One Day at a Time

One Day at a Time:

I am still on my journey through this thing called life. Circumstances are no better than the other day, but we have survived so far. Denise and I are still searching for decent living quarters where the wind does not come thru the wall like cheesecloth and we do not have to spend a fortune (that we do not have) on utilities, yet remain fairly close to her job. This is frustrating to me as well, because I am not legally able to be gainfully employed without a work permit. Therefore I am unable to contribute to our “cause”. The longer I am out of work, the more I am afraid that everything will pass me by and I will cease to be able to compete in the job market.

Today, I closed my part of the bank account to avoid further service charges. One step closer to becoming a true NON-person. I used to always wonder how it would be to be invisible. It seems that I am finding out ... a little at a time.

Ok, enough of my venting and whining for today. I would like to share some things that you may not have realized concerning what we call “The Lord's Prayer”.

Matthew 6:5 “Whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray while standing in synagogues and on street corners so that people can see them. Truly I say to you, they have their reward. 6:6 But whenever you pray, go into your room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you. 6:7 When you pray, do not babble repetitiously like the Gentiles, because they think that by their many words they will be heard. 6:8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

6:9 So pray this way:

Our Father in heaven, may your name be honored, 6:10 may your kingdom come, may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

6:11 Give us today our daily bread, 6:12 and forgive us our debts, as we ourselves have forgiven our debtors.

6:13 And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

6:14 “For if you forgive others their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 6:15 But if you do not forgive others, your Father will not forgive you your sins.

Ver 5 – 8 : Jesus is educating and emphasizing the personal relationship that we should have with God the Father. I picture him relating the act of prayer with having a conversation with a powerful and highly respected member of your family. Speak to God with reverence but with sincerity - not show. You do not have to use big words or flowery phrases. He (Jesus) teaches that if you try to gain the admiration and rewards of your “speech” from those around you, then that is all that there is. BUT if you are sincere and honest with your prayer, then God will surely hear it and honor it. This is NOT to say that you will get everything you ask for, but you can be assured that your request will at least be listened to. God already knows what you need before you ask for it, but asking shows that you are aware of your own need and are opening yourself up to allow God to fill that need (no, NOT that Ferrari or new F150 Pickup)

In verses 9 – 15, Jesus actually gives us a PATTERN or MODEL to illustrate how we should pray. This is NOT a mantra or magic chant to get what you want. It IS a formula for worship and reverently asking The CREATOR of the Universe, our HEAVENLY FATHER, to fill our needs as we render honor and honest praise to HIS being. Please allow me to attempt to take each part and expound a little. I am taking the liberty to ignore the poetic verse markings and treat the passage as normal sentences:

Our Father in heaven, may your name be honored, may your kingdom come, (and) may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. This attitude should always open our “formal (yet private) prayers. It is the agreement and observation of the SOVEREIGNTY of an ALMIGHTY GOD and CREATOR OF ALL THERE IS. It is also an expression of our subordination to HIS Holy existance and our pledge to accept HIS will on earth as it is honored and revered in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we ourselves have forgiven our debtors. We all have needs that we admit cannot be filled by our own means. We should not hesitate to bring these request to our FATHER. But please take note that Jesus phrases it as our DAILY bread. If you remember that when the Israelites were in the wilderness, God provided them enough food to last only ONE day (expect for the sabbath and then it was just for that period) With that thought, we can expect that God is not wavered by our sense of urgency, because, He already knows what we need and WHEN we need it (not necessarily when we THINK we need it). Along that same line of thinking, when we ask forgiveness of OUR mistakes, we should take into consideration our OWN sense of graceful forgiveness toward others.

And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. - This is not saying that God would lead us into trouble. Since God is omnipotent and omniscient, I believe that Jesus was telling us that we can count on God to provide a pathway and option to avoid the temptation of our adversary, the Devil.

For if you forgive others their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, your Father will not forgive you your sins. - this is a re-emphasis of the previous verses in a clearer more emphatic wording.

While I use this as the model for most of my prayers (not counting the “emergency” ones where I feel I have to - for my own sake – cry out in fear, anger, grief, happiness and so forth). Maybe we should all remember that the world does not revolve around us and that there are many many many angles to all our problems. God is not a vending machine, just like our parents are not. In fact, Jesus draws that analogy throughout His ministry in various parables and references in teaching us about the KINGDOM of GOD.

One if the most important lessons for me was that God will provide ONE DAY AT A TIME. Our DAILY bread. Even when we cannot (or will not) look beyond our immediate circumstances. A tough lesson for me. As you have (or will) notice, I prefer to plan and know the options when sometimes that is not possible.