I'm getting REALLY tired of politics. I know about myself that when I start getting into a political frame of mind, I start to feel crappy. So, I want to take a break from politics, and talk to you about the Lord.
At the very least, I want to talk secularly about a religious thought I had. The story goes like this. At the conclusion of the Sermon on the Mount, a person asked Jesus, "Lord, teach us how to pray." This was followed by Jesus first uttering the words to what we now know as the Lord's Prayer, or the "Our Father." Every Sunday, heck, at every service, at some point we mention "Jesus Christ, who taught us to pray saying..." and then into the prayer.
This implies that Jesus' intent was that we were to recite His words verbatim in the exact wording he did. Which also, by the way, would mean in Aramaic. But I don't think that's what He meant. I think, as a teacher, Jesus was giving us an EXAMPLE of what to say, as an illustration of what types of things to include when you pray. I think the words should come from us, but it should follow the format He laid out. And I think, even if you are not a Christian, taking time to acknoweldge these ideas and thought can be beneficial to you.
- "Our Father, who art in heaven..." - Start by addressing the Lord, and acknowledging that there is a higher power governing the universe. Athiests can acknowledge the miracles of nature and science, which are not as random and chaotic as some may think. The natural laws that govern our universe at a subatomic level.
- "Hallowed be Thy name." - Acknowledge that these things are sacred. Blessed. Holy. The serious equivalent to the Monty Python Prayer, "Oh, God, Wow, you are so big, so incredibly huge, we're all really impressed down here, I can tell you." Mention who He is and what He is able to accomplish.
- "Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will be done on earth as it is in heaven." God rules over heaven, His laws also govern the earth. Someday, the creatures in heaven are supposed to judge us here on Earth, but "Thy Kingdon Come" could mean every time God intervenes in our lives, and helps us along. People who believe in Angels, this is an acknowledgement of their help in the world. If you believe in Lady Luck, that's her.
- "Give us this day our daily bread." - Intro is over, now we get to the point. And we should start not by asking for things like winning the lottery, or that the Principal won't call me down to the office, but rather for the things we need to handle these issues. Our "Daily Bread" could be food, or it could be courage, wisdom, strength, a well held temper, etc. I try not to pray for God to interfere in our lives, just to give me and my family the things we need to navigate on our own.
- "And forgive us our Trespasses..." - I prefer "...Trespasses" to "forgive us our debts." To say that our sins are debts reminds us that we owe something to make up for what we did, but on the other hand, "Trespasses" reminds us that when we sin, we don't just do something to ourselves, our actions affect other people. For me, that reminds me that I have an ammends to make to someone. Acknoweldge things you did that you know you shouldn't have done.
- "As we forgive those who trespass against us." - I always love hearing the congregation say this part in church, because there's a lot of S's in there. My biggest personal religious struggle is probably from this. I have trouble forgiving others. For minor trespasses, I can deal, but there are a few individuals who have hurt me and my family so heinously and deeply, that to forgive them is a problem for me. But I try. Just saying the words, "I forgive you." can be therapeutic.
- "And lead us not into temptation." - Seriously, why would God do that? It's usually others who lead us into temptation. I can usually see ahead to the things that I need to be careful of. It's good to acknowledge these things, and pray for the will to avoid them.
- "But deliver us from evil." - Help protect us from harm. Help to keep those who wish to hurt us at bay. Help to keep those whose actions will have negative consequences to see the error of their ways, and to change. Again, seeing the possible outcomes and predicting what to be cautious of.
- "For thine is the Kingdom, the Power and the Glory Forever" - Kingdom... this earth is yours, not ours to manipulate. OR Ours to manipulate according to your plan, not our personal agenda. Power... God has the power to do everything we ask. Glory... and for that we praise you. Athiests? How about this.... I am but a speck on the face of a vast universe that I can't understand, I can change some small elements, but ultimately I am powerless agains the laws of science and nature. You HAVE to be impressed by that, don't you?
- "Amen" - I agree, So help me, yeah, what he said, ya know?, giggidy, and that's all I have to say about that.
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