One prayer.
A shared moment.

What is prayer?

Prayer is man’s humble appeal to God, who answers us.

Humble, precisely because in prayer we do not present our wishes and dreams to God as to a goldfish who immediately fulfills them. The purpose of prayer is to change us so that we can better serve God, trust Him, and get to know Him.

Parents try to teach their child two magic words: please and thank you. These same words are also the essence of communication with God, or prayer. Just like us parents, our Heavenly Father knows what we need without our asking, but with prayer and thanksgiving we open our hearts and express gratitude for everything we receive from our parents. When we pray, we acknowledge our need for God. Through prayer, we entrust ourselves to God and ask for His blessing. Prayer opens our heart so that we can receive God’s help, and through it God can touch us and make us like Himself.

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How to pray?

Set aside time and put aside all distractions that could bring you “back to earth”. Take a few minutes to let your thoughts settle and focus on being in front of your Heavenly Father who loves you.

You can pray while kneeling or standing, with folded or open hands. However, one should not turn prayer into a complex meditation technique or judge the effectiveness of prayer by the number of miracles that have occurred. Jesus said that God knows what we need before we ask, so prayer is not about making God aware of our need or His guidance, but rather a heart-to-heart moment, communication with our Creator.

We pour out our hearts to Him and then take time to listen to Him and be silent before Him.

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The Lord’s Prayer

Why is it called The Lord’s Prayer?
This is what the Lord Jesus Himself taught us. The Lord’s Prayer is one of the most important prayers of Christianity, which is prayed all over the world in different denominations. 

The Lord’s Prayer can be found in two gospels in the New Testament: in the Sermon on the Mount in the Gospel of Matthew (Matt 6:9-13) and the Gospel of Luke (Luke 11:2-4).

According to the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount gives us an example (or a model) of how to pray, while warning us against hypocrisy, empty repetitions, and pretended piety in front of the public. When we pray, we should not be like pretenders or hypocrites who speak empty words and superficial repetitions, but say and think our prayer from the heart.

According to the Gospel of Luke, the disciples themselves asked Jesus to teach them to pray.

The Lord’s Prayer in the Gospel of Matthew (Matthew 6:9-13)
“Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.
Amen.”

The Lord’s Prayer in the Gospel of Luke (Luke 11:2-4)
“Father, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins, for we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
And lead us not into temptation!”

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Why pray the The Lord’s Prayer?

Honoring God: The Lord’s Prayer begins with honoring God’s holy name, which reminds us of God’s holiness and greatness. It is like an opening bow that helps us feel reverence and humility before our Creator.
Seeking God’s will: We pray that God’s will be done on earth. It is like a call to live according to God’s will and seek His guidance in everyday life.
Connecting with other Christians: The Lord’s Prayer is a universal prayer for millions of people around the world. Praying it connects us with other Christians, creating a global spiritual community.
Daily Need: The prayer for daily bread refers to our daily dependence on God. It’s like a reminder that everything we need comes from God.
Forgiving and receiving forgiveness: In prayer, we ask for forgiveness for our sins and express our willingness to forgive others, which are important steps in spiritual growth and connection with others.
Refrain from temptation: In The Lord’s Prayer we ask that we be delivered from the temptation to sin, that we would not be placed in a difficult or unavoidable situation, and also for protection from evil. It confirms our desire to follow God’s way and be protected from all evil.

In conclusion, The Lord’s Prayer helps us honor God, seek His will, connect with other Christians, and express our daily needs and spiritual aspirations. Prayer creates a deeper spiritual connection with God and fellow human beings and gives us the supernatural power to change and follow Him.

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Does God answer prayers?

God never fails to answer any prayer, but can we notice His answers? Sometimes answers to prayer are delayed and it takes time for us to understand God’s grace and will. Sometimes God unexpectedly answers our prayer because He knows both what we long for and what we really need.

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Amen

We learn to say “Amen” at the end of the prayer, which confirms that everything said is meant seriously and is true. Translated from the original language, it means “yes, it is true”, indicating that what is said is reliable and certain.

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Find a quiet place with no distractions. Either go for a walk or sit comfortably indoors, close your eyes and let your thoughts calm down. Release accumulated tensions and let yourself be free from all thoughts. 

Our Father who is in heaven
Lord, I know you exist and that Heaven exists too. However, are you my Father and where is this Heaven? Help me to believe that I am Your child and Heaven is not far from me.

Hallowed be Your name
Lord, I know Your name, but I’m not sure if it’s holy to me. Help me to make it so, because my sanctification also comes from You. 

Your kingdom come
Lord, is Your kingdom really so far away that people have had to pray for it for centuries and will continue to do so? Why isn’t it coming already? Is it already here, but we ourselves do not notice it? Open our eyes to see and our ears to hear that Your kingdom is already within us.

Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven
Lord, why does it have to be this way? I have my own will too!
Help me to remember that You have created the world with your infinite wisdom and it works wonderfully, you have also created me with the same wisdom and You know me better than I know myself and You know what I really need. Therefore, I can firmly trust that Your will is the best for me. Help me to be able to coordinate my will with Yours and if somehow it doesn’t work out, to be able to give up my will in favor of Yours.

Give us this day our daily bread
Lord, help that the “us” in that sentence really includes more than just me!
Help me to free myself from only thinking about myself and give me an open heart for other people to notice their needs. Help me to remember that both my daily bread and everything else necessary for life comes from You. Every good thing comes from You. Help me to be grateful. 

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors
Lord, keep me from being selfish, so that I would not start demanding something from You, emphasizing my right. If I forgive my debtors, it is not my merit, but my duty, and also a prerequisite that You could forgive me. Besides, the debts of my fellow men are altogether vanishingly small compared to my debt to You.

And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil
Lord, why do we so often justify our mistakes by blaming You or implying that You have not kept us?
Why do we not realize that we have often led ourselves into temptation and that if anyone has saved us from evil, it is neither ourselves nor anyone else but only You, Lord!

For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever!
You have called us to your Kingdom so that we can live there forever. You have given us the power to overcome evil and to love and serve You and our neighbors. Lord, You want to exchange our mortality to immortality and give us the white garments of Christ instead of our dirty garments. We thank and praise You for Your majesty and glory! Amen.

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