Blessed Lord, bring blessing upon blessing to the life and needs of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.
Our text for today is Luke 11: 1 One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples." 2 He said to them, "When you pray, say: " 'Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. 3 Give us each day our daily bread. 4 Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation. ' "
Nothing teaches someone better than for someone to do it first. We know there are different kinds of learners; some can read and understand what they are to do, others have to see it demonstrated or modeled and then they learn. In today's passage, Jesus had been praying for some time, but it was on this day that "one of this disciples" wanted to know how to pray. I hadn't noticed it was just one who asked to learn. Out of the twelve only one asked about this that he had seen Jesus doing. But give the man credit for asking for all to learn to pray. Now, I don't believe only one wanted to learn to pray, it was only one who finally asked. The result was the famous Jesus Prayer or the Our Father or the Lord's Prayer, here in Luke's version. It begins as an act of worship, an act of reverence and submission, then shifts to acknowledging from Whom all things come as well as a petition. Then it turns inward to confession of sins and an asking of pardon for our sins. The prayer also instructs our need to forgive and a closing petition for strong guidance away from temptation.
Simple but powerful. A model of all prayers. A way to connect with God and with others.
PRAYER: Loving God, help me to connect with You this day. As Jesus prayed, so pray I: Be glorified by my worship and by my devotion to you this day. Provide for me the spiritual and physical things I need. Make me right with You and right with myself and right with others. Protect me and guide me in the right way. I pray this in Jesus' name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!
Eradio Valverde
