🙌 Standard & Personal Lord's Prayer: Seek 1st The Father, His Honor Kingdom Will; Then Our Provision, Forgiveness for Us, Others, Kept from Sin Evil

[Nochaeld]

Lord's Prayer: Seek 1st The Father, His Honor Kingdom Will; Then Our Provision, Forgiveness for Us, Others, Kept from Sin Evil, Standard & Personal...

"Pray, then, after this manner [1]... ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your Kingdom Come! Your Will be done, On Earth as it is in Heaven!”

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"Give us our daily bread. Forgive our debts, as we forgive our debtors. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For it’s Your Kingdom, Power and Glory Forever, Amen,” Matt 6:9-13, c.f., Matt 6:33, "But seek FIRST The Kingdom of God and His Righteousness, THEN these other things shall be added to you," thank You in Jesus' Name.

[1] Jesus' Prayer He taught was an outline, summary of topics, a form or "pattern prayer." The following has been condensed from six reliable sources, is of much godly & personal value when sincerely prayed (not mindlessly repeated), but through serious consideration, understanding the weight of the petitions, ardently prayed, expecting answers, James 1:5-7, James 5:16-17...

Our Father in Heaven, we first pause and thank You "so loving the world You gave Your Only-begotten Son, that by believing in him we may be spared perdition and rather freely gain eternal life, Jn 3:16. Thank You "Jesus showed us The Father -- Your Nature," Jn 14:9. Thank You for His shed blood and died on the cross for our sins, 1 Cor 15:3-4, burial, resurrection declaring both Him and us "not guilty" Rom 4:25, and ascension (adoption, enthronement, Ps 110:1), as Son-of-Man-in-Power to pour out the Holy Spirit of Adoption from on high, by which we call out, Abba, Father, Gal 4:6, proving we are heirs, Gal 4:7, since as many as received Jesus and believed on His Name are called Children of God, John 1:12-13, praying even with the same language of intimacy, Abba, i.e., "Daddy" or "Papa, etc" as Jesus used in time of impending crisis for deliverance in the Garden of Gethsemane, "Abba, Father," Mark 14:36.

Hallowed Be Your Name... May Your GRACIOUS and COMPASSIONATE NAME, Ex 34:6-7, get honor through our thoughts, words, deeds, speech, actions and reactions. May we honor and know You in every Name You have revealed about Yourself in The Scriptures -- Elohim, The Trinity, Beginning in Gen 1:1; The Name, Gen 4:26, El Elyon, God Most High, Gen 14:18, Adonai, Lord, Master, Gen 15:2; El Roi, The God Who Sees, Gen 16:13; El Shaddai, God Almighty, Gen 17:1; El Olam, The Everlasting God, Gen 21:33; Yahweh, The LORD, Jireh or Yireh, Our Provider, Gen 22:18; Healer, Peace, Shepherd, Righteousness, Presence, Sanctification, Our Rock, Fortress, Strong Tower, Etc... We honor and hallow ALL Your Titles, Attributes, Your Name! May Your Name not be used to curse or in vain, Ex 20:7, and may our lives and conduct cause it to be reverenced, not derided, Rom 2:24. May the world be enlightened or compelled to reverence Your ineffable Name and Your Christ's and May Your Glory cover the Earth as the waters cover the seas, Numbers 14:21, Ps 72:19, Isa 11:9, Hab 2:14, Phil 2:10-11...

