I didn't grow up quoting the Lord's prayer. In fact, I didn't even memorize it until later in life. Why, you might ask? I'm assuming because things done in rote often lose their meaning. We were taught to pray; talking to God not reciting a prayer. The older I get the more beauty I see in the pattern Jesus gave us in the Lord' prayer; not something that we quote but something we live. I have, however, found another prayer that would be a good one to simply "live by". Several years ago I began a prayer journal of sorts with four aspects to it. Praise, Confession, Thanksgiving and Supplication. In detail I have written out praises, scripture, psalms, then gone on to detail my confessions for the day of which I tended to get sometimes a bit too graphic, and then thanksgiving and finally I would start on my "list".
Nehemiah 1:5-11 has become my 'new prayer'. Here it is..." I said, “God, God-of-Heaven, the great and awesome God, loyal to his covenant and faithful to those who love him and obey his commands: Look at me, listen to me. Pay attention to this prayer of your servant that I’m praying day and night in intercession for your servants, the People of Israel, confessing the sins of the People of Israel. And I’m including myself, I and my ancestors, among those who have sinned against you.
“We've treated you like dirt: We haven’t done what you told us, haven’t followed your commands, and haven’t respected the decisions you gave to Moses your servant. All the same, remember the warning you posted to your servant Moses: ‘If you betray me, I’ll scatter you to the four winds, but if you come back to me and do what I tell you, I’ll gather up all these scattered peoples from wherever they ended up and put them back in the place I chose to mark with my Name.’ “Well, there they are—your servants, your people whom you so powerfully and impressively redeemed. O Master, listen to me, listen to your servant’s prayer—and yes, to all your servants who delight in honoring you—and make me successful today so that I get what I want from the king.”
Of course the situation was different than what I am dealing with today, but God is still the same God. We have sinned, we have confessed, we have prayed, we have treated God like dirt, we have turned our backs and snubbed our noises and still.... because God loves me he will listen to my prayer and give me what I want from the kings I deal with on a daily basis. Cool! Absolutely Cool. It still means that there are a few things I have to do. First of all, I have to pray, I have to fear his name and I have to put my foot out and walk into the kings of my life for God to prosper my day and grant me mercy. It's still in my court, but I have an incredible team player standing beside me to back up anything that gets by me... because nothing comes to me that hasn't come through the heart an the hands of God first.
