One of my favorite moments between the disciples and Jesus is documented in Luke 11:1, “He [Jesus] was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” I love the simplicity and humility of it. I’m sure the disciples prayed. But as Jesus’ students, they wanted to pray like Jesus. They wanted to pray in a way they had never learned. They wanted to be taught how to pray like Jesus the way John’s disciples were taught how to pray like John. I love the desire to learn.
Many of us who have attended church have at least some idea of how to pray. Whether it’s before a meal or before bed, whether it’s alone or together with other worshipers, we’ve seen prayer and we have modeled our prayer life after it. But what the disciples saw was different. It must have been.
We might not be able to see Jesus pray as his disciples did. But we can see him pray in Scripture. Look at his prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-46) or how he prays in John 17. Meditate on Romans 8:34, which says that Jesus is seated at the right hand of God and intercedes for us. Jesus prays for us.
I think we need to all approach Jesus and say, “Lord, teach us to pray.” Whether we’ve prayed daily for decades or we’ve never prayed and want to start, we all need to say, “Lord, teach us to pray.” We need the humility and desire to learn what to say in God’s presence.
I’ll leave you with this, which has helped me understand the Lord’s Prayer:
“Jesus’ atonement enables us to have fellowship with the Father at all; but once in the Father’s presence this prayer teaches us what to say there. And that is no little gift.”
May you know that you have access to God’s presence, and may you receive this not-so-little gift of know what to say in God’s presence.
Pastor Drew's Desk 