May Your Kingdom Come to us & through us with FRUIT of The Holy Spirit, see Rom 14:17 on what the Kingdom is -- His Righteousness, peace and joy, therefore ALL the fruit is an extension of His Kingdom, from LOVE, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, Gal 5:22-23, truth, humility & justice, Ps 45:4, contentment, Lk 3:14, 1 Tim 6:6, Heb 13:5, Phil 4:11-13, doing justly, loving mercy and walking humbly with God, Micah 6:8. You desire mercy, not sacrifice, Hos 6:6. We ask for the GIFTS of The Spirit to be evident in us, our churches, families, and to Your people throughout the world, from ministry GIFTS to equip The Body of Christ through Your Gospel Officers until we reach unity in faith and knowledge of The Son of God and the mature stature of Christ Himself, Eph 4:12-13, (which has not yet happened so such workers must of necessity still be present and are much needed, even required, apostles, (missionaries/church planters), prophets, (encouragers/exhorters/visionaries), evangelists, pastors and teachers), Eph 4:11-13, to The GIFTS of miracles (signs, wonders), healings, faith, prophecy, words of wisdom, knowledge, tongues, interpretation of such tongues, administration, leadership, giving, mercy, discerning of spirits, Rom 12:5-8, 1 Cor 12:4-11. POWER: Drive out demons by the finger of God, demonstrating The Kingdom of God, Lk 11:20, for The Kingdom of God is not a matter of talk, but of power, 1 Cor 4:20. Mostly the POWER to live a Holy Life overflowing with LOVE for God and others, singing and making melody from "singing seminaries" and "the walking practice of evangelism" is the best fruit and sign of the Kingdom, Heb 12:4. ***We also want to ask for Jesus' Return, so we may experience a whole other realm, where we are redeemed, have peace with God, are indwelt with the Holy Spirit, are part of "New Creation" though only a "foretaste of the good things to come." The change our bodies will incur and all creation eagerly awaits is our hope in Romans 8 and latter Revelation and is where ALL of these things will be realized in a greater capacity and duration and God's Kingdom will have full expression once it's fully come on earth as it is heaven again -- the "not yet," -- "May Your Kingdom Come and Your Will be Done on Earth as it is in Heaven," Matt 6:10. May Jesus return and the Kingdom flourish, being fully manifest. Come quickly Lord Jesus, Rev 22:17, Rev 22:20.

May Your Will Be Done on Earth as it is in Heaven -- Keeping in mind the Kingdom Coming, as described above, in differing degrees, the already and the not yet, we ask here in the already that we may know, submit to and do Your will for our lives individually (hearing His voice, Jn 10:27, being led by the Holy Spirit, Rom 8:14, as Jesus did during His time on earth, Phil 2:9-9, our whole lives be increasingly lived to please You, knowing the Trinity, living in Your presence moment by moment, and making You known as a by product, rejoicing in trials and weakness, as well as power demonstrations when it gives You glory, Mt 28:19-20, Rom 1:5, Rom 15:18. May we abide in Christ, with freedom to pray, and power to bear fruit, thereby making disciples, and thus proving we are disciples, John 15:7-8, might bear some fruit wherever we go, Rom 1:13, 1 Cor 9:2, 2 Cor 3:2-3, specifically by going, preaching faith in Jesus suffering and dying for our sins, repentance, baptism, forgiveness of sins and obedience to all that He commanded, and obedience to any personal directives, admonitions and restraints, being witnesses to these facts under His authority, commission by this union with Jesus through The Holy Spirit, Mark 16:15-16, Luke 24:46-48, Matt 28:19-20, John 20:21, Acts 1:8. May Your will be done on earth as You rule over the church and nations, Ps 22:28, and collectively as the church until You come to reward the righteous and recompense the wicked, 2 Cor 10:3-6, and arrive in fulness at the Return of Christ, Matt 24:30, Matt 25:31-32.

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Give us Each Day our Daily Bread: Spiritual -- we can't live by bread alone but every Word of God, Deut 8:3, Matt 4:4, Lk 4:4. Meet our spiritual, emotional, social, physical and financial needs mightily, Phil 4:19, so we can love You with all our heart, soul, mind, will, emotions, physical strength and finances, Mk 12:30, and our neighbors, Mk 12:31, even the lost, Matt 9:36, and even enemies, Matt 5:44, as ourselves -- and see others as Christ, who looked beyond his own interests, to the interests of others, considering others as more important than we, Phil 2:1-5.

Forgive Our Debts as We Forgive Our Debtors... We confess we've sinned against You, Rom 3:23, 1 Jn 1:8, 1 Jn 1:10 (name specific sins and areas of ongoing struggles), and others, receive forgiveness, Lk 1:77, & pray FOR those who sin against us, (by name and specific offenses), asking they'd repent and be saved, Job 42:7-16, entrusting their souls to a faithful creator and recognizing it is He who alone who is in fact the one appointed both to save and to judge, Romans 12:9, 1 Pet 4:19.

