Saturday 18th May
Read Matthew 6:9-13
“This, then, is how you should pray:
‘“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10 your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.” (NIVUK)
There is some irony in the observation that immediately after Jesus condemns mindless repetition in prayer that the most repeated prayer in Christian history is found. We need to capture the nuance in Jesus’ opening instructions. Jesus suggested this prayer as a model. He did not say, ‘This is what you should pray’.
Yet very early in Christian history (within the second generation of believers) we have recorded in the Didache the instruction that Christians should not pray like the hypocrites but repeat the Lord’s prayer. ‘Thrice in the day thus pray’ (Didache Section 8). The temptation to treat it mindlessly is therefore great.
But imagine if we all paused and prayed this prayer thoughtfully three times a day? What kinds of transformations in our own thinking, both individually and corporately, would follow? If we are in the frame of mind to form new habits this week, I wonder if thoughtfully reflecting on and praying this short prayer three times each day is a worthy habit?
