paravanes:meditations

Note: Please read the earlier posts on the Lord's Prayer if this is your first visit. Phrase by phrase, we have reviewed the Lord's Prayer this summer. What are some general guidelines about effective prayer we have learned so far? 1. Effective prayer is short and to the point. The prayer Jesus taught is clear, to the point, and doesn't contain long phrases or complex words many people don't use or understand. 2. Effective prayer is God-focused. The emphasis of the prayer is God's will and holiness. After these are stated and affirmed, then requests and needs are expressed. 3. Effective prayer acknowledges the hard parts of human reality: needs, hurt, injury, evil, and temptation. 4. Effective prayer respects and acknowledges God as our father. Our inheritance is love, support, and whatever resources we may need. Our identity and character reflect the holiness, power, joy, and purposes of our father. The prayer teaches us how to understand and relate to God. The pr...

  Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.   Is there an "evil one"? According the Jesus, there is an evil one. In fact, Jesus speaks clearly and directly of who the "evil one" is. We'll get to that in a minute. Jesus lived the among regular, everyday people of his time. He saw the injustice, pain, and suffering experienced by the regular people of his day. Jesus was and is God, and Jesus knew the plan and purpose of creation was not suffering or injustice. Jesus explained evil and the evil one in many ways. During a confrontation with the religious leaders of his time, Jesus said this: "If God were your father, you would love me for I came from God and am now here. I have not come on my own but he sent me....

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts as we have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. Does God really lead anyone into temptation? The answer is no. In the translation of this text, the word "temptation" is the same as "test" or "trial." This sentence is a request for protection and a promise of obedience to God's guidance. When we walk in obedience to God, God can refine us and make us better without allowing unnecessary pain and suffering (tests or trials) in our experience. Like any good parent, God does not like to see his children suffer. Suffering is not always educational. Sometimes, suffering is just painful. We don't learn anything useful.  There are no spiritual insights, great or small. We just suffer. Like any good parent, God would prefer we learn from His instr...