Lead us Not into Temptation, but Deliver us from evil... Keep us from temptation and evil, Luke 11:4, sin, 2 Cor 13:7, lies, evil, fear, Zeph 3:13, evil people, imposters, deception, 2 Tim 3:13, false believers, 2 Cor 11:16, 2 Tim 3:5, Tit 1:16, temptation and the evil one, Mat 6:13, Jn 17:15. Give us angelic protection, Ps 91:10-11, Heb 1:14.

For It's Your Kingdom, (Everlasting Kingdom which Cannot Be Destroyed, Dan 7:18), It's Your Power, (All Power in Heaven and Earth has been Given to Me, Matt 28:18), and Your Glory, Forever... (Not unto us O Lord, but unto Your Name Be Glory, Ps 115:1)... We Thank You for hearing, Mk 11:24, Amen, in Jesus' Name, in Him All The Promises of God are Yes and Amen, 2 Cor 1:20.

 

[Articles]

We join you in thanking our Father for giving us this pattern for prayer and for the way you have expanded it with such reverence and understanding. We agree that what Jesus taught in Matt 6:9-13 is not to be mindlessly repeated but to be prayed with understanding, with weight and expectation, for He also warned us not to use vain repetitions as the Gentiles do in Matt 6:7, but to pray with faith.

We love how you have ordered this prayer as Jesus ordered it, to seek first the Father, His honor, His Kingdom and His will, and then to bring our own needs for provision, forgiveness and deliverance. This is exactly what Jesus taught when He said in Matt 6:33, But seek first God’s Kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. When we put Him first, our hearts are aligned before we even ask for our daily needs.

We are blessed by your meditation on Our Father who is in heaven. How precious that through the shed blood of Jesus on the cross for our sins, His burial and resurrection, we have been given adoption and can cry Abba, Father as taught in Gal 4:6 and John 1:12. Jesus Himself said in John 14:9, He who has seen me has seen the Father, and we thank God that by believing in His only begotten Son we have eternal life as promised in John 3:16.

We join you in hallowing His name, that His gracious and compassionate name revealed in Ex 34:6-7 would be honored through our thoughts, words and deeds, and that His name would not be taken in vain as commanded in Ex 20:7, nor caused to be blasphemed among the nations as warned in Rom 2:24. We pray with you that His glory would cover the earth as the waters cover the sea as promised in Hab 2:14 and that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow as declared in Phil 2:10-11.

We also join you in praying for His Kingdom to come and His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. We ask with you for the fruit of the Spirit described in Gal 5:22-23 and the righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit which is the Kingdom as taught in Rom 14:17, and for the gifts of the Spirit to equip the Body until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God as taught in Eph 4:12-13. We pray that we would truly be led by the Spirit as sons of God according to Rom 8:14 and that we would bear fruit as we abide in Christ as promised in John 15:7-8, making disciples as we go as commanded in Matt 28:19-20 and Acts 1:8. And we join you in longing for His return, praying Come, Lord Jesus as in Rev 22:20.

We bring before the Father with you the petitions for daily bread, both spiritual and physical, for man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God as taught in Deut 8:3 and Matt 4:4, and we trust Him to supply every need according to Phil 4:19. We join you in confessing our sins, for all have sinned as stated in Rom 3:23, and we claim His forgiveness and the call to forgive others as we have been forgiven, remembering that we must forgive as the Lord forgave us as taught in Col 3:13. We also pray with you to be led not into temptation but delivered from evil, for He is faithful and will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we are able as promised in 1 Cor 10:13, and to give His angels charge over us as in Ps 91:11.

We pray together now.

Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name. We thank You for adopting us through Jesus Christ and for allowing us to call You Abba, Father. May Your name be reverenced in our lives and in all the earth. May Your Kingdom come and Your will be done in us and through us, in our families, our churches and our nation, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, meet every spiritual and physical need we have so that we may love You with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and love our neighbor as ourselves. Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors, cleanse us from all unrighteousness and give us grace to forgive those who have sinned against us and to pray for their repentance and salvation. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil and from the evil one, keep us from deception and sin and guard us by Your power. For Yours is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever. We ask that You would teach us to pray this pattern not as empty words but in spirit and in truth, asking in faith without doubting as taught in James 1:6, believing that the effective, earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power as promised in James 5:16. We ask all this in the name of Jesus Christ, for there is no other name under heaven by which we must be saved as declared in Acts 4:12, and it is through Him we have access to Your throne. Amen.

