Day 94

Deuteronomy 26:1–27:26; Luke 10:38-11:13; Psalm 76:1-12; Proverbs 12:15-17

IN TODAY’S READING from Luke’s Gospel, Jesus’ disciples asked Him to teach them how to pray. They had seen Jesus conversing with God often, and they wanted to know how to do it themselves. Within this context, Jesus taught them what is now famously known as the Lord’s Prayer (Luke 11:2-4). You may even have it memorized.

Of course, this was not all Jesus had to say about prayer. He went on to tell the story of a man who had unexpected houseguests in the middle of the night but had no provisions. The man went to his neighbor to get what he needed, but it was not the camaraderie between neighbors that got him the supplies. It was his persistence that finally got the neighbor out of bed.

“And so I tell you, keep on asking,” Jesus said, “and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened” (Luke 11:9-10).

Jesus’ teaching about prayer has a lot more to do with commitment than reciting memory verses. When you ask for something, is it a momentary desire, or do you really need it? When you’re seeking something, how committed are you to finding it? As we spend more and more time in God’s presence, we begin to realize that it’s a collaboration He is interested in —a relationship. And many times, the answers come in the relentless pursuit —the seeking. God isn’t Santa Claus. He’s God. He wants an ongoing conversation with us, and it’s mind-blowing that He’s willing to have the conversation at all.

PRAYER:

Father, may your name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come soon. Give us each day the food we need, and forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. And don’t let us yield to temptation.