How do we Pray?

He was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John also taught his disciples.”

He said to them, “Whenever you pray, say,

Father,
your name be honored as holy.
Your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves also forgive everyone
in debt to us.
And do not bring us into temptation.”

He also said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend and goes to him at midnight and says to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, because a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I don’t have anything to offer him.’ Then he will answer from inside and say, ‘Don’t bother me! The door is already locked, and my children and I have gone to bed. I can’t get up to give you anything.’ I tell you, even though he won’t get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his friend’s shameless boldness, he will get up and give him as much as he needs.

“So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?” Luke 11:1-13 (CSB)

There’s a lot here. Prayer is a big topic. It consumes books, and retreats. There are seminars on it. But it’s also small, and simple.

To pray is to commune with God. 

It’s not a done thing, but a forever doing thing. It means to be always engaging, always reaching out, always yearning and always discerning. To pray is to seek God in all things, and always be seeking him. We are never done wondering about God’s desires, and will continue to be regularly asking. Prayer is a permanent feedback loop that’s embedded into us. 

It always amazes me how many people, some who have been in church for years, are uncomfortable praying. It’s not a shaming statement, it is true. It means, that somewhere, early on, prayer was never appropriately modeled for them when they were new believers. 

It’s like a child in a household with two parents who never speak to each other. You grow accustomed to the norms displayed to you. Because prayer is modeled behavior. It’s something we should learn from the church, but more importantly, it’s a language that we hear around us, and internalize for ourselves. We learned how to speak to our parents as children by listening around us, and we learn how to speak to God, by listening around us. If we never learned, it can feel alien. 

You’re not alone if it feels alien. It did for Jesus’ disciples as well. For many if not most. Prayer can feel… awkward.

I see the scene of our passage, on the road, Jesus stops for a time of prayer. His disciples, many of whom were likely teenagers, watching and learning the language that their new mentor is displaying for them. It feels… different than they usually see. Far more intimate. They want to have the passion that he has. They want his connection. 

“Show us how to do that,” they plead. “Like you do. With warmth.” 

I see Jesus smiling, and gathering them in. There is no shame. 

“You begin with Abba… Dad.” It’s intimate and close. Someone who genuinely cares.

The rest is an exposition on how our Dad cares for us. Listens. Wants to hear from us. What’s more, he wants to respond. Our Father desires what any good dad wants, for his kids to yearn to be with him, and also to grow into themselves. He wants to spoil them occasionally, gloat over them, delight in them, and honor them. A good father takes pride in their accomplishments, and joy in their lives. 

“Start there he says… start with Dad, and let the rest flow.”