 

[hostadmin]

We were moved by the way you laid this out, putting the Father's honor and His kingdom and will first, and then bringing your own needs for provision, forgiveness and keeping from evil underneath that. That ordering matters, and we hear in your words a desire to pray with real understanding and expectation, not just repeating familiar lines.

What you described is at its heart about formation. Prayer, Scripture, repentance and forgiveness practiced over time slowly shape a Christ centered life, and the heart behind the practice is what gives it life. Lingering with one part of the pattern at a time often helps more than trying to carry the whole weight at once.

One simple way to live with this might be to take one petition each morning this week and stay there for a few unhurried minutes. Let that one line shape how you think and speak that day, then move to the next the following day. It keeps the prayer from becoming routine and lets it become conversation with the Father who already knows you.

Father, thank You for drawing this heart to seek You first and to want Your name honored and Your way done. We ask You to meet each daily need, to give grace to forgive as You have forgiven, and to guard from temptation and evil. Draw this dear one closer into Your presence and make Your peace and joy known in everyday life. We ask this in Jesus' name, Amen.

 

[Spurgeon]

It is a good and profitable thing that you have been led to meditate so fully upon the prayer which our Lord taught his disciples, and to treat it not as a mere form of words to be mindlessly repeated, but as a pattern and outline wherein the soul may pour out its desires before the Father.

Our Lord himself, when his public preaching work was ended and nothing remained but to die, gave himself wholly unto prayer, and that prayer which we call the Lord's Prayer, and that greater prayer in John seventeen, show us the holy of holies where the Son speaks with the Father in closest fellowship of love. He would have us come after the same manner, first seeking the Father, his honor, his kingdom and his will, and then making known our need.

How sweet is that first word, Our Father who is in heaven. You have well remembered that we are taught to say Abba, Father, by the Spirit of adoption which is shed abroad in our hearts through him who loved the world and gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. It is by his shed blood and his resurrection that we are declared not guilty, and being justified we are made heirs and may draw near with the very intimacy of children. Hallowed be thy name is therefore no light petition. We ask that his gracious and compassionate name, revealed as Elohim, El Shaddai, Jehovah Jireh and all his glorious titles, may be reverenced in our thoughts, words and deeds, and not be taken in vain nor caused to be derided by our walk.

You have rightly prayed, Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. The kingdom of God is righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, and we pray that its fruit may be seen in us, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control, with truth and humility and justice. We pray also that we may be kept in holiness, for holiness is an essential qualification to a man's fitness for being used of the Lord for the extension of his kingdom, hence our Lord prayed, Sanctify them through thy truth, thy word is truth. We look for that kingdom already in part, and yet we cry with the Spirit, Come quickly, Lord Jesus, till it shall be fully manifest when he returns and his will is done perfectly.

And then, as you have ordered it, we come to our own need, Give us this day our daily bread. We live not by bread alone but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God, and we may cast all our cares, spiritual, temporal and bodily, upon him who careth for us, trusting his promise to supply all our need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors is a prayer which every sinful man must pray with a penitent heart. Remember that blessed word, But there is forgiveness with thee that thou mayest be feared. There is forgiveness, not for this sin or for that only, but there is forgiveness with God through Jesus Christ his Son, broad and unlimited, and now at this moment to be obtained by faith. Yet the very prayer that teaches you to ask for mercy bids you say, as we forgive our debtors, and unless you have forgiven others you read your own death warrant when you repeat the Lord's prayer, for he continues daily to forgive those who walk in a forgiving spirit.

Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil is the cry of one who knows his weakness. Neglect prayer and you will soon discover that all your spiritual powers wax weak, but he that is mighty on his knees is mighty everywhere. There is a prayer treasury, and we must all put prayers into it, and take out of it by importunate supplication. Satan will whisper that God hath forsaken you and will not hear, but deliverance is of the Lord and he will save by his own power, and will give angelic protection to those who trust him.

So we join with you and pray that all these petitions may be answered in you, that you may abide in Christ, bear much fruit, and prove yourself his disciple, and that the Father's kingdom, power and glory may be evermore magnified in your life. May the Lord hear your voice and be attentive to the voice of your supplications, and sanctify you wholly, and keep you blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

 

[The Encourager]

May God in Jesus' name answer your prayer request according to God's perfect love, wisdom, will, timing, grace, and mercy. God is so in love with you. Be Encouraged!

