CMW brings up an interesting prayer. And in her slight modifications, I saw something in the original that I had not noticed, and that I do not recall anyone really pointing out before.
This prayer was given as a corporate prayer, not a personal prayer.
Not saying that it cannot be prayed individually. That it does not provide a pattern for a complete personal prayer.
But it was not given as "My Father" and "Give me" etc. But it was provided as if intended for corporate use, whether recited in the manner given, or used as pattern for prayers used in corporate worship. It would seem that Jesus started us out to pray together rather than individually. Teaching us to pray was provided in the context of something that would look more like liturgy than a collection of individual prayers, although individual prayers cast in this corporate manner could be a way that they are realized in worship.
Quote:
Our God and Father, in majesty on your throne in the heavens, your name is higher than any other.
May your kingdom be realized according to your will here on the earth in our lives in the way that you have ordained it from the heavens.
We pray for your bountiful supply in all aspects of our lives, from the sustaining of our physical lives and health to our mental and emotional well-being.
We pray for our sins against your righteousness and holiness, and against our fellow man. We recognize that our intent to love others as ourselves is brought into question when we live as we do.
May we find your grace in us to forgive the sins of others against us as a necessary step in coming to love them and as a pathway to our own forgiveness by you.
Watch over us throughout our day. Lead us in paths that will avoid the temptations that so often stumble us. And grant us mercy with your power to overcome those temptations that still arise.
While we live in this world, we pray to live in the eternal kingdom that is yours, with your power and glory as our inheritance.
Amen
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Every time it is prayed, something different may stand out because of the immediate needs or considerations of the participant. And it will be prayed both together, and differently for that very reason.
This morning, as I prepare for one of those Saturday work sessions due to the rise and fall of tax work, I note that I will have the opportunity to drive in my usual manner (like a bat out of hell) through the 8 miles of construction that crawls on regular workdays. That was what came to me as I considered my sins, both against God and others. It is far from the end of the list of my failures. But it needs a regular prayer. Whether in this way or in another.
And while I was here alone as I did it, my realization is that at this time there are countless others who may be beginning or ending their days with this same prayer. So while we do not hear each other, it still rises together to God, our Father. And Jesus is there, speaking on our behalf in support of what has come from our lips and minds. And surely the Spirit is in this. To suggest otherwise would just be wrong.