Episode #398 The Adventure Doesn’t End with Amen – The Lord’s Prayer for Real Life

Hey, friends. Today we're finishing the Lord's Prayer Series as a way to talk with God more. This is something that Jesus gives us in scripture, not as a script to pray, although we can pray these words. I invite you to pray scripture out loud even, anytime that you want to. But this is a lens that Jesus gives us on how to pray, how to approach God.

And we're in verse 13. It says, "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one." And then some translations finish that verse, "For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen."

When we come to God, we can ask Him to lead us. And it's not lead us not into temptation as though God would lead us into temptation. I used to wonder about that. But it's protect us. Guide us away from, help us withstand temptation.

The thing I wanted to focus on for us today is that we can come to God with that ask to deliver us from the evil one. And I like that the verses echo back something that we see even in Old Testament verses, where David is talking about who the Lord is and recognizing His power and authority and glory unending. That we can come to God because of who He is, going all the way back to the beginning of the Lord's Prayer. "Our Father in heaven, hallowed, holy is your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." That's me too. "Give us today our daily bread," what we need for today, "and forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For you, God, can do this. For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen," which means so be it.

We can come to the Lord with this awareness of who He is and His care for us. God will meet us in decisions and interruptions, in relationships and errands, in our workday, in our parenting, in conflict, in creativity, in curiosity. Prayer gets to be an ongoing conversation we have with God, and I know you know that because that's part of why you're here.

The conversation doesn't end at amen. Prayer is this ongoing conversation that we get to have with God all throughout our days. And so I hope you found these episodes helpful, looking at the Lord's Prayer and how it can fuel our conversations with God. Because praying continually as the Bible exhorts us to do doesn't mean talking constantly. It means living responsively. Going through our days seeking to be aware of God. Seeking to partner with Him, to yield to Him, to ask for His help, to receive what He gives us, to be aware that He is holy, and His kingdom is here, and we can respond to Him accordingly. And that includes coming to the Lord and asking for His help when we feel tempted. Asking for Him to deliver us from the evil one who schemes for our demise, who seeks to steal, kill, and destroy. But we can come to God unafraid of the enemy because of who God is.

And so if there's an aspect of the Lord's Prayer that really resonated with you today, I invite you to talk with Him about it. Or maybe go through the prayer as a practice and let that spark conversation, acknowledging Him as good Father, as holy God. Asking for the daily provision. Asking for forgiveness. Talking with Him about someone you need to forgive. Inviting His will and His kingdom in you.

And then here's a question I invite you to take to Him next:

God, I've turned my attention to you. What else do you wanna share with me today?

Have a good talk.

And if you've been encouraged by this content, please share it with a friend and help them grow in their conversational relationship with God too!

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