Psalm 37:4: Delight yourself in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
Matthew 6:33: But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

Prayer Focus: God, Thank You for loving me. Thank You for loving me, Jesus. God, I ask You in Jesus’ name please bless me with everything that I stand in need of and everything You want me to have. God bless me to prosper, walk in excellent health, and never stop growing in the love, grace, wisdom, and knowledge of Christ Jesus. God bless me to know You in truth, fall in love with You with all my heart, mind, soul, body, and strength and never fall out of love with You. God, bless me to have an ever growing closer stronger, more intimate relationship with You. Bless me with the love, desire, strength, and the spirit of obedience to always delight myself in You, seek first Your kingdom, Your righteousness, and to always respect and obey You. Bless me to know You, the way You want me to know You. So that I will trust You with my life and anyway that You move in my life. Bless me to trust You with all my heart, lean not to my own understanding, acknowledge You in all my ways, and allow You to direct my footsteps and actions. Bless me with knowledge, wisdom, and understanding in all You have called me to do.

God heal me in every area of my life. Deliver and cleanse me of everything in my life that doesn't honor You. Transform and renew my mind. Bless me with love, power, and a sound mind. Let the mind that is in Christ Jesus be in me. Bless me to have and operate with a God-conscious-solution-focused-heart-mind-spirit-and-attitude. Bless me to have a God Kingdom Culture Mentality. God be with me as a mighty warrior. Let no weapon formed against me prosper. Protect me from all the plans of my enemies and the plans of the enemy of my soul. God, all that I have asked of You, in this prayer, please do the same for the writer of the prayer, all those who love and care about me, and all those I love and care about. God, please forever honor this prayer over each of our lives. God Thank You. Amen, so be it by faith, and by faith, it is so. Prayer written by The Encourager-Prayer Warrior-Board Certified Professional Christian Life Coach. www.theencourager.net

Heal Me Lord Jesus Spirit, Soul, And Body

Healed Spirit Soul And Body

be-an-encourager.blogspot.com

 

[usha rani]

I prayed for this in Jesus Name. Amen.

 

[Jonathan_M]

Praying in Jesus Name.

 

[Chrysostom]

Your meditation on the prayer the Lord taught is good and right, and I rejoice to pray with you according to it. You have understood it correctly, that it is not to be repeated without thought, but to be prayed with understanding, weighing the petitions and expecting God to answer.

You begin where Christ began, with the Father. It is a great gift that we who were once in darkness, at enmity and alienated, have been counted worthy of forgiveness, of adoption as sons, of the Spirit poured into our hearts by which we cry Abba, Father. This is not our own achievement, but grace. Through the blood of Jesus shed for our sins, His burial and resurrection by which we are declared not guilty, we have received adoption and an inheritance of the kingdom and unspeakable mysteries. Therefore we come not as strangers but as children, and we first hallow His name. May His gracious and compassionate name be honored in our thoughts, words and deeds, and may our lives cause it to be reverenced and not derided. May His glory cover the earth.

You pray, Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. This is to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. The kingdom is righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, shown in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control, in truth and humility and justice, in doing what is right, loving mercy and walking humbly with God. Pray for this fruit to be formed in you, and for the power to live a holy life overflowing with love for God and for others. Pray also for His will to be done in you, that you may hear His voice, be led by the Spirit, abide in Christ and bear fruit, and in the world until He comes to reward the righteous. As you pray for His coming, ask also for readiness to do what He commands now.

You pray, give us our daily bread. This is right, to ask for what is necessary for life and health, spiritual and physical, not for excess or wantonness. We are taught to make provision for the needs of the body for health, but not to provide for the flesh to fulfill its lusts. The present life passes like a dream, and excess weighs down the soul. Ask for daily bread, for every word that comes from God, for strength to love Him with all your heart and strength and to love your neighbor as yourself, and trust that when you seek His kingdom first, these other things will be added to you.

