Prayer

We are always happy to pray for you, and will certainly do so if you will enter your information in the form on the right. To approach the Maker and Ruler of the universe is a privilege we have through Christ, and our heavenly Father is always listening.

We also encourage you to lift up your prayers to God for yourself with the assurance you that God will listen to your prayers with love. If you are unsure where to begin with prayer, Jesus gave us an example to follow, which we call the Lord's Prayer. The text below is from Matthew 6:9-13 in the New International Version, with a brief explanation for each line:

Our Father in heaven,

If anyone believes in Jesus, they are born again as children of God (John 1:12-13), and encouraged to speak to God as to a loving Father.

hallowed be your name,

Though God is our Father, he is holy. To pray "hallowed be your name" is to pray for God's name to be treated as something holy. Jesus' first love is for God, which he passes on to us.

your kingdom come,

We anxiously await the time when God will bring his kingdom to earth, heal the brokenness of the world, and live directly among us.

your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.

We confess that God knows better than we do, and before we tell him what we want, we pray first for what God wants, both that we would do as he wants and also that he would do his work around us.

Give us today our daily bread.

Our needs matter to God, and he welcomes us to bring them before him. While he often gives us far more than we need, we know all we really need is just enough for today.

Forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.

We confess that we, like all human beings, have sinned against God and fallen short of the love he teaches us to give him and to others. We ask his forgiveness, also recognizing we need to forgive those who sin against us.

And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.

Also translated "from evil." Between the temptations of Satan, the world, and our own selfish nature, if we are serious about doing God's will, we are going to need the help of his Holy Spirit, which he gives to everyone who puts their faith in Jesus.

For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

Though this line is actually taken from 1 Chronicles 29:11, it is consistent with the attitude of Jesus' prayer. God is the one who has the power to answer our prayers, so he receives glory for showing his strength on behalf of his people. "Amen" is a Hebrew word that means "truly" and expresses faith that God is who he says.

As you learn to pray the way Jesus taught us, you may notice that your perspective is being changed from only the things you want to consider more what God wants for you. God does care about our needs and concerns, and he often gives us the physical healing or comfort we ask for. But the more we turn to him, the more we realize that he has his own ideas for our good and the good of the world, and his answers to our prayers make more sense as we shift our perspective to see things as he does.