Welcome to Day 22 of Why Pray? After reading the chapter for today “Hallowed Be Your Name”, I encourage you to spend a few minutes with a portion of Psalm 23, “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 3 he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. 4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
This “Why Pray?” journey has done it again! It has taken something very familiar to me and repositioned it in my heart and mind in a new, refreshing and challenging way! What use to be pretty much just about “me” is now about a world of other people God is using “me” to impact!
Let me explain!
Day 22 begins week four with the heading “How Should We Pray?”! We enter somewhat familiar territory for this ‘how to’ lesson – the Lord’s Prayer - and more specifically today the first petition of the prayer, “Hallowed Be Thy Name”! A tour through the Lord’s Prayer is not unfamiliar territory for me – but the “way” I am being encouraged to look at it is! I am being encouraged to pray the Lord’s Prayer not only for myself and my family (that’s familiar) but to use it to pray for the deepest needs of people far from God for whom He has led me to pray. He is putting a laser guidance system on my praying!
As I write this I am thinking specifically of one of the people that God has led me to pray for during this “Why Pray?” journey! This person has experienced a great deal of loss, frustration and “life has not turned out so well” reality recently. As I think about it… I am realizing that she desperately needs to “hallow God’s name” – she desperately needs to by faith receive the realness of God that all His names reveal. She desperately needs to know and surrender to God as Savior, Lord, Good Shepherd, Prince of Peace etc. – this is exactly what she needs and exactly what I am now finding myself praying for her as I work through this blog. Do you see? God is taking my praying for this person to a whole new level way beyond “…please bless so and so!”
Wow! It seems this week’s journey may be through familiar territory – the Lord’s Prayer – with a whole new set of lenses! This week I get to explore praying at a whole new level –a “laser guidance system” level - for the people He has called me to pray for who do not know Him and are not living in relationship with Him. This is good really good for me! God is shifting my focus strategically outward – to pray for those far from Him practically and specifically according to their deepest needs!
The journey continues and keeps getting deeper and richer!
delton