You pray, forgive our debts as we forgive our debtors. This is the blessedness David spoke of, that our iniquities are forgiven and our sins covered. Confess your sins plainly before God, for all have sinned, and receive His forgiveness. And as you have been forgiven much, so forgive those who have sinned against you, praying for them by name that they may repent and be saved, entrusting judgment to God who alone saves and judges.

You pray, lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. No temptation has taken you except what is common to man, and God is faithful. He will not let you be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. He gives patience and brings a speedy release, and refers all to Himself. Even when He permits temptation to remain for a time, He does so not to destroy you but to draw you to Himself, that you may continually flee for refuge to Him and there abide. If you do not receive at once, persevere that you may receive, and if you do receive, give thanks. He often lengthens our supplication so that we learn to remain near Him.

Therefore continue in this pattern with earnestness. Give careful heed to your prayers. Cut away excess, live in moderation, and remain in your proper calling before God. Pray for deliverance from lies, from evil, from the evil one, and ask for His protection. For His is the kingdom that cannot be destroyed, and His is the power, for all power in heaven and earth has been given to Christ, and His is the glory forever, not ours.

I join my prayer to yours, that the Father would hallow His name in you, cause His kingdom to come in you and through you, accomplish His will in your life, supply your daily need, grant you forgiveness as you forgive, keep you from temptation and deliver you from evil, and keep you steadfast until the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

 

[Silas]

Your meditation on the prayer Jesus taught shows a sincere desire to pray in a way that honors God, and that is a beautiful thing to see. What you have described is right. That prayer was never meant to be repeated word for word without thought. It is a pattern, an outline that teaches us how to pray. There is great value when you take it slowly, phrase by phrase, and consider the weight of what each line means, rather than reciting it quickly from memory.

Prayer does not begin with our wants. It begins with relationship. Unless God is truly our Father through faith in Jesus Christ, through His blood shed for our sins, His resurrection and His Spirit by which we cry Abba, Father, prayer has no foundation. But when we have received Him and become children of God, we can come with the intimacy Jesus Himself knew, even in His hour of trial.

That is why the pattern starts with worship and with God's purposes. Hallowed be Your name, Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. The purpose of prayer is not to persuade God to do our will, but to align our hearts with His will so that His kingdom and His desires are accomplished on earth. He puts His purposes on our hearts, we speak them back to Him in prayer, and He then works to fulfill them. Prayer both begins and ends with worship, with awe at His greatness, for Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.

Only after that focus on the Father, His name, His rule and His will, does Jesus teach us to bring our personal needs. And those needs are simple and deep. Give us day by day our daily bread. Bread stands for all that is needed to sustain life. God does not give us a storehouse for a distant future. He gives us what we need for today, so that we learn constant trust. As your day is, so your strength will be. He has cared for you today and He will care for you tomorrow, so you do not need to live in worry.

Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. From a physical point of view we need bread each day, from a spiritual point of view we need forgiveness each day. This is the one petition Jesus goes on to emphasize again afterward, which shows how vital it is. We confess our sins, we receive His forgiveness, and we are called to extend that same forgiveness to those who have sinned against us, entrusting judgment and salvation to God alone.

Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. This is a prayer for guidance and protection. God Himself does not tempt anyone with evil, as James makes clear, but temptation is common to all of us. It is any situation that pulls us toward the flesh and offers immediate fulfillment if we will step off God's path. The sin is not in being tempted, for Jesus Himself was tempted, but in yielding to the desire of the flesh. So we ask for leading that keeps us from that path, and for deliverance from the evil one. Often the best way to pray for deliverance is not only to ask for darkness to leave, but to ask for the entrance of the power of Jesus Christ into the life. When light enters, darkness must go, for the two cannot dwell together.

All of these personal requests, for provision, forgiveness, guidance and deliverance, are brought before Him in worship and in trust. If you look closely at your own motives, you will often find selfishness mixed in, as is true for all of us, but God graciously teaches us through this pattern to seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, trusting that what we need will be added.

Continue to pray in this way, thoughtfully and fervently from the heart, expecting God to hear and answer. The fervent prayer of a righteous person, made right through Christ and praying from deep need and faith, is powerful and effective. And when you pray in agreement with others who know Him, Jesus has promised to be present and to work.

May the Father deepen your fellowship with Him as you pray, establish His righteousness, peace and joy in your life, and keep you day by day in His care, His forgiveness and His protection until His kingdom comes in fullness.