Matthew 6: 7-15
7"And in praying do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 9Pray then like this: Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. 10Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. 11Give us this day our daily bread; 12And forgive us our debts, As we also have forgiven our debtors; 13And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil. 14For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father also will forgive you; 15but if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
What touched my Soul
Obviously the importance of the “Our Father“ is unquestionable. Jesus teach us with this little prayer the right way to talk to God the Father. Our Father. Although, and most of you will find this unusual, the following sentence is what touches my soul in this Matthew reading:
“...for they (the Gentiles) think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.”.
To pray we don’t need to “heap up empty phrases”, God knows exactly what we need. God can search deep into our hearts and know.
This doesnt mean we don’t need to pray, no.
To pray is to talk with God.
Why do we want to talk with God?
We all have our own motivations but what is always present is the will to create a relationship with our Creator throught talk and conversation.
Obviously In a conversation there are moments we talk and moments to listen.
Listen to what God have to tell us is maybe the hardest part of praying.
Looking at the sentence above, Jesus somehow tell us that.
“...for they (the Gentiles) think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.”.
Jesus warn us that we dont need to talk to much, we should listen.
I would like to challenge you this Lent to listen to what our Lord have to tell you.
Find a quiet place for your prayers specialy during Lent and experience silence.
Listen.
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