The Prayer of the Christian (Part 2) Today's Three-minute Bible Study Print, Study and Apply Title: The Prayer of the Christian (Part 2) -------------------------------- Date: 11/11/2000 Keyword: "prayer" "praying" Welcome to eXXit, the web site designed to help you stand strong in the face of sexual temptation. Passage: Matthew 6:9* 7. And in praying do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 9. Pray then like this: Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Questions 1. Is there anyone in your life you really don’t like? What do you think about the fact that God is his or her heavenly Father in the same way He is yours?   2. If you use God’s name as a swear word at times, can you really say to Him that you regard His name as holy?   3. Could your use of pornography affect how you think about holiness?   Practical help In the previous study, we learned that meaningless repetition and mindless words in prayer are pointless. Instead, our minds must be active and working to speak to God in honesty. If you learned this prayer as a child, have you since taken the time to relearn it for yourself as a teenager or adult? Here are a few important concepts taken from this single verse to get your thinking started. • God is your Father. You have access to Him and He will never turn you away. • Heaven is real — more real than the images that stimulate you through even the hottest monitor. • When you tell Him that His name is holy, you are not telling Him something He doesn’t already know. More accurately, you are admitting to Him, that you know this to be true and you are willing to bow before Him. Until you are ready to have this attitude in prayer, you will remain in your own little world on earth — ruled by your own appetites instead of by God. He made you for something better than that. eXXit homepage Index of three-minute studies Copyright 2000 by eXXit *"Scripture taken from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1946, 1957, 1971 by the Division or Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA.