God's Word on That

Tag: jesus

  • Prayer For Personal Protection

    The well-known “Breastplate Prayer” of St. Patrick has seven stanzas of invoking blessings on oneself to be empowered by God’s strength. The most famous of the stanzas states trust in God to protect a person while living a godly life.

    I arise today, through
    The strength of God to pilot me,
    The might of God to uphold me,
    The wisdom of God to teach me,
    The eye of God to watch over me,
    The ear of God to hear me,
    The word of God to give me speech,
    The hand of God to protect me,
    The shield of God to shelter me,
    The host of God to defend me against
    The snares of devils,
    Temptation of the world, and
    Everyone who mediates injury to me
    Whether far and near.

    I summon today
    All these powers between me and those evils,
    Against every cruel and merciless power
    that may oppose my body and soul,
    Against incantations of false prophets,
    Against black laws of pagandom,
    Against false laws of heretics,
    Against craft of idolatry,
    Against spells of witches and smiths and wizards,
    Against every knowledge that corrupts man’s body and soul;
    Christ to shield me today
    Against poison, against burning,
    Against drowning, against wounding,
    So that there may come to me an abundance of reward.

    St. Paul wrote of putting on the “Armor of God” in his letter to the Ephesians (6:11) to fight sin and evil inclinations. In this day and age we don’t wear armor while living our daily lives, but the Breastplate Prayer can function as divine armor for protection against spiritual adversity.

  • Forms of Prayer

    We fail when we try to obey God in our own power.  We were never called to live this supernatural life by natural means!

    Different forms, but all are communication.

    In Fr Peter John Calmeron’s book, Lord, Teach Us To Pray, he writes:

    Prayer purifies and refines our life as it filters out the distractions, deceptions, and delusions of the world.  Prayer alerts us that we are not alone in this life of faith. For prayer not only draws us close to God, but it unites us to every other holy one who loves God as we do.  Prayer gently reminds us God can never be reached by thoughts alone.  It is only through lived love that God can be reached.  We need the embrace of prayer to find the truth and happiness for which we never stop searching.

    The mysterious encounter of prayer takes five basic forms: 

    1. Adoration exalts the greatness of God, the Creator and Sustainer, in the spirit of humility and homage.  The gracious generosity of God compels us to bless the One who remains the source of every blessing in life.
    2. Petition acknowledges our dependency on God the Father, especially as it prompts us to turn back to Him in a spirit of repentance and contrition, asking for forgiveness.
    3. Intercession is prayer through which we entrust ourselves to God’s mercy, especially by placing before the Father the concerns of others in need.
    4. Thanksgiving is prayer that gives voice to the gratitude that befits every mature and honest person, especially as it calls to mind the redeeming deeds of Jesus that saved us and set us free.
    5. Praise, as the Catechism explains, “lauds God for His own sake and gives Him glory, quite beyond what He does, but simply because He is.”

    In short, these five different forms of prayer enable us to love God for what He has created, for His compassionate mercy, for His presence and assistance in our lives, for His redemptive tenderness, and for God Himself.

    NEVER forget the power of prayer, for it is the very foundation that enables us to go from faith to faith and glory to glory!

  • After This Manner Pray

    Andrew Murray’s study on the model prayer Jesus gave us covers the basic points we need to remember while reciting it. (Matthew 6:9).

    First is the wonderful revelation that the Son came to earth to make: His Father is also our Father. The knowledge of God’s father-love is the highest lesson, calling for a personal relationship to the living God. And, in true worship, the Father must be all – only as we yield ourselves to be led of Him will the Father be hallowed in our lives.

    Remember: the heir of the King has no higher ambition than the glory of his father’s kingdom. So the coming of the kingdom is the one great event on which the revelation of the Father’s glory and salvation of the world both depend. So the Master teaches us to pray for it.

    The Master then teaches us to ask that God’s Will be done in the spirit of adoring submission and ready obedience. Faith accepts the Father’s love; obedience accepts the Father’s Will. Consecration to God and His Will gives wonderful liberty in prayer for temporal things; the whole earthly life is given into His loving care.

    As bread is the first need of the body, so forgiveness is the first need for the soul. In each prayer I make, I must be able to say “I know of no one whom I do not heartily love.” [Not easily said for this author, much less for me to actually do…] In three petitions all our personal needs are comprehended. Prayer for bread and pardon must be accompanied by surrender to live in holy obedience to the Father’s Will. The believing prayer in everything is to be kept by the power of the indwelling Spirit from the power of the evil one.

    Therefore, let His Name and Kingdom and Will have first place in our love to Him. Then His providing and pardoning and keeping love will be our sure portion. Such prayer will indeed be an interchange of love, always bringing us back in trust and worship to Him who is not only the Beginning but also the End.

  • Jesus’ First Lesson

    Andrew Murray’s first lesson for us on prayer is that Jesus directs us to speak to “Our Father”.

