Matthew 6:5-13 King James Version
5 And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.
8 Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.
9 After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
10 Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
T0day, marks the 23rd anniversary of the attack against the United States known simply as 9/11. That day is a day that is ingrained into to each of us old enough to remember. Looking back, it is hard to believe 23 years have passed.
I recall hearing of the first tower being struck by a plane. At first it seemed it was a horrible accident. It was not even clear what type of plane it was, whose plane it was, was it Hollywood special effects, a preview of a new epic movie?
What is your story from that day?
Where were you on that day?
Where on earth or in Heaven Was GOD?
On that day, the death toll from the four commercial aircraft, the Pentagon, and the World Trade Towers totaled 2,996 with another 6,000 injured. That is not the whole story. Nearly 10,000 first responders and volunteers have since been diagnosed with cancers caused by the toxic fumes & dust. Quoting the USA Today newspaper, “By the end of 2018, many expect that more people will have died from their toxic exposure from 9/11 than were killed on that terrible day.”
I had questions……. If we are honest with ourselves, …I bet we all had questions following that day.
Why would a religion that was supposedly built upon peace, teach and demonstrate that much hate & violence towards others?
Do you recall all of the celebrating & parades shown from the Arab world?
…. More importantly to me, and my faith, Where was GOD during this? …. Why does GOD even allow such violent and murderous things like this to happen?
I was shocked. I was confused. I was hurt. I was crying I was angry, I was scared.
I didn’t know what was coming next.
An all out attack upon the United States?
Had somebody made a declaration of war against us?
Was God’s day of judgement coming and coming right quick?
I was questioning GOD….and I didn’t even know if it was alright to question GOD. For all I knew, GOD might strike me down just for challenging HIM.
After all, I just saw what happened on television and who knows any details, who knows how many people were just suddenly killed and severely injured?
Today, I’d like to share what I’ve discovered since.
Maybe this will help some of you as well. The first thing I have learned is that GOD, His Kingdom is definitely big enough to handle our stresses, questions.
He has a whole universe which He created. HE has broad shoulders. GOD is not petty. HE did not give up on me, even when I was close to giving up on HIM.
The second thing I learned was that I wasn’t even the first person to question GOD. In fact, the Bible offers several examples of this very thing.
In Psalm 10:1, the writer asks Why do You stand afar off, O Lord? Why do You hide in times of trouble?
Jesus Himself asked this same question in Mathew 27:46 about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
The destruction of the Twin Towers was devastating to me, watching it over & over the collapse of the buildings, the billowing black clouds of smoke, the dead being carried out, the ash collecting upon cars and on the faces of those on site.
Your Kingdom Come
“This . . . is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. . . .’” — Matthew 6:9-10
Most of us are confronted by many challenges – some simple others are not so simple but greatly challenge our faith, face many, many choices each day too.
On a daily basis, What clothes will I wear? What will I have for breakfast? What route will I take to work? What do I need at the store? Tasks will I focus on?
There is one choice, however, that is far more important than all the others: God, His Word’s on the matter before us and Prayer, Which kingdom will I serve? Where will I spend my best efforts—in the kingdom of God or in the kingdom or domain or country or community or family that I am dwelling in?
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and Holy Spirit, where can I help, how can I serve, how can I support those around me, who need it most?
Jesus teaches us to pray, “Father . . . your kingdom come.”
As we pray these words, we are making a commitment to living God’s way.
“Your kingdom come” means, first of all, “Rule over me! Master my soul. Make me a loyal citizen of your kingdom.” It means, “Lord, rule in my life and master me in such a way that my deepest desire is to walk with you. May your principles and ways be the air that I breathe.”
“Your kingdom come” also means, “Help me to see your kingdom advance in the people around me—my family, friends, classmates, coworkers, and neighbors. Help me to foster a love for kingdom living in them as well.”
This also means seeing institutions and organizations abide, align with those principles of God’s kingdom. And as the Lord’s kingdom comes, is revealed and acts, any evil forces that revolt against him will be overwhelmed and shattered.
My Lord and Savior’s Prayer and My Life’s Prayer
Philippians 3:7-14 The Message
7-9 The very credentials these people are waving around as something special, I’m tearing up and throwing out with the trash—along with everything else I used to take credit for. And why? Because of Christ. Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant—dog dung. I’ve dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by him. I didn’t want some petty, inferior brand of righteousness that comes from keeping a list of rules when I could get the robust kind that comes from trusting Christ—God’s righteousness.
10-11 I gave up all that inferior stuff so I could know Christ personally, experience his resurrection power, be a partner in his suffering, and go all the way with him to death itself. If there was any way to get in on the resurrection from the dead, I wanted to do it.
Focused on the Goal
12-14 I’m not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don’t get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I’ve got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I’m off and running, and I’m not turning back.
I read where researchers in Europe went door to door, asking people about their belief in God. One question was this:
“Do you believe in a God who intervenes in human lives, who changes the course of history, and performs miracles?” A typical response to this question was “No, I don’t believe in that God. I believe in the ordinary God.”
I admit that it can be tempting to fall back in our faith, prefer “the ordinary God”—that is, a God who is there when I need him but who remains mostly quiet and who cares how distant in the background while I go about my life.
Fortunately the Scriptures do not let us settle with that notion of an ordinary God. The Jesus we meet in the New Testament entered our world, carried our burden of sin to the cross, bled, died in our place, and then rose from the dead and later ascended to rule with God in heaven. This is not any “ordinary God.”
The God of the Bible does in fact break into our lives in all kinds of surprising, beautiful, and disruptive ways.
John 3:16-18 The Message
16-18 “This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person’s failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him.
In fact, the one true God is beyond anyone’s broadest definition of the term extraordinary. And all of this is conveyed in this remarkable prayer of Paul:
“God, I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings” and then to experience that resurrection as well.
What a prayer!
How would my life, your life, our lives change if this became our life’s prayer?
What could happen if we all prayed this “Lord’s Prayer” this “my life’s prayer” for the people in my life, in your life and in all our fellow Body of Christ lives?
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Psalm 32 The Message
32 Count yourself lucky, how happy you must be—
you get a fresh start,
your slate’s wiped clean.
2 Count yourself lucky—
God holds nothing against you
and you’re holding nothing back from him.
3 When I kept it all inside,
my bones turned to powder,
my words became daylong groans.
4 The pressure never let up;
all the juices of my life dried up.
5 Then I let it all out;
I said, “I’ll come clean about my failures to God.”
Suddenly the pressure was gone—
my guilt dissolved,
my sin disappeared.
6 These things add up. Every one of us needs to pray;
when all hell breaks loose and the dam bursts
we’ll be on high ground, untouched.
7 God’s my island hideaway,
keeps danger far from the shore,
throws garlands of hosannas around my neck.
8 Let me give you some good advice;
I’m looking you in the eye
and giving it to you straight:
9 “Don’t be ornery like a horse or mule
that needs bit and bridle
to stay on track.”
10 God-defiers are always in trouble;
God-affirmers find themselves loved
every time they turn around.
11 Celebrate God.
Sing together—everyone!
All you honest hearts, raise the roof!
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 