we don’t want to forgive ourselves. And, we don’t really accept God’s forgiveness. And, sometimes there is a reason why we can’t…
“As we forgive those who trespass against us”. That’s the catch. Unforgiveness in our hearts is a deal breaker. God won’t forgive us if we refuse to forgive others. We will never feel forgiven if we don’t forgive others; in fact, the scriptures say we will be tormented if we don’t forgive others. And, certainly our prayers won’t be heard if we don’t forgive others. God says that we are to forgive when we pray. Ask God to show you anything and anyone you have not forgiven.
And then—forgive yourself.
“And lead us not into temptation” This is very important. We want to be able to resist temptation, but it’s even better if we avoid it in the first place. Only God can do that. His Spirit will guide us on the path we need to take—a path that will lead away from temptations and every pitfall. One of the major ways He guides us is through His Word, through His ministers and other authorities in our lives, through our conscience, and through a still small voice.
Yes, He will show us the way, but then, it is up to us to TAKE that way. If we don’t, we cannot blame Him for what happens. And, He wants us to pray for this guidance—not just take it for granted.
“But deliver us from evil” Pray this every day. Expect it every day—because you need this every day. Deliver us from evil and bring us into goodness is the whole point of the Lord’s prayer.
Remember, people can’t protect or deliver you from evil. They can counsel you and pray for you—but only GOD can deliver you from evil. And He can and will deliver your family too—if you pray.
God is more powerful than all the forces of hell and He will put use His might and power to protect you—to protect us—because He is our Daddy.
“For Thine is the Kingdom” Once again, the Kingdom is His and we are His ambassadors---living to bring it into fruition on earth because His Kingdom is within us. We want to bring His Kingdom to others as well as bring others to His Kingdom. We do not want to build our own kingdom. There is one Kingdom and one King: God.
“And the power” His power is the power that will overrule every other authority on Earth and, at the Name of Jesus, every knee will bow to bring God praise.
His power causes us to be promoted, to succeed, to work, and to prosper. He gives us the power to live each day to the fullest; He gives us the power to gain wealth (that’s what His Word says) and He gives us the power to live a Holy life full of good works. As we use His power to be lights in this world it will bring Glory to our Father, which leads us to the last points…
“And the Glory Everything is for His glory. Everything we pray and do should be for and lead to His Glory. That’s why we were created and that’s the goal of our prayers.
“Forever” He will never change and His Word will never change. His intentions and purpose will never change and neither will His love for us. He is forever—past, present and future. He is not “I was” or “I will be”; He is “I Am”.
“Amen” And that settles it!
Please pray for Rhonda’s continued recovery. And pray for Penni for her upcoming hospital stay.
Father God, Your people here on Hopeontheinside.org are joining their hearts and spirits in complete unity and you said that, when we do this, You are in our midst and what we ask will be granted. Increase our unity, Father, and unite my heart to worship you. Give me a heart to praise You.
Help us to remember today how Holy You are and to realize the power and Glory in Your Name.
We praise You, Lord God and ask that You hear us from Heaven. We ask that Your Spirit inside of us will guide our prayer today to bring Your will to pass and build Your kingdom right here in and through our Internet Community, around the world. Help us to reach out to others who are sick, and also those who are not. Help us to reach out to the prisoners and the homeless through our prayers.
We ask that you will give us revelation from Your Word today. Speak to us and help us to listen and heed Your voice. Provide our needs—natural and Spiritual—that we would lack nothing. Heal us and make us prosper, Lord, even as our souls prosper. And, help us to appreciate and thank You for all You give us.
Forgive us for our sins, Lord---for doing our own will instead of Yours. Forgive us for things we’ve done to hurt others, for ways we’ve been a bad example, and for all disobedience—whether knowing or unknowing. Help us to forgive others. Bring to our attention any unforgiveness we are holding onto or covering up. Bring to our attention things we need to ask others to forgive us of. And, Lord, help us to forgive ourselves and accept Your forgiveness.
Dear Lord, lead us in a path that does not expose us to danger and temptation. Protect us from every scheme of the enemy and every trap set for us. Help us to be strong and not yield to temptation or to lead others astray. In fact, help us to see and expose the works of darkness.
Lord, we know that all power is in Your hands and comes from You. Promotion comes from You. Authority comes from You. Help us to understand this. Your Kingdom is what we are working and praying for. Your Glory is what we seek. Help us to do all things in Your Name and Your Power. May everything that we, Your people, do today bring Glory to Your Name. Increase our capacity to pray, praise, and worship You each day
Amen.
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