The Heart of Prayer

Matthew 6:5-15

⁵ “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. ⁶ But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. ⁷ And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. ⁸ Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

⁹ “This, then, is how you should pray:

¹⁴ For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵ But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

Good morning, everybody. The chair here is just in case I need it. Uh, mostly just because I’m lazy. Not as, not already true. Uh, let let’s again, let’s just open our hearts before the Lord here, and then we’ll jump into his word father. We thank you so much for who you are. We thank you.

Yes, you are the high king of glory. We can worship you. You allow us to do that. You put that in our hearts and we are so grateful for that. And as we spend these few moments together here, Lord, as we look into your word as we, um, again, look at your heart, see what you want to do in us in this upside down, sort of.

Help us to listen to you, take what’s of yourself and burn it deeply into our hearts. I pray in Jesus name. Amen. I was sort of expecting a stand here, but that’s all right. Uh, we’ll work out, you know what, uh, pastor market was looking, trying to get somebody. Ah, thank you. Appreciate that. Um, uh, just for somebody to, uh, to take this, uh, this particular week here and so on as a SAF, they, they decided, you know what we need to do.

We want to get the best speaker that we know of, but they couldn’t get him. So then they said, well, you know what? We can’t do that least let’s get the best theologian. Uh, but they couldn’t get him either. And buying me, they finally said, well, at least let’s get the best looking person we know. Yeah. Not that either, but we’re going to spend some time here together, you know?

Uh, it’s a passage we’re gonna look at here. It’s very familiar to us and it draws our attention, especially hopefully to God, but so often that our heart, oh, I want to start with something many years ago, I was leading a group of kids on a backpack trip. We were in college. And we were climbing Pagosa peak Pagosa peak is pretty tall.

Peak gets it’s a little short of 13,000 feet and we’re backpacking up there. And as, as we’re going along, a couple of things that happen, first of all, we got a little bit late start on the day. I think this was the second or third day into the trip. And as we’re going along, it’s steep, it’s high it’s high altitude.

And I realized there was one person, especially who was not very fast. And so we’re trying to keep everything going. And as we’re getting closer to the peak, if you know anything about the Colorado, the Colorado mountains, you can guarantee in July, there are probably going to be thunderstorms. And as we’re going up climbing up, I’m trying to get people to move and suddenly the clouds come up and there is this big thunderstorm building close to Pagosa peak.

And we’re in a place here where you can’t get off. There’s no place to go. Those, those lightening storms are incredible. They’re scary. And I wasn’t quite sure what to do. We couldn’t go back. And I, I’ve been thinking a lot even about this passage that we’re going to look at. And so I did all that I knew to do first of all, to try to get the kids to walk faster and then the prey.

Cause that was my resource. We’ll come back to that. Yeah, bro. Prayer can be sometimes, uh, a confusing thing to some of us, those of us who pray. And even if you don’t pray sometimes. What, what is God doing? Why did he give us this? Um, I mean, sometimes we pray out of despair. Sometimes we pray out of confusion.

Sometimes we don’t pray because we don’t trust. Sometimes we ignore what God is doing. Sometimes we just focus on ourselves. I mean, it it’s all wrapped up in that, in how we pray and how we approach God and what we do. I don’t know if you find yourself that way. I do. I find myself sometimes becoming lazy because I think I can do it.

I sometimes think it’s about me when I know that’s not true. And yet, um, I understand, and I think you understand that God has given us this avenue, this privilege, this, this joy Y of prayer, it’s a, it can be a dangerous thing. Uh, we, we, sometimes we pray somehow in order to convince God to our way of thinking, rather than looking to him, uh, we can use it to manipulate others when we’re in a group and we pray in some way to manipulate that happens.

Yeah. It also is something that draws our heart to God that said it’s something dangerous, dangerous in the sense that sometimes we just try to confuse things or we try to bring things around our way. And that, that is a dangerous thing. It’s sort of like the guy, I, I saw this story this week and I thought it was humorous a coworker, um, um, asked a friend of mine, why he got donuts while he’s trying to diet.

And the main answer. Well, I come around the corner where the donut shop is, and I told God if he wanted me to buy a donut to open up a pace for me right there in front of the donuts, And sure enough, eight times around the block, one finally opened up.

