Matthew 6:7-14; 1 John 5:12-15
So many times when we come to Matthew 6:5-14 we jump right to the Lord's Prayer. Now there's nothing wrong with doing that, but there's quite a bit for us to consider and draw on before we even get to Jesus' example prayer. Here's what caught my attention today. God isn't looking for us to fulfill a certain word count when we pray. He's also not looking for us to say a particular phrase over and over. He already knows everything about us--our needs, our situation, our desires--so when we pray we can talk with Him in a very personal way.
So how can we use Matthew 6:5-14 to help us be more "up close and personal" with God when we pray? Tami W.
What I got out of the verses before The Lord's Prayer is that Christ doesn't want us to heap up prayers for ourself. He'd much rather hear The Lord's Prayer then that. He said that is what the gentiles do and it sounded like it was not pleasing to him. Blessings!
God knows us. He made us. He knows our every need. If we go to Him in honesty, sharing with Him the good and the bad (even things we don't understand)that are happening in our lives, we can be assured that He does understand and hears our prayer. After all, He made us and wants the very best for His children. It makes me, as a born again believer, want to thank Him all the more for allowing me, with all my shortcomings, weaknesses, and, well....sin, to be one of His children. Wow! What an awesome God!!