Our Father

Pray like this: Our Father in heaven…Matthew 6:9, ESV

The disciples had asked Jesus to teach them how to pray and we read in Matthew the instructions that he gave them. I love that he started the prayer with, “Our Father”! He is telling us to acknowledge him and to communicate with him like a child communicates to their parents.

There is no big fan fare or prestigious way to come to God. He requires us to come to him as a child with a pure heart. Recently I had been starting my prayers with the words “our Father” and it seems that I could not get past those words in my prayers. God would start to show me where he had been not just my Father, but Father to anyone who calls him Father. 

I had the opportunity to visit a dear friend in a assisted living facility. She had been in the hospital for two months because of an illness in her body and she was now in this place to receive physical therapy. When I visited her she had been in that facility for two months. She was told that she would never walk again, but we know that God is a healer. She told me that she sees herself walking. We agreed on that and prayed together. 

I sat beside her while she was in one of her physical therapy sessions and she was so happy. She was kind to all of the staff and there was just joy in her soul. God showed me how she has all these ailments going on in her body, yet he had put joy and peace in her soul. She would be heading home in a couple of days, and all she could talk about was how thankful she was to be going home. She did not complain about her illness, or about being in a wheelchair. She was just so happy! I told her, I had come to lift her up, but she had lifted my soul! She told me about some of the opportunities God had given her to travel. She had worked in politics for many years which gave her the opportunity to live in Washington D.C. For some years she had also worked at the Pentagon, but she was glad to be back in California. What I did not tell you is my dear sister is blind and as she shared some of her life with me. God kept showing me how he had been her Father. 

After I prayed with my friend and left, I saw this gentleman sitting in a wheelchair outside. He had lit up a cigarette and in joking as I passed by him I said, “That is not good for you.” He said, “I know, I am trying to quit.” As I headed to my car the Holy Spirit prompted me to pray for him. I went back to him and asked if I could pray for him. He said, “Yes.” In our conversation he asked if I could pray for his mother. He said that she was aging and needed prayer. I thought wow, he is in this facility, but his heart is on someone else getting better. God showed me how this man could have joy and peace in his spirit and could be thinking of others rather than himself because he knew his Father was taking care of him.

When Jesus said to pray “our Father” He was telling us that God is our Father and no matter what situation we find ourselves in “our Father” will take care of us. Our situation may not be the way we want it, but our Father is there and He is taking care of us! Hallelujah!

Our Father, there is nothing more to be said, but thank you! Thank you that you are our Father! Amen.

Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11

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