We’ve probably all had times when we’ve been trying to tell a story or explain something that it goes off the rails…we might even classify it as babbling.
In Jesus teaching the disciples about prayer, He makes several points. The first is don’t pray to God the way that the pagans pray by babbling on…. more words don’t equal better results.
Jesus isn’t telling them or us not to pray persistently throughout the day but rather to avoid what the pagans did in praying to their gods, invoking names and formulas…trying to get the attention of the pagan gods; in a sense trying to rouse the attention of those whose attention is elsewhere.
Even Before We Know
In contrast, Jesus wants us to trust in God—to not treat Him the way the pagans treat their gods; as Jesus said, “Your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.” And, because that is true, we don’t need long explanations as we might with a stranger.
The fact that the Father knows what we need before we ask, makes sense for He knows us through and through, our hopes and challenges, so it stands to reason that He knows what we’ll ask for before we do—that takes a lot of pressure off of us.
The Best Way to Pray
Every now and then someone will ask me a question about how to pray…? Usually what they are asking has to do with what prayers to say, if they haven’t had some instruction or experience in the main prayers of our faith or if they are experiencing a dryness in their prayer life.
There is no better teacher than Jesus and so we can all be reminded through this gospel of the importance of the “Lord’s Prayer.”
A Special Relationship with God
Beginning with the fact that we call God, Father. Even though the God of Israel was understood to be the Father of His people, He was rarely addressed by the name Father by an individual Jew.
By Jesus teaching them and us to call God, Father, He invites us into a greater intimacy with God…a relationship that reminds us that we are sons and daughters of God and so have a privileged relationship with a God who loves us beyond the most caring Father we can imagine.
Practicing Forgiveness
You know when we know that we don’t have to say or write as much or pray as long we tend to choose the words we use more carefully or read them more thoroughly. That is also part of the beauty of the Our Father; there is much for us to reflect upon.
God’s presence in Heaven, our seeking to do His Will, and asking for our daily bread, asking to be delivered from evil. All points that we can go more deeply into; however, what Jesus emphasizes is that “If you forgive men their transgressions (sins), your heavenly Father will forgive you.” “But if you do not…neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.”
That last part is Jesus’ way of helping us to remember that at times, we need to give up grudges, whether ones that have gone on for a day or years. If we want forgiveness from the Father, He wants us to be able to forgive one another too.
Go To the Father
My brothers and sisters, Jesus is leading us to a deeper relationship with the Father today—a greater trust and a forgiving heart for those who have sinned against us. It is an invitation to quiet prayer. To paraphrase, Jesus: “Go to the Father and keep it brief—He loves you—He knows what you need—He understands.”
- Father David's inspirational homily was recorded live during Mass at the Father Peyton Center this morning. You can view the Mass (and the Rosary at the 30-minute mark) on the Family Rosary YouTube page.
- To join the Rosary and Mass Livestream, visit the Family Rosary YouTube or Facebook page at 11:30 a.m. Eastern, Monday – Friday. Consider inviting others to join too! (*If you are not a member of Facebook and a signup window appears, simply select the X at the top of the pop-up message and continue to the livestream.)
