Ice Breaker/The Lord's Prayer

Sitting in bed listening to a worship song I have found a new appreciation for the Lord's Prayer. I've always seen it as something washed up that every person who wants to seem like a Christian or a good Catholic boy or girl recites. I can see now that Jesus hit everything that we need in our lives right in this short prayer.

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your Kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins,
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours.
Now and for ever.
Amen
Matthew 6:9-13

The first sentence is a given for now. We should always recognize the holiness of our God and recognize his divine power.

The next sentence's meaning has changed in my eyes from how it has been for many years. This is because of a speaker at a Hillsong United Concert I went to. The way he explained it made me
feel as if I finally had someone reveal to me the most incredible treasure I had ever seen. He talked about the part that says, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on Earth as it is in heaven." Now I won't explain it exactly how he did because I don't remember but I know what he was trying to say through that thick Australian accent. You see most people interpret this as "I will do your will until you come back." Which is great, but I agree with the idea this guy had. No, it's not blasphemous it just seems simple but so poetic. You see, we can take "thy will be done" and see it as a nonessential clause (I suck at grammar so I'm probably wrong about the nonessential clause stuff). Anyways when you take that out you get "Thy kingdom come on Earth as it is in Heaven." MAN! Maybe I'm the only one who saw this as so powerful. It is OUR job as followers of Christ to bring Heaven to Earth, to shine light into such a dark place. What a beautiful gift we have as Christians to get to brighten people's lives by showing the love of Christ through everything we do.

Next, we have "Give us today our daily bread."
Daily Bread refers to the way that God gave manna to the Israelites every day while in the wilderness. No matter what, God gave them exactly the amount he knew that they needed to be sustained. Now, this doesn't mean that the Israelites wanted the same food everyday, it also doesn't mean that they got exactly how much they thought they needed; however, rain or shine they always got exactly what they needed.
So, Jesus is saying that we should never pray to God to give us more than what we need but to ask Him to give exactly what He knows we need. Whether we like it or not, it is what we need and it is a part of growth. You see, the Israelites had to have this manna everyday (whether they liked it or not) in order for their physical bodies to remain healthy for the tasks that would await them. In this same way we must ask God to give us exactly what we need in order for us to be prepared spiritually for the jobs we were created to accomplish.

"Forgive us our sins,as we forgive those who sin against us."

My pastor explained it best in asking the question, "Would you really want God to forgive you in the same way you forgive others?" Many of us hold grudges and can't let go. We must take time to transform into vessels that pour out mercy and grace just like our Father.


"Lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil"

May we not be led into temptation any longer, but completely delivered from all evil and may our innocence be restored. Easier said than done right? It takes YOU and God to overcome temptation. Often times it also takes our brothers and sisters in Christ to hold us up. (I will probably write something on this very thing soon)

"For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours.
Now and for ever. "

We can't expect God to work in us if we can't humble ourselves and let God really take all of us. Letting God take all of you is a gradual process from what I have learned. Small (and sometimes HUGE) steps out of your comfort zone lead up to more and more freedom for you to do things in the power of the Holy Spirit. Letting God take all of you takes discipline and it takes persistent seeking after God and his will for you.

I know this was long and I don't think I ever want to write something this long again, but I feel as if God wanted me too share exactly this. If not for any of you atleast it helps me :)

I love you guys and I hope that you let God work in your life like never before. Often times the hardest thing for a human to do is take the first step, but once that is done your life will never be the same.

Hunter