The Lord's Prayer.

Matthew 6:  5 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

Like most things in my spiritual life, what I once thought was simple I now find a depth that seems endless.  Concepts like “Do unto others…” or “Judge not, lest you be judged…” seem practical and workable on the surface.  We think them, we acknowledge their wisdom, but we dare not put them into practice.  But as we mature, we do make sincere efforts to do these things and in those efforts we find a patient, but firm savior who will show us the depth of his character and teaching and love, through surrender and dependency and grace.  The Lord’s Prayer is something that seems simple and practical on the surface, but like the Bible itself, this prayer meets you where you are, yet bids you to keep calling and to explore all that is there.  

I revisit the prayer often and have found myself pausing at every point to really consider what is there.  These pauses often yield prayers of their own, giving moments of conviction, gratitude, forgiveness and worship.  I thought I would explore some more these pauses.

9 “This, then, is how you should pray:

Our Father.  It’s a simple question my pastor posed years ago, “Who/what do you picture when you picture God?”  What you picture may give some insight on how you think about God.  Is he a Lion?  Is he a Lamb?  Is he a killjoy who wants you to feel guilty?  Is he a hippie?  This is a great place to start.  Most often, when I pray “Our Father” I don’t have a clear image, just a sense of someone there.  Like when your eyes are closed, but you can feel someone else enter the room.  Then I explored my more conscious thoughts of who God/Jesus is.  I tried to think of the most inviting Father figure I could.  I flipped in my mind through 70’s movies about Jesus and the Bible, old fake beards: white guy, big blue Paul Newman eyes.  Paul Newman, that’s pretty good, except I don’t think of him as a Father.  I then flipped to The Lion, Aslan from Narnia: loving, yet powerful and frightening.  Then I thought of my own Dad.  My Dad certainly would be a good choice, except my love and admiration for my Dad has so much to do with surrender to Jesus.  My Dad is like a work of art produced by Jesus himself (actually, that is exactly what he is).  Christ’s power made perfect in my father’s weakness.  Feeling bad about the blue-eyed white Jesus thing, I also thought of my sister’s ex Father in Law, Earl.  I think because he is terrific, but he is also Jewish, seemed more authentic.  Then I thought of my nephew Brandon.  He is a giant beast of a man.  His wrist bones are massive, the radial and ulna made of two lead pipes.  He is well over ten feet tall with multi colored hair and a ridiculous beard.  He came to mind because of the way children run to him and climb him as if he were a jungle gym.  He hurls them effortlessly as they cackle, the power and the ease are compelling. Conceptually I also think of the ocean, it’s power and invitation.  The ocean is terrifying and endless.  I then asked my brother in law what he thought of and among the things he said was “Light.”  Of course I thought, but then wondered why I didn’t think of Light.  I know the answer and it just points out again the depths of things we have yet to discover about ourselves and our King.    Somewhere in all of this is my image of Our Father.

Who art in Heaven.  Biding, watching, waiting, at peace, dwelling in perfection because that is who he is.  He is at work, reconciling.  Not detached, just patient.  He is Heaven because we cannot be with him yet.  And not just because we are still alive, but because the stain of sin.  It has been paid for, but not yet removed.  Someday...

Hallowed be thy name.  Hallowed.  What is hallowed?  I tried to think of something that all would recognize as hallowed.  Historical places like the remnants of the Temple in Jerusalem are certainly hallowed, but also contested and incomplete.  National monuments came to mind, yet they all became tainted in my mind.  The White House is too political.  The Washington Monument, too borrowed from the ancient.  Veteran’s Memorials have more of the reverence needed for Hallowed. Hallowed Ground like Gettysburg.  The tomb of the Unknown Soldier gets close to Hallowed:  Honored, revered, mysterious, breath-taking, emotional. These memorials also hint at a great price paid in life and blood. Hallowed.  

Thy Kingdom Come, thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven.  This time of year especially, I equate Heaven on Earth as Spring.  The coming of spring, is the renewing of all things.  It is a promise, it is redemption.  It sparks the recognition of the miraculous.  Unbelievable beauty and unexplainable diversity of life.  Resurrection.  On Earth (in these fleeting moments) as it is in Heaven (and shall one day be here again).  The beauty we have on earth are true glimpses of how it will be when Heaven and Earth are one, which is his will.

Give us this day, our daily bread.  So explicit and intentionally so, we should only expect to receive only enough for today.  Manna, for today.  And there will be enough, so don’t try to accumulate more than the day has given.  When I pack my lunch, I only pack today’s lunch, because if I try to look too far ahead, it may be spoiled.  Or it may not be what I need at the time.

Forgive us, as we forgive.  A garden hose.  Grace is the water and the supply is endless.  When we stop the flow, maybe because we can’t bare to think of the cost or because we want it all for ourselves, we stop it for ourselves.  When we give freely, opening the stream wide to all the undeserving people around us, more Grace comes.    

Annie J. Flint

• He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,
• He sendeth more strength as our labors increase;
• To added afflictions He addeth His mercy,
• To multiplied trials He multiplies peace.
• When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
• When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,
• When we reach the end of our hoarded resources
• Our Father’s full giving is only begun.
• Fear not that thy need shall exceed His provision,
• Our God ever yearns His resources to share;
• Lean hard on the arm everlasting, availing;
• The Father both thee and thy load will upbear.
• His love has no limits, His grace has no measure,
• His power no boundary known unto men;
• For out of His infinite riches in Jesus
• He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again.

Lead us not, into temptation.  Don’t lead us to temptation.  Lead us away from temptation.  This can be confusing and I can’t say that I have my head wrapped around this section.  If he is in Heaven, then he is not yet here and that means that temptation is a reality.  It is a reality of the fall, yet if we seek him, seek the kingdom first, then by very nature we will be led away from temptation.  

But deliver us from Evil.  I think this is an interesting distinction between temptation and Evil.  Lead us not, into temptation hints at the use of our will.  We can be lead either into temptation or not.  Once we have given our will to temptation, Evil has rights to us.  Evil, or the Evil one, hunts us and prowls at our door, waiting for us to give him permission.  Temptation is the water we swim in, Satan is the predator waiting to consume us.  The Grace of King Jesus is that he is waiting to rescue us and no matter the depths of the temptation or evil we have given in to, he will always deliver us if we call on him.  No depth is too deep.

For thine is the Kingdom and the Power and the Glory Forever.  Words fall short.

Revelation 21.Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,”[a] for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’[b] or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

5 He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!”Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

6 He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End.

This prayer has everything.  Similar to Genesis, the prayer begins with the beginning himself.  In the beginning, GOD, Our Father.  Quickly, the prayer establishes His place in Heaven.  It tells us that things will be made right, that we will be provided for, what we are to do in forgiveness, that we will face temptation, but will also be delivered, and ends with the END, which brings us Hope.