THE FUNDAMENTALS OF PRAYER
Prayer has been described
as communication with the Lord. A conversation with God. It gives us an opportunity
to commune with our Creator. He desires to speak and listen to us. Just as He
desired it for man(Adam) in the garden of Eden before the fall. Gen 2:8 'in the cool of the morning'
Despite the
simplicity of this mutual expressions. It seems that over the years, the mode and
style of prayers have become cumbersome or at times beleaguered. There have
been 'prayer merchants and warriors' and many people have either been
discouraged or belaboured with the 'obligations' associated with prayers, that
fewer people feel dissatisfied with their prayer life. The hours to pray, how
long, how much, the level of your voice, the things you pray for etc have made
a simple communication with God, a 'headache'.
The above is not unusual.
In Jesus' days, there were all sorts of prayers and expressions. For example The
Pharisees and Sadducees show off-
MT 6:5“And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to
pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they
may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.
In fact I believe it
must have been so confusing that the disciples of Jesus had to ask him to teach
them how to pray.
This became clear in Lk
11:1 'Once Jesus was in a certain place praying. As he
finished, one of his disciples came to him and said, “Lord, teach us to pray,
just as John taught his disciples.”
They
wanted to learn and not get too confused. From this statement, it is apparent
that John thought his own disciples how to pray. By inference, the disciples of
Jesus must have been seeing how John disciples prayed, and the Pharisees, and
they might be wondering whether they were praying effectively.
Jesus
answered them by saying
“When you pray,
say:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in
heaven.
3Give us day by day our daily bread.
4And forgive us our sins,
For we also forgive everyone who is
indebted to us.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.”
Matthew version:
Mt 6:9-13
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
11Give us this day our daily bread.
12And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
13And 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.
I have quoted two gospels, especially
for the effect of the last lines in the Gospel according to Matthew.
From
the above, it is clear that prayers should be simple but systematic. The means
and form do not really matter but the process.
We
can therefore break formula down to, the well known acronym:
A.C.T.S(Adoration;Confession;Thanksgiving; Supplications)
We
will look at each letters, and see how Jesus taught his disciples, the
essentials of a prayer.
Look
out
Tayo Arowojolu
NB: NCC Edmonton
65 Church Street, N9 9PY is praying and fasting every day of
November. Join us. Check out website at www.nccedmonton.org.uk for more details.
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