We do that, unfortunately, maybe not quite as crass as that, but we do that. We kind of try to manipulate God. We tried to convince him, or it can be dangerous in the way because of the way that God works in our hearts. And that’s a wonderful thing. I don’t know if you’ve been watching the Olympics at all.

I’ve watched some things. I like doing some of the weird days and I was watching the not as exciting as some things, but those guys are, don’t pick a fight with them. They are really good. Vincent Hancock is the U S guy. He won gold medal, uh, in skeet shoot. He hit 59 out of 60. Uh, that’s really good shooting.

He’s a believer in Christ and, uh, sports spectrum, uh, gave this as a, as a testimony to him. He’d been hitting a rough time. He said, this is Vincent’s word. The turning point came in 2011 a few years ago when he seriously decided he was thinking about quitting the sport, he’d lost his love for shooting. Uh, he was struggling with world cup circuit.

All those things sound very sad, but then Rebecca, his wife encouraged him to pray on his own and with her, and within months, he started to see some improvement in his shooting. Uh, and he suddenly realized I attributed this. This is him talking that God is working through me and opening up my mind and saying, you know what?

You have an opportunity to do something great here. And it’s not just about winning metals. It’s for me, that’s for God to have a platform, to introduce people, to Christ, to show people that he’s what he’s capable of. And to Seth in it, And Hancock began to realize that ultimately his time and skeet shooting or the Olympics have, can have greater results than personal accolades.

Did you get the point? The point started the whole thing with this turmoil it started with, with praying, just opening himself up before God. We’re a place here. And we’ve been going along here looking at the sermon on the Mount and together that, you know, Jesus has been talking about, uh, the life he desires for us not to be caught up in the old ways and the old tradition, but, but really working in our life, the, the, the kingdom of God at work in us.

And we come to this place, chapter six, he begins to talk about things. Don’t be this way, but be this way. And pastor mark last week, as he began to talk about the whole situation there with giving and, and very clearly to talk about the fact is it’s not the idea of giving nearly so much as what is your art.

Don’t be like these others, these hypocrites. Give out of a heart, have the right heart before God. And, and Jesus continues this whole pattern there. After he’s done that, then he comes to chapter six, verse five, we begin. And it’s a section a week called the Lord’s prayer. We’re going to look at it here.

And then we’re going to spend just a little bit of time. It’s a big passage. I know it’s a big passage and we’re only going to hit some highlights. Okay. Pastor mark goes, spoke on this. He did a series. If you remember about a year or so ago on, on the Lord’s prayer, we’re going to just hit the highlights here, but this is what Jesus says.

Then in Matthew chapter six, five to 15, and he says this, and when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites for, they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth. They have received the reward. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your father who is unseen.

Then your father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans for, they think they will be heard because of their many words do not be like them for your father knows what you need before you ask him this then is how you should pray. Our father in heaven, hallowed, be your name, your kingdom, come your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread, forgive us our debts. As we also have forgiven our debtors and lead us, not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one four. If you forgive men, when they sin against you, your heavenly father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men, their sins, your father will not forgive your sin.

Familiar passage isn’t it, many of us have memorized it. Many of us have said it and prayed it at some time sometimes with whole hearts, just sometime because of the people. What I want to look at is very simply two things here today. One is what prayer is not because Jesus highlights that doesn’t he?

This is what prayer is not. And then secondly, what prayer is, according to what Jesus is saying here, prayer is not, first of all, he says, don’t be like the, don’t be like the HIPAA kids. Don’t be like those Pharisees who stand on the street corners and pray loudly and longly with eloquent words. It’s not, first of all, a religious exercise is not done to be seen by others.

And we tend to understand that maybe a little bit more here in America. Because even as we pray, and even as we pray together, it’s not always a show. Unfortunately, sometimes it becomes that. But in this time during this culture, remember Jesus is talking about those Pharisees, those people, who they made it, their business to stand before others and pray loudly and longly so that others could see them and not see God.

So he’s saying, first of all, prayer is not just a religious exercise is not to draw attention to ourselves. And we understand that we don’t pray because we want God to like us more. We don’t pray in order to make a deal with God. Somehow it is not a religious exercise. And again, coming back to what Jesus is talking about, what about the Pharisees praying and on the street corners?

Remember, I think it was in, in Luke, he talked and he gave the example. In fact, he pointed out the Pharisee standing there praying loudly and long. And then to the center to the side and said the comparison between the two, it’s not a religious exercise. It’s not to be seen by men. In fact, Jesus says here, and we could spend a lot of time on it and we can’t this morning, but he said, instead, a goal in secret, go to your secret room and I need him and probably a store room here.

