Lent | Re-Learning How to Receive & Bless thru Jesus' Prayer

Notice that the prayer
that Jesus taught His disciples
seems to relate to five basic themes
of the human experience:

(1) identity: Who am I?
(2) purpose: Why am I here?
(3) security: How will I survive & thrive?
(4) community: How can I belong?
(5) freedom and peace:
How can I overcome
my temptations & suffering?

+ Mark Scandrette
Practicing the Way of Jesus

A Vision for Life in the Kingdom of Love

Do you think it's possible that Jesus may have taught His disciples to pray in relation to identity + purpose + security + community + freedom and peace because of the vision it gives for the life we were made for? 

Here is a picture of life that we get from the instructions of Jesus:

Identity 
"Our Father in heaven,
hallowed by Your name." 

Our Creator is present and caring. Who are we? We are intimately loved by a Creator who is closer than our very breath. We are not alone and we have not been abandoned. We are beloved and cared for simply because we are God's children. We don't have to earn, beg or appease God. We may have called another "Mother" or "Father," and they were a gift to reveal a glimpse of our true parent and our real home in the eternal Abba. We were created for intimate union with our eternal parent, sourcing our life from God's life. Nothing else can ultimately satisfy us. In faith we surrender to Jesus as our Savior and Teacher, trusting that the one who made us always has our best interests in mind. This is why we are invited to live and pray the words "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name." An apprentice to Jesus learns to find their primary identity in communion with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

Purpose
"Your Kingdom come,
Your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven."

We were created to serve the higher purposes and healing heart of the eternal God. Why are we here? Look! All around us the Creator is at work liberating and restoring what is broken and inviting all people to return to their source. You and I were made to find our deepest joy and greatest satisfaction not from doing whatever we want, but in surrender to the Creator's desire and imagination. As Jesus said, we are the light this world needs (Matthew 5:14-16). We are agents of God's healing, justice and love – especially for the poor and weak and those who suffer. We don't have to be concerned about becoming the greatest or getting credit. The Father sees and knows the good work we do to serve in love. We can ask for God's reign to come to every place and person in our path and expect to see freedom multiplied. This is why we are invited to pray and live the words "Your Kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." An apprentice to Jesus learns to make the realization of God's creative and restoring work their highest priority.

Security
"Give us today our daily bread."

God's abundance supplies everything we need. How will we survive and thrive? We are sustained through the Creator's abundance. Our Maker delights in giving us what we ask for. We don't have to be greedy because the resources we need will always be provided. We can share what we have and what we receive. We don't have to worry or be afraid of anything, including the future or what will happen to us after we die. We don't have to be jealous of people who hoard things, thinking that we live only by what we can see. Knowing where true provision comes from, we are free to live generously with content and grateful hearts. This is why we are invited to live and pray the words " Give us today our daily bread." An apprentice of Jesus learns to rely on the resources the Creator provides.

Community
"Forgive us our trespasses | debts | sins,
as we also have forgiven our debtors."

Access to an infinite source of love can transform our relationships with one another. How can we belong? We are infinitely loved, having received an eternal source of love to share with others. We are forgiven by God, and are empowered to forgive whenever we are wronged. Broken relationships can be restored. We can live at peace with one another. Love frees us to live without anger, bitterness, lust or judgment. We can be authentic and honest with each other and keep our promises. We can love and bless the people who take advantage of us or even hate us – because love wins over all. This is why we are invited to live and pray the words "Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors." An apprentice of Jesus learns to love as we are loved.

Freedom and peace
"Lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one."

We can have victory over temptations and peace in suffering. What can we do about our temptations and sufferings? Be awake to God's presence and power here with us. We have the strength to overcome any obstacle. We don't have to be dominated by our feelings or impulses or the tyranny of rules and regulations. When we are weary, tired, stressed or sad we don't have to give in to habits or compulsions that we are destructive. We can overcome any temptation and endure any difficulty. Grace will meet us in the moment of our greatest weakness. We can have peace when we suffer. Nothing that happens can separate us from the eternal source of love. This is why we are invited to live and pray the words "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one." An apprentice of Jesus learns to practice self-denial and endure the difficulties that come from living in a divided world. 

One step toward experiencing
life in the Kingdom

is to pray for a vision

for what is possible

and to want what is possible.

It might help to speak these intentions:

I want to taste the intimacy

of being God's beloved child.

I want to collaborate

with God's creative and redemptive

work in the world.

I want to live without

worry, jealousy or lust.

I want to forgive and love

as I have been forgiven and loved.

I want to experience victory

over the temptations I struggle with

and feel God's peace when I suffer.

Faith Practice
Pray the Our Father + Lord's Prayer
for Someone 

If the Our Father | Lord's Prayer provides a summary of the life we have been created for, praying this prayer for another person can be a powerful way to train and express our desires for life in the Kingdom. 

Pray with someone through the phases of the Our Father | Lord's Prayer, working to personalize the words to fit their situation. For example, "God, you are ______'s true parent. Help ______ embrace their identity as Your beloved child, learning to be constantly aware of Your presence in each moment of this day."

Our Father in heaven

God, how do You want this person

to know the assurance
of Your love today?

Your Kingdom come,
Your will be done
God, what will it look like
for Your Kingdom to be revealed
in this person’s life today?

Give us today our daily bread
God, what specific provision
are You pouring out on this person today?

Forgive us as we also have forgiven
God, what are Your words of grace
to this person today?

Lead us not into temptation
What is the right path
You have laid out for this person
to walk today?

Deliver us from the evil one
How can I pray Your protection
over this person today?

Learn more about the Lord's Prayer:

+ Praying the Good News

by N.T. Wright 

 

+ What Heaven Is Like

by Pope Francis

 

+ Ethical Implications

by Anna Case-Winters 

 

+ Bold Missionary Focus

by John F. Smed 

 

+ Prodigal Comes Home 

by Wesley Hill

Christ is all,

Rev. Mike "Sully" Sullivan

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