    God our Father knows our needs, and He is more than willing to provide – upon our asking.

    The chief thing Jesus teaches is the “Fatherliness” of God. Three times He uses the name Father. Jesus directs us to meet our Father as the first and primary thing in prayer. Thus each thought or petition we breathe out will be simple, heartfelt, childlike trust in the Father.

    As a father pities his child, so the Lord pities us. Do not be thinking of how little you have to bring to God, but of how much He wants to give you. The Father’s exceptional loving heart will give light and warmth to you. Depend upon it. Not on strong or fervent feeling of prayer does the blessings depend, but upon the love and power of the Father to whom we entrust our needs.

    “My Father knows I need it and must have it. And if there be any delay in the answer, it will teach me in quiet perseverance to simply hold on.” Sometimes we just need to be still and remind ourselves: “My Father sees, my Father hears, my Father knows.”

    Our highest joy is to know the Father rewards our faith; it’s our highest strength day by day. Knowing the Father sees my needs gives me liberty to bring every need to Him in the assurance that He supplies according to His riches.

  • The Model For All Prayer

    The model or form of all prayer, the inspiration for all praying, was given by Jesus to His disciples. If it can be taught, it is a skill that can be learned.

    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 (Luke 11:2-4).

    What a treasure our Lord Jesus gave us when His disciples asked Him to teach them to pray. Once you learn to pray there is nothing, absolutely nothing, sweater than knowing you have touched the hem of His garment in prayer. It’s healing! It’s renewing! It brings a quietness and a confidence that flows over your soul like the balm of Gilead. (Kay Arthur)

    Thanks to Jesus, every single principle of prayer can be condensed into several simple sentences so we can remember them easily. The Lord’s Prayer is a collection of index sentences covering every element of prayer. When you follow principle by principle, you find yourself covering every possible aspect of prayer. Every requirement for prayer, every element of worship and praise, every perspective of intercession and petition is covered in this prayer model. It is the true pattern for all praying.

    Our Father in heaven [Worship]. Your name is holy [Allegiance]. Your kingdom come [Submission]. Your will be done here as there [Petition and Intercession]. Give us today our daily bread [Stating Need]. Forgive us our sins and teach us to forgive also [Confession]. Lead us away from temptation [Deliverance]. Deliver us from the evil one [Protection]. Yours is the glory and honor and power and might both now and forever {Thanksgiving and Praise].

    Do not be anxious about being clever or eloquent. By now you know there is nothing eloquent about my writing or my speech, yet God uses it. So relax. Let God give you insight. Then practice what you learn in prayer.

    Keep your prayer simple, short, and to the point. God doesn’t hear better just because we pray longer.

  • Praying As Jesus Taught Us

    I found a paraphrase of the “Our Father” given by St. Francis of Assisi.

    Our Father — most holy, Creator and Redeemer, Savior and Comforter.

    Who art in heaven — in the angels and saints; You give them light so they may have knowledge; You, O Lord of Light, inflame them so they may live; You, O Lord of Love, live continuously in them and fill them so they may be happy; You, O Lord, are the supreme good, the eternal good, and it is from You that all good comes, and without You no good is.

    Hallowed be Thy name — may our knowledge of You become ever clearer, so we realize the extent of Your benefits, the steadfastness of Your promises, the sublimity of Your majesty, and the depths of Your judgments.

    Your Kingdom come — so You may reign in us by Your grace and bring us to Your kingdom where we shall see You clearly, love You perfectly, be blessed in Your company, and enjoy You forever.

    Your Will be done on earth as it is in heaven — so we may love You with our whole heart by always thinking of You; with our whole mind by directing our whole intention toward You and seeking Your glory in all things; and with all our strength by spending all our powers and affections of soul and body in the service of Your love alone; and may we love our neighbors as ourselves, encouraging them to love You as best we can; rejoicing at their good fortunes as if it were our own; and sympathizing with their misfortunes, while giving offense to no one.

    Give us this day our daily bread — that is, Your own beloved Son, our Lord Jesus, to remind us of the love He showed for us and to help us understand and appreciate it and everything He did or said or suffered.

    And forgive us our debts — in Your infinite mercy, and by the power of the passion of Your Son, together with the merits and the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and all Your saints.

    As we forgive those who have debts against us — and if we do not forgive perfectly, Lord, make us forgive perfectly, so we may indeed love our enemies for love of You, and pray fervently to You for them, returning no one evil for evil, anxious to serve everybody in You.

    And lead us not into trials and temptations — hidden or obvious, sudden or unforeseen; deliver us from all evils, past, present, and to come.

    Amen — So be it.

  • Basics As Jesus Stated Them

    The key to a satisfying prayer life is to have a personal relationship with God. Only then can we honestly say “Our Father in Heaven” as Jesus did.

    A personal relationship with God through Jesus gives us everything we need.

