“You should pray like this: Our Father in Heaven…” Matthew 6:9
The church I attended when I first became a Christian held a men’s prayer breakfast every Sunday morning at 7:00 am. Though I was frequently encouraged to participate I avoided going out of fear. The only prayers I had ever been taught were memorized. I didn’t know how to pray or how to pray like they did. So, I avoided it…until because of their constant loving encouragement I went.
They would first meet as a group, sharing prayer requests and then separated into groups of three or four. For several weeks I simply listened to others pray. Finally, I began to pray too. Brief prayers at first and somewhat longer ones later. These men I learned to pray with became mentors and close friends. My prayers were never judged or criticized, only encouraged.
Learning to pray with others actually helped me in my own prayer life. Personal prayer was a step I needed to make to grow in my faith. It also prepared for the time I would be asked to pray in public in Bible study class or to close a worship service. In those first few experiences I wanted to sound good and do well in front of others. But I soon realized that was the wrong focus. My prayers should not be directed to others to impress them of my spirituality. My prayers, both public and private are directed to God, not man. Jesus was very clear: “You should pray like this: Our Father in Heaven.” Pray to the Lord, not to man!
To this day I am grateful to my brothers in Christ who nurtured me in the faith by their persistent encouragement to join them in prayer. They patiently gave me time to get accustomed to being with others as they prayed. And allowed me time to grow and mature in my faith and begin praying with them.
These faithful Christian men became my mentors and closest friends because after our time of prayer we fellowshipped! We had a light breakfast of coffee, donuts, milk and juice! Sometimes we even had fruit! We talked, shared life and developed close relationships. It turned out to be a great way to prepare our hearts for worship and Bible study. That was fifty years ago! And I remember those days like it was….!
The moral of the story is: Don’t be afraid to pray in a group or in public, let your prayer and focus be praying to God not your fellow man.
“You should pray like this: Our Father in Heaven.”
Blessed by you… Bro. Sherman
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