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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. ’ ” 5 Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; 6 a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’ 7 And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ 8 I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need. 9 “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. 11 “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”(Luke 11:1-13 NIV)
Who taught you to pray? Who was the model of prayer that inspired you to want to learn how to pray. Or have you reached that point? It's interesting to note that Jesus' disciples, the men asked to follow Him by the Son of God Himself, had not yet been trained to pray. Some of Jesus' disciples had been disciples of John the Baptizer, and John had taken time to teach them how to pray which is why we hear one of Jesus' men say, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples."
I was blessed to have been born into a family that prayed.. I heard my parents pray and I had a dear grandmother who also prayed and when my dog was hit by a Coca-Cola truck and was dying she quickly did a prayer lesson with me. Sadly, and of course, the dog died. She was no match for the huge truck; but even as a grieving child I felt a peace in knowing that I had connected with God; God had heard me and God's heart grieved with me.
Jesus teaches the disciples the prayer that Matthew recorded and as was shared to Lucanus, Luke as we commonly know him, wrote this account down for his book. You and I know the prayer and most of us for many, many years. It's called the Family Prayer, for all who learned it and prayed it often. God is Father. We learned that when we learned the prayer. And Father is holy for His name is holy. God is not only Father, He is king with a kingdom. His kingdom is a work in progress and it is always in motion and it is coming to full realization in God's timing.
God is a giving God, Who gives good things to those who love and trust Him. And the main thing God gives is our daily bread, that staple of nourishment known the world over; God wants those who love him to have that which keeps them going. The more I write the more I'm hearing this prayer needs the name of the Going Prayer, for it has elements that ask for freedom to move and go and do! Forgive us our sin says that God can remove the chains that bind us to a place or memory or location from which we cannot move; sin is paralyzing! And so is forgiving! Thus the next part: "For we also forgive everyone who sins against us." Not always easy to do so, but as we forgive others, we are allowing ourselves to be forgiven and freed for whatever needs to come next. And the direction we ask not to be sent is to temptation. That is where it all begins all over again; sin all wrapped up to our delight calling us by name to unwrap it, enjoy it and do it as often as we can.
Luke did not write down what Matthew ends his prayer with: "But deliver us from evil." Yet another direction we seek and need to go; away from the bad. Evil leads to death and we seek to go to life. This prayer never contained what is called the Doxology of "For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever, amen." Recent updates to editions of the Bible do not contain this and some publications like The Upper Room no longer print it either for scholastic research believes it was never taught by Jesus. Some in the Christ Seminar came to the conclusion that the only words that Jesus may have taught were "Our Father." So much for deep scholarship! Okay, they also said "give us our daily bread,' "hallowed be thy name."
But Jesus doesn’t stop with a pattern for prayer. He goes on to tell a story—about a man knocking on his neighbor’s door at midnight. The message? Be persistent. Be bold. Keep knocking. “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you” (v. 9).
This is not a promise of instant results, but a call to relationship. Jesus is inviting us into a life of prayer that is consistent, trusting, and honest. God is not annoyed by our prayers—He is eager to give. “Which of you fathers… would give a snake… or a scorpion?” He asks. Then comes the assurance: “How much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (v. 13). God desires to give us His very presence.
This passage is both an invitation and a promise: Prayer is not just something we do. It's the place where we meet God, again and again, and find that He’s more generous and faithful than we ever imagined.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for inviting me into prayer—not as a task, but as a relationship. Teach me to pray with honesty and trust. Help me to ask boldly, seek faithfully, and knock persistently, knowing You are near and willing to give good gifts. Let my heart rest in the joy of Your presence. Amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord. OUR CALL TO ACTION: Set aside intentional time today to pray—whether with simple words or in quiet listening. Ask God not just for things, but for more of His presence and guidance. Keep the conversation going.
I love you and I thank God for you,
Pastor Eradio Valverde, Jr.
