Praying Like JesusSample

“Our Father”: The Heart of Prayer

All good relationships require communication and an understanding of one another. Think about your best friend, your spouse, a coworker, or someone else you know. It’s likely that you learned about them because of the circumstances that brought you together, but you’ve only been able to truly know them as you spend time with them.

Our relationship with God is the same way. In order to know God, we must spend time with Him—talking, listening, discovering, and enjoying.

Jesus is our best example of what it looks like to live a prayer-focused life. Throughout His life and ministry, the Gospel writers record the ways Jesus spent His days seeking, delighting, and clinging to His Father. He was always aware of and dependent on His Father’s presence in His life.

Jesus didn’t spend time in prayer as part of a spiritual to-do list because He “had” to. Talking with His Father was as natural and rhythmic as breathing. In Mark 14:36, Jesus called God by the intimate name “Abba”—the Aramaic word for “father”— and He teaches us, as God’s adopted children, to do the same.

In its truest form, prayer is meant to be an intimate, loving connection with your heavenly Father. Whether you’re new to prayer or you’ve been faithfully praying for decades, we can all grow to know and follow God more fully through the gift of prayer.

This is why we pray: Prayer is relational. At its core and foundation is the love of our “Abba, Father.”

Pause and Reflect

What does prayer currently look like in your life? What changes would you like to make to strengthen your relationship with the Father through prayer?

Pray

Abba, my heavenly Father! As I look at Jesus’ life, I’m encouraged by the way He pursued You. Please help me to seek, delight, and cling to You through each moment of my day. As I seek You, grow my desire to know You more. In Jesus’ name, amen.

This Bible Plan is adapted from the free 4-week Bible study Praying Like Jesus. You can find the full study at www.go2.lc/PrayingLikeJesus