    This is how you should pray: Our Father in heaven let Your name be kept holy. Let Your kingdom come. Let Your will be done on earth as it is done in heaven. Give us our daily bread today. Forgive us as we forgive others. Don’t allow us to be tempted. Instead, rescue us from the evil one (Matthew 6:9-13).

    One bible commentator puts forward this concept of basic prayer: Jesus’ model prayer includes three key elements. (1) It is based on a personal relationship. (2) It centers around God’s glory and kingdom and an overwhelming desire for His will to be done. (3) It includes petitions and requests, especially for daily needs, forgiveness, and protection from temptation and evil. Note Jesus specifically comments on the aspect of forgiveness at the conclusion of the prayer.

    If you forgive the failures of others, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you don’t forgive others, your Father will not forgive your failures. (Matthew 6:14-15)

    If we can learn biblical ideas and practices of prayer, we can take better advantage of the powerful privilege we have of going to God anytime about anything. May our study boost our prayer lives and increase our intimacy with Him.

  • Basic Prayer

    Although prayer cannot be reduced to a formula, certain basic elements should be included in our communication with God, the Almighty One.

    My soul, praise the Lord, and all that is within me, praise His holy name. My soul, praise the Lord, and do not forget all His benefits. He forgives all your sins; He heals all your diseases. He redeems your life from the Pit; He crowns you with faithful love and compassion. He satisfies you with goodness; your youth is renewed like the eagle (Psalm 103:1-5).

    Adoration. Adore God, worship and praise Him, honor and exalt Him in your heart and mind, and verbally with your lips.

    Confession. When our discipline of prayer begins with adoration, the Holy Spirit has the opportunity to reveal any sin in our lives that needs to be confessed. Confess these to your Holy Forgiver before anything else.

    Thanksgiving. An attitude of gratitude before God for who He is and for the benefits we enjoy because we belong to Him, enables us to recognize that He controls all things – not just the blessings, but the problems and adversities that strengthen us as well. As we approach God with a thankful heart, He becomes strong on our behalf.

    Supplication. Petition for our own needs and intersession for others is the whole reason for “asking” prayer. Pray your inner person may be renewed, always sensitive to and empowered by God’s Holy Spirit. Pray for others – all those around you, those He has placed in your daily path – for their salvation, for daily opportunities to introduce them to Christ Jesus and to the ministry of the Holy Spirit, and for the fulfillment of the Great Commission. Pray that the Lord of the Harvest will send out workers into His harvest field.

    And remember, our only concern is to do what God tells us to do.

  • A Prayer Promise

    When you pray, mean it. Fervent prayer thwarts satan’s activities like nothing else!

    When we ask, He hears, for He is always listening.

    Now this is the confidence we have before Him: Whenever we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears whatever we ask, we know that we have what we have asked Him for (1 John 5:14-15).

    Kay Arthur poses very good questions for those who are still starting out in a prayer life: How confident are you in your prayer life? Have you ever believed God would answer your prayer in a certain way, only to be disappointed? Are your prayers general, like “bless everyone” because you are afraid to pray specifically, to ask God for definite answers?

    O Beloved, I do understand. I’ve been there. And since I’ve been there let me ask a few more questions: Do you ever stand in awe at the testimony of others and their answers to prayer? Does it make you feel like a reject because you have never received those kind of answers? Do you ever wonder if you even know how to pray? Or have you even wondered if God really meant what He said when He gave us those prayer promises?

    According to those verses in 1 John, if we ask anything that is God’s will, you can be sure God will hear and answer. So – is it God’s will for you to know how to pray? Of course it is. Go to God and tell Him what you want regarding prayer. Show Him His promise, and claim that promise for yourself.

  • Pray Constantly

    It is not always necessary to be on your knees, or even in a quiet room to pray. God wants us to be in touch with Him wherever we are – in the car, at the mall, while washing the dishes, or while walking down the street. All day without ceasing.

    Let prayer be constant, like waves in the ocean.

    Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Whatever happens, give thanks, because it is God’s will in Christ Jesus that you do this (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

    “Pray without ceasing .” This does not mean you are to go to an all-day or all-night prayer meeting. Prayer is more an attitude of life… It is the entire life behind the words spoken that makes prayer effective. A famous preacher expressed it: “When a man prays for a corn crop, God expects him to say ‘Amen’ with a hoe in his hand.” You can’t just stay on your knees all the time and pray for corn, but pray for the corn and then go to work. (J. Vernon McGee)

    There is a danger of confusing God with vitamins. We dishonor prayer if we reduce it to a tool.

    We never know completely the effects of our prayers, but we do know God includes prayer as part of His strategy for establishing His kingdom and ensuring our spiritual victories.

    A man should always pray and not lose heart. Men in difficult days will either lose heart or pray – either they will be days of fear or days of faith. (J. Vernon McGee)

    Prayer is a means by which God guides and protects His children.