The
Lord's Prayer
Just
once I’d like to go to church on Sunday without hauling in a whole week’s
worth of sin. Just once when Father Brian asks us to examine our
hearts and bring to mind the sin in our lives, I’d like to be able to say
to God… “Wow – what a great week I had. No new sins to report. Nope
-- not a one! Just a whole lot of hard work, clean living, loving
the Lord and serving my community.” Yeah right. Like God would
believe that. He and I both know that will never happen. So
I continue to show up on Sunday’s with my laundry list of sins.
Well
it was Monday night and my growing list just got longer. Rats… you’d
think I could at least make it ‘til Wednesday… but NOOOOO. Now I’ll
have to report to God that I lost my temper for the 100-millionth time.
You see – someone made me really mad and I said things I shouldn’t have
said. When the dust settled, I felt bad. Before I went to sleep
that night I knelt down beside my bed, believing in my heart that God would
help straighten things out. I began to pray.
When
I pray I don’t normally recite prayers, I just pour my heart out to God.
But this time as I was praying I heard Him speak to me. He said,
‘Say the Lord’s Prayer.’ Since I already screwed up so badly – I
thought I’d better listen. I began… “Our Father which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come,” … Then I heard God say,
‘Stop. Stop. STOP! Don’t just say the words… listen to them.
Listen to each and every word and take them to heart.’ So I began again.
At first I didn’t understand why, until I came to this verse… “Forgive
us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.”
Ouch – that hurt. That means I have to forgive first if I’m to be
forgiven.
God showed
me that although this person trespassed against me (and hurt my feelings),
I had to forgive him so God could forgive me my trespasses (and the hurt
I caused by losing my temper). That’s a tough pill to swallow, but
I knew it would be good medicine. I went on to pray that this person
would receive all the things I wanted for myself… inner-peace, joy and
forgiveness. I was feeling better and grateful for God’s guidance,
closed my eyes and went to sleep.
The next
morning I went to church. I don’t usually go to church on Tuesday
mornings, but it’s the Lenten season and I’ve been trying to go daily in
preparation for Easter. Father Brian read from the book of Matthew…
“…When
you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to
your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret
will reward you openly. And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions
as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many
words. Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things
you have need of before you ask Him. In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father
which art in heaven,
Hallowed
be thy name.
Thy
kingdom come,
Thy
will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
Give
us this day our daily bread.
And
forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those
who
trespass against us.
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
Matthew
6:9-13
"For
if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive
you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will
your Father forgive your trespasses.” Matthew 6:14-15
Father
Brian closed the Bible and began his sermon about “The Lord’s Prayer.”
He said, “The Lord’s Prayer is the most dangerous prayer you will ever
pray. It is dangerous because we expose ourselves to our own weakness,
our own inability to grant forgiveness to those who have hurt us. To ask
God to "forgive us our sins as we forgive those who have sinned against
us” is to open a dangerous conversation with God. It asks God to limit
His mercy to the confines of the human heart, when we pray these words
we need to be aware of that fact. We have to be willing not to limit God
but to expand our own capacity to extend mercy to those we have been harmed
by.” He added… “When you say this prayer, don’t just go through the
motions. Listen to each word.”
Driving
home I felt God’s peace. I walked in the door and the phone was ringing.
The person I’d lost my temper with… the person who hurt me and whom I’d
hurt in return… the person that I prayed for last night and again this
morning at church… was calling me to say, “I’m sorry. It will never
happen again…”
As the
ripples caused by a flung stone stirs the surface of a whole pond, so your
joy-making shall spread in ever-widening circles, beyond all your knowledge,
all anticipation. Joy in Christ. Such Joy is eternal.
(from the daily devotional “God Calling” / March 10th)
Joy…
the fruit of forgiveness.
