|
Inspired by the Lord's Prayer, used April 29, 2001
Our Father
O God, how good you are to allow us to call you 'our
Father'! Not only do you allow it, you command it. What
gratitude, what joy, what love, and above all, what confidence
it inspired in me. And since you are so good to me, I
should be good to others. You are Father to all people,
so I should feel like a loving brother towards everyone,
however wicked he may be. Our Father, our Father, teach
me to have your name continually on my lips.
Who art in heaven
Why did you choose this qualification
rather than any other - such as 'righteous Father,' or
'holy Father'? It was doubtless O God, that my soul might
be uplifted from the very beginning of this prayer, high
above this poor world, and placed at the outset where
it ought to be, in heaven which is its native land. It
was also to put me at the outset into a state of joy,
remembering that you, O God, love me and care for me for
all eternity.
Hallowed be thy name
What is it, O Lord, that
I am expressing in these words? I am expressing the whole
object of my desires, the whole aim and purpose of my
life. I want to hallow your name in all my thoughts, words,
and action. And this mean that I want to imitate your
Son, Jesus, since he hallowed your name in his every thought,
word, and action.
Thy kingdom come
In these simple words, I am asking
that you reveal the fullness of your glory, and that you
make all people holy. Your kingdom will come when all
people acknowledged you as Master, seeking with all their
minds to obey you, with all their hearts to love you,
and with all their energies to serve you. So in saying
those words, I am committing myself to spread the knowledge
of your glory to all mankind.
Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven
These words show me to what extent every offence against
you, and every sinful act of one person against another,
cause you pain and grief. With feeling far deeper and
far greater than we could ever understand, you desire
all people to be reconciled with you and with one another.
You desire earth to be a mirror of heaven, so when people
strive to break that mirror through their sinfulness,
your hear breaks. Yet equally, for the same reasons, you
experience great joy at even the least act of goodness.
And your heart is filled with fatherly pleasure whenever
any person turns to you in prayer.
Give us this day our daily bread
You desire me,
O lord, to look to you for my every need. And in looking
to you, I know that you will provide me with bread to
eat, clothes to wear, and a warm place to rest. But it
is not only material bread which you provide; you give
also spiritual bread. Whenever I eat the bread of Holy
Communion, I am reminded that your Son gave his body to
die on the cross, to give me spiritual food for all eternity.
And in this phrase, I not that it is not 'me' for whom
I pray, but 'us'. You do not want me ever to pray selfishly,
but always to pray for other's needs, because only through
such mutual charity do I become fit to receive the true
bread of eternal life.
Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive
Having
spoken to you so intimately as 'our Father' - having climbed
so high, I now realize how low I really am. I remember
how I fail to over your will or work for your kingdom.
And so I say, 'Father, forgive me.' With my whole soul
I see how horrible my sins are to you, how they disgust
and insult you, and what a price your Son had to pay to
redeem me from them. I realize how much pain I have caused
you; and in that realization I feel pain myself, crying
with remorse at what I have done. At the same time I recognize
that I have no right to ask your forgiveness for my sins,
unless I forgive others their sins. And, of course, the
sins which others commit against me are as nothing compared
with the sins I have committed against you. Thus in truth
I am asking that all mankind might be forgiven.
Lead us not into temptation
This is a cry suitable
for every hour and every minute of my life - a cry for
help. I am so beset by temptation that it is impossible
for me to accomplish the smallest good deed unless I call
for help continually. Indeed my every prayer is in truth
a call for help. Deliver us from evil. If you were to
deliver all people from evil then they would all be saints,
glorifying you in their holiness. Thus your purpose and
my desire would be wholly fulfilled, that you would reign
as King over the whole world. But it is not fit for me
to worry about the evil of others, unless I first turn
inwards to my own soul. I ask only that your purpose be
accomplished in me.
|
|
