This week’s devotions are based on Week 4 of Rooted – Grounded in Prayer (CLICK HERE)
Prayer is very personal.
We started this week reflecting on our relationship to God the Father and the blessing and privilege we have to pray to him because he has made us his dear children. Whenever we pray we engage this very personal relationship that the blood of Jesus has secured for us. It’s no wonder that the Second Commandment encourages us not to take God’s name in vain. Frivolous or thoughtless cries to God don’t communicate the blessing of the relationship, but rather the callous demands of a entitled person. Everytime we use the phrase “O my god” is calling on God’s name in vain, not a reflection of faith that trusts the child/father relationship. God is also not just a magic genie in a bottle that is “out there” to be tapped for favors and request. Prayer is a personal reflection of the relationship you know and trust with a heart that desires and yearns to be in communication with your heavenly Father. Every prayer is to be a very personal expression of this wonderful relationship.
Prayer is for you personally.
Child who has a solid relationship with their father and mother know that he or she has privileges that other children don’t. While growing up they may not always express appreciation for that relationship, but the personal connection with one’s parents allows for very personal conversations and requests to be made. Parents have this personal relationship with their children as well and will give to their children far more than they will give to other children.
So prayer is not only an expression of the personal relationship God has established with us, but is for us to use to have personal conversations with our heavenly Father. He desires us to share what’s on our hearts, both words of thanksgiving and challenge. He wants to be invited in to your personal challenges and the concerns that you carry. He invites us to put our burdens on him. He teaches us to ask for things for our personal spiritual, emotional and physical well being.
When Jesus taught the Lord’s prayer, it was intended to capture the very personal requests we need on a daily basis.
Matthew 6:9 “This, then, is how you should pray:
“‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’’
Each one of these petitions is for a personal benefit, whether for body or soul. While the prayer is used by many and we often speak it together, it is intended to be the personal expression of your needs to your heavenly Father. Martin Luther captured the thought on the fourth petition:
Everything included in the necessities and nourishment for our bodies, such as food, drink, clothing, shoes, house, farm, fields, livestock, money, property, an upright spouse, upright children, upright members of the household, upright and faithful rulers, good government, good weather, peace, health, decency, honor, good friends, faithful neighbors, and the like. *
So, while we certainly don’t want all our prayers to be self-centered in nature, never feel bad for presenting your personal requests to God. He loves you and always is ready to hear from you!
Apply: Here is a four-part outline to use as you pray that perhaps keeps a balance in your prayers:
A-Adoration – Reflecting on the person and work of God; praising him!
C – Confession – Sharing the sins of your thoughts, words and actions, seeking forgiveness and God’s faithfulness to forgive through Jesus.
T – Thanksgiving – Don’t forget to return and give thanks for all with which the Lord has blessed you!
S- Supplication – Ask for personal needs and pray on behalf of others.
Prayer: Lord thank you for making me your child and inviting and encouraging me to bring my requests to you. I am grateful for the personal nature of prayer and that I can use it personally. AMEN.
* Practical Advice on Prayer from Martin Luther by MARY JANE HAEMIG https://wordandworld.luthersem.edu/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/35-1_Prayer/Practical%20Advice%20on%20Prayer%20from%20Martin%20Luther.pdf