Teach Us to Pray (Part 1): Praying With Purpose

Introduction

Conversation this last week about days before GPS and maps on our phone.

There is a blessing in having a realtime guidance when we are trying to navigate to where we need to be.

When we pray sometimes it may feel like we’re wandering and not sure how we need to get to where we need to be.

Prayer is something we all can do, but sometimes we may not always know how.

Luke 11:1 ESV

1 Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.”

One of the very first things that Jesus teaches us about prayer, is that we would pray with purpose!

This helps us to get on the right path to get to where we need to be.

Matthew 6:9–13 ESV

9 Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. 10 Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread, 12 and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen

1) Purposeful Prayer…Connects Our Heart to God’s Heart! (v.9)

Calling God “Our Father” was a whole new level of connection with God than was previously understood.

It was rightfully traditional to address the Lord God as Holy, Sovereign, and Transcendent.

Referring to God as “Father” introduced a personal, approachable aspect to God.

God’s desire is for us to draw near to Him in a way that a child draws near to their father.

1 John 3:1–4 ESV

1 See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. 3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure. 4 Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness.

“Like Father Like Son”

Recognizing God’s Holiness and desire for us to draw near to Him, should build within us a reverence for Him as we pray to Him.

Recognizing His holiness as part of who He is, drives us to be like our Father and let holiness be part of who we are.

Knowing that He is Sovereign yet in His sovereignty, draws us to Himself, helps us to see that we can fully trust Him, even when we don’t understand.

When we pray with purpose, we are seeking to draw near to the heart of God so that our hearts will be changed to reflect His heart.

It’s part of why we pray in Jesus’ name…

We seek to have the same heart and desire as Jesus who did nothing and spoke nothing of his own accord, but only that which the Father directed Him. (Jn. 14:10)

May we never take for granted the blessing to come before the God of all things seen and unseen and call Him “Father”.

When we pray, let us never try to make God’s heart connect to ours, but may we always be of a posture that seeks to connect our heart to His!

Purposeful Prayer Connects Our Heart to God’s Heart!

2) Purposeful Prayer…Conforms Our Will to God’s Will! (v.10a)

“Your Kingdom Come, Your will be done…”

As Jesus teaches His followers to pray, He calls God Father, recognizes His righteousness (“… in heaven…”) and recognizes His holiness (“…hallowed be Your name.”)

The holiness of God leads right into that which is appropriate and deserving: “His kingdom come, His will be done…”

The Kingdom of God is not confined to this world, though it should impact this world, and ultimately will last long after this world.

The Kingdom of God is eternal, spiritual, and greater in nature when compared to this earth.

The Kingdom of God is Spirit and Truth, and those who belong to the Kingdom of God will know God and worship Him in such a way.

John 4:23 ESV

23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him.

The Kingdom of God is greater than my castle.

What God desires and what God seeks is greater than whatever life I could ever hope to build for myself apart from Him.

Because God’s Kingdom is greatest and most important, we should seek for His Kingdom to come and for His will to be done.

Every kingdom has a culture.

That culture is represented by the presences of the kingdom’s officials and recognized by that kingdom’s banner

When the authority of one kingdom yields to another kingdom the take upon themselves the culture of the greater kingdom

They yield authority to the new kingdom’s officials.

They take down their own banners and put up the greater kingdom’s banners so that all who enter into the realm all may know…there’s a new king in charge and a new kingdom’s culture that now resides over this place.

When you ask for God’s Kingdom to come, you must also declare that His will is to be done!

Asking for God’s will to be done, is not only recognition of His greatness but rightful submission of our wills to Him.

It is asking for His kingdom’s culture to takeover and to become the new standard by which we live.

The Kingdom of God mindset and culture has to begin in me!

Praying with purpose is asking God’s Kingdom to come and His will to be done in my heart and in my mind.

It’s asking for His Kingdom culture to reshape my will so that my will now reflects His will.

So that my greatest desire is to see and display the Glory of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Psalm 37:4 ESV

4 Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Purposeful Prayer connects my heart to God’s heart and conforms my will to His will.

3) Purposeful Prayer…Converges Our Life with God’s Plans! (v.10b)

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

While the Kingdom of God is eternal and spiritual in nature, it is not to be a “one of these days” kind of thing…it is to be here and now.

Right here, right now at 302 E 6th Street, City of Pawhuska, State of OK, Nation of United States, Continent of North America, on Planet Earth!

When we pray to our Father, we need to remember who we are praying to and why we are praying!

All too often, our prayers are about our plans, our desires, and our wills that often operate outside of Him.

We may even pray about God’s will, but we want to accomplish it with our plans.

Seeking for God’s Kingdom to come and His will to be done, HERE ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN, means we seek for God’s will to be done God’s way…the way that glorifies Him the greatest.

It’s not seeking for God’s glory to shine through the result, but to also shine through the process!

It’s asking for God’s will to be accomplished in the way that He wants to do it in us and through us.

God may have a different plan for your life than what you have planned.

He may have different direction for your life than what you are pursuing or settled in to.

Wilma Harrison: After teaching Sunday School in this church for 30 years and working for the BIA for 30 years, after her retirement…God called her to serve Him in South Africa through the IMB and then in the inner city of Detroit with the Home Mission Board (now NAMB).

When you pray for God’s Kingdom to come and His will to be done here on earth as it is in heaven, it’s not just a pleasantry!

God’s mission and purpose for you, will not most likely be across the globe, but it may certainly be across the street!

When you pray with purpose you are seeking to ask God to converge our lives with His plans…right here, right now!

It starts with renewing our minds to think like He thinks, Live like He lives, and care like He cares…He shows us all of these things in His Word!

Purposeful prayer connects our heart with God’s heart, conforms our will to His will, and converges our lives to His plans.

Closing

When you pray, are you praying with an appropriate purpose that aligns with God’s will?

Do you take a moment and lean in to what it means to address God as “Father”?

Do you seek to connect your heart with His heart? Conform your will to His will? Converge your life into His plans?