Prayer - A Conversation of Friends  

Stephen UmMarch 24, 2010 

Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” 2 And he said to them, “When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. 3 Give us each day our daily bread, nd forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.” 5 And he said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, 6 for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; 7 and he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything’? 8 I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence he will rise and give him whatever he needs. 9 And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 11 What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; 12 or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

- Luke 11:1:13

Although there are specific ways we ought to pray, when the Bible talks about prayer, it does not primarily emphasize a method or strategy but more about how to commune with a living God. The psalms are immensely helpful in this sense since there are certain non-negotiable essentials we need to incorporate into our prayers which are important. But at the foundation or the heart of prayer, we need to understand that prayer itself is not the ultimate goal of the Christian life. Prayer is but a means to bring the Christian to God, in other words, prayer ought to be a practice of grace that God allows an individual to utilize in order to develop intimacy with him. 

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