Praying the Lord's Prayer + Free Printables

Jesus gave us a beautiful example of how to pray in both Matthew and in Luke. He set the example for His disciples and for us to follow.
“And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples. And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth. Give us day by day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.” Luke 11:1-4
Let’s take a closer look at how Jesus was telling us to pray.
Verse 2 -
Our Father – Jesus didn’t say HIS Father, He said OUR Father.
This is how we are to see God, as our heavenly Father, when we trust Christ as our Savior, we are adopted into God’s family, we become one of His children! He is not so distant that we cannot approach Him with even the smallest requests; He wants us to boldly approach His throne, because He loves His children with an everlasting love.
Hallowed be Thy Name – God is holy. While we are to look at Him as our heavenly Father and approach Him with boldness, at the same time we need to remember He is holy and He cannot even look upon sin.

Thinking in the way of getting the mind of God will bring us peace in every situation

Can you recall a time when you were a child, you had done something wrong and you didn’t want to face your parents because you knew whatever you had done would make them upset? When we go to our heavenly Father we first need to repent of our sins, in that way we are recognizing that He is holy and then we are then able to come before Him with that boldness with our petitions.
Thy Kingdom come – Asking the Lord for His provision and protection, and asking Him to return. Though the Lord already knows what we have need of, He wants us to ask Him for it; this way we can give Him the honor and glory when we receive it.
Thy will be done – I have been praying this phrase more and more. For God’s will to be done in my life; for His grace throughout my life, that He may be glorified. I have finally come to the realization that He knows way more than I do and that He can do far more then I can and that His plans and His way are far better than mine! And, I know regardless of what His will may be for my life or for a particular situation, He will give me all the grace I need to get through any uncomfortable parts and that He is with me all the way.


Verse 3 -
Give us this day, our daily bread – When I see this phrase my mind immediately goes back to the Hebrews in the wilderness, when the Lord provided the manna and told them to only collect what they needed for that DAY. If they gathered more than they would use, it would be full of worms and stink the next morning.
I don’t know about you, but I like to plan a-head. I like knowing I have enough groceries, fuel in my car, and personal care products to get me through; however, Jesus said not to worry about tomorrow, we can worry about tomorrow, tomorrow!
This one has been tough for me and one I’ve been learning how to truly live by since my husband has been disabled. Basically, it boils down to trusting the Lord for what we need, because everything we have daily comes from Him. We need God daily; physically and spiritually.
Verse 4 -
Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone that is indebted to us – All we have to do is ask, and God forgives us. What right do we have to hold a grudge? Everyone deserves forgiveness, if they didn’t, Christ wouldn’t have died for them.
And lead us not into temptation – temptation to sin is all around us. Isn’t it awesome that when we come across a temptation all we have to do is ask our heavenly Father and He will protect us and provide a way around or away from it?
Deliver us from evil – When we fall into sin like an addiction, all we have to do is ask our heavenly Father and He will deliver us from it; when the temptation comes back around, all we have to ask and He will keep us from it, or give us a way out of it and away from it. All we have to do is ask!
When Jesus told His disciples to pray this way, I don’t think He meant word for word, over and over, then it becomes a ritual. In fact, He even warned against vain repetitions in prayer, instead I believe this model prayer was given so we would know HOW to pray, not what to pray.

Are you praying to change the mind of God, or
for the mind of God

Acknowledging God as our heavenly Father, reverencing His name, seeking Gods protection and will for our lives, asking for our daily provisions, and to forgive our sins, to lead us away from temptation and deliver us from our sins.
When we pray it should be as a regular, personal conversation, talking with God making your requests known unto Him. Again, the Lord isn’t looking for repetitive phrases and eloquent words; He is looking at your heart, but it is ok to ask or pray about the same thing over and over, in fact there is an example in the Bible where Jesus told His disciples that a task they were trying to accomplish could only be done with fasting and prayer. Being persistent in prayer is not the same thing as vain repetitions.

Your free printables of the Lord's Prayer are below!
One from Matthew and one from Luke, download one or both! Enjoy!

  

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Jenn