Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come; thy will be done.
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day, our daily bread,
And forgive us our sins,
As we forgive those who have sinned against us.
And lead us not into temptation.
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power,
And the glory, forever. Amen.
As I thought and prayed about this week’s Lord’s Prayer, I felt that as we think about forgiving others, we would do well to sit for a time, and let the Holy Spirit reveal the Father to us. We need to let the words of Jesus from John 17:6 go deep into our bones. “I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me, and they have obeyed your word.” A little further on He says “I pray… that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me, and I am in you. May they also be in us that the world may believe that you have sent me.” (17:21).
Our unity with others is rooted in the Father’s oneness with Christ, and They share that oneness with us.
We thank thee that we have a father, and not a maker; that thou hast begotten us, and not molded us as images of clay; that we have come forth of thy heart and have not been fashioned by thy hands. It must be so. Only the heart of a father is able to create. We rejoice in it and bless thee that we know it. We thank thee for thyself. Be what thou art — our root and life, our beginning and end, our all in all. Come home to us. Thou livest; therefore, we live. In thy light we see. Thou art — that is all our song.
George MacDonald
This quote from George MacDonald is so healing; so incredible. I even find it holy. How many of us did not have earthly fathers like MacDonald describes his Father in heaven? Yet Christ reveals Him to us, and we make our home with Them.
From that place, (the place of oneness we share with the Father and the Son), we are given what we need to forgive. So, take some time and listen to this recording of Andrea Bocelli singing The Lord’s Prayer. Then take any unforgiveness or bitterness or hardness of heart to your Heavenly Father, and receive the grace and freedom Christ has bought through His finished work on the Cross.
Jean, Thank you so much for all you do with these postings, They all inspire, educate and draw us closer to our Father. I especially want to let you know how much the video of Andrea Bocelli means to me. His singing has always resonated deeply with me and this even more so. Thank you.
Mike, we used to have someone sing the Lord’s Prayer at the beginning of each Pastoral Care School conference. We have had a procession of the Cross in the first worship service as well. Powerful! The way the heart receives is always amazing to me.