Prayer

Saturday, January 10th, 2026

8 am

Good morning! Today I am in Matthew 6:5-15. Jesus is teaching us about prayer. He tells us to not be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly where everyone can see them, but instead to go off privately. Then our Father, who sees everything, will reward us. Then He tells us that when we pray, don't babble on and on, repeating the same words over and over again, for our Father knows exactly what we need even before we ask Him. Then He gives us a model to pray by. "Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. May Your kingdom come soon. May Your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us today the food we need, and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. And don't let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one (Matthew 6:9-13 NLT)." Then He tells us that if we forgive those who sin against us, our heavenly Father will forgive us. But if we refuse to forgive others, He will not forgive our sins.

Jesus is not telling us not to pray publicly, because there are many times it is needed, Jesus prayed both privately and publicly. But He wants us to check our hearts and why we are praying. Are we praying for the attention, to make ourselves look good in front of others, or are we praying from a sincere heart. I love that He tells us that we don't have to repeat ourselves over and over again, that we can pray, give whatever that prayer is to Him, and trust that He is in control, and will take care of whatever the need may be. The key point is to have a sincere heart, and trust. Trust that God will take care of us. That takes so much pressure off of us. Then He gives us a beautiful prayer to go by. No we don't have to pray this prayer word for word, but it is a beautiful guideline for us. First, acknowledging who God is to us: Our heavenly Father who is not only the creator of all things and all knowing, but who is personal and loving. Second, asking for His perfect purpose to be accomplished, and offering ourselves up as doers of His will, asking Him to guide, lead, and give us the means to accomplish His purposes. Third, acknowledging that He is our sustainer and provider, trusting Him to provide what He knows we need. And fourth, asking Him to help us recognize temptation when it comes, and to strengthen us to overcome it and choose God's way instead. Then He goes on to warn us about forgiveness. God chose to forgive us in the midst of our sins, we must be willing to forgive others. We are not perfect. We all make mistakes, and acknowledging that is important. Because when we don't acknowledge that and remind ourselves of that, we begin to become prideful. Feeling like we are better than everyone else, and eventually we will begin to think we don't need God. But it is through Him that we can do whatever we are doing, for He is our provider. We are nothing without Him.

How do you pray? Do you pray from a sincere heart, fully submitted to God and His will? If not, ask God to help cleanse your heart, and soften it so you can walk in His purpose for you. When you learn to pray from a sincere and submitted heart, you will be able to move mountains in your own life as well as for others. Interceding in prayer for others that may be struggling. Many people find it hard to pray, but when you recognize and understand who you are praying to and how much He loves you, it makes it easier. Because you can come to Him like you go to a best friend, but even better than a best friend, He already knows what you need. So we don't have to be afraid. Trust Him with your whole heart, and allow Him to help you in whatever way you need, and trusting that He has got everything under control.