“This, then, is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name’ ” (Matthew 6:9).
I was taught to pray as a child and it remains a resource I value today. I never want to take lightly the privilege of prayer. It is amazing that we can come into the presence of God and tell Him whatever is on our minds.
Jesus wants us to have a healthy understanding of prayer. He spoke of the Pharisees who prayed publicly in a way to gain the notice of others. “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” (Matthew 6:5).
Jesus focused on an important aspect of prayer. When we pray we are talking to our Father. When we pray we are to realize that we are talking as a child with his or her father. It was a dimension that was missing from the prayers of the religious leaders in Jesus’ day. When my father was alive I could approach him with simplicity and confidence. That’s how we’re to approach our Father in heaven.
When we pray to our heavenly Father Jesus wanted us to know that we are talking to the One who loves us dearly. We don’t have to impress Him. We can come to Him with the strong confidence that He loves us just as a father loves His children. That’s why we can ask for our daily bread; for the strength to forgive others. By simply beginning with “Our Father” we gain the right kind of mood for what prayer really is. It is a child talking to the One in the universe who loves us completely and unconditionally. We are talking to a heavenly Father who will move heaven and earth to meet our needs.