It has a door close it. So you can go there just you and God and what God sees and hears in private. He rewards. I mean, that’s the heart that remember the movie. I don’t know if you’ve seen the movie war. Whether you like the movie or not. One thing that is absolutely apparent is that the dear lady there in her house was one who trusted the Lord completely and loved him so much and had this little room that she devoted.

This was where she prayed. And she called it her war room. It was in secret. It was silent. It was between her in God. That’s Jesus is talking about here that we’re bringing our hearts before him, not before others. It’s not a religious exercise. Secondly, it’s not. And I use the word here, a magic incantation.

I didn’t know what else to call it here, because he talks about the pagans and what they are. And he says, don’t be like the pagans, because the way that they pray with many words and the babblings and the carrying on it, don’t be like that. These, this is not some sorta special magic word power, and it’s not what it is.

I was thinking here, the example of this might be, do you remember in first Kings where Elijah, the prophet had this great contest, really with the prophets of bale, you remember that time and they were setting up their altars and they were going to pray, pray to their God and the God who answered with fire.

He is God, you remember the story. Right. And what happened at first, the profits of bail got to go. There were 400 of them. They did everything and they did. And he describes what they did. The many words, the shouting, the dancing, the cutting, all sorts of things. That’s the idea, the pagans babbling carrying on, and it was to no avail.

So not like that. And it’s not just repetition of same words over and over and over. There are groups today, and you are aware as I am of today, that somehow you just say certain words over and over that that is some sort of prayer that is something to do. And that happens all over the world. I’ve seen pictures of it.

I seen it in person and just words. Sometimes it is the word to hear actually is, is naming the name of their gods over and over. And that happens. It’s not just a listing of the names of God, whoever they worship. The name of Jesus is power. You know, even as we price, we think about that there is power in the name of Jesus, but it’s in the name of Jesus, not in the great repetition of his name, over and over.

And the pagans. He says, don’t be like them, another movie. And, and I watched, oh, maybe a week and a half, maybe two weeks ago. It’s a story of Martin Luther. And one of the things they depicted MIS before he really came to faith, he was, uh, he was a monk. He’d gone to Rome to find out some things. And this was during the time of the indulgences and everything, lot of, a lot of horrible things going on.

And so he had asked, he asked, one of the priests are, what do I do? How do I gain the favor of God? And the priest said this, it was to go up this whole long flight of stairs on his knees and that each step to give this whole incantation, that lots of names of God and just the repetition each time over and over and over.

And even as I watched the movie, I thought this is so, so sad. And at the end of it, Martin Luther came to the occlusion. This is so, so sad because that’s not the heart of God. It was shortly after that. The evidently he really began to search the scriptures and come to the place of understanding who God is, who Jesus is.

And the redemption and is found in Jesus Christ alone by grace. Prayer is not some sort of magic incantation that we do. It is not repetition over and over and over. It’s not the amount of loudness.

It’s not religious exercise. It’s not a magic incantation. And I would say this, it is not convincing. God is not convincing God to my way of thinking. There are times I’m afraid I’ve done it. I suspect some of you have done it that we pray in ways that we somehow are trying to convince God, my way is.

Listen to my plans, listen to what I think is good and go that way. God, that is not what prayer is and is not bringing things to his attention. Just in case he forgot chapter or verse eight may be the most significant little phrase in this whole thing. Do not be like them for your father knows what you need before you ask him

Benson in his commentary in, in his own particular style, he said it this way, we do not pray to inform God of our wants omniscient as he is. He cannot be informed of anything, which he knew not before. And he is always willing to relieve. The chief thing wanting is a fit disposition on our part to receive his grace and blessing.

Consequently one great office of prayer is to produce such a disposition in us to exercise our dependence on God, to increase our desire of the things we asked for to make so sensible of our wants that we may never see wrestling till we have prevailed for the blessing. Very simply in his old English wave speaking, he’s saying, look, the power and purpose of prayer is that we are learning to be dependent on God because he knows we’re falling in line with that.

So that’s what prayer is. And it’s important to understand that it’s important for me to understand that in my own life, what it is not as I take time to pray and whatever I do, that it is not this. So the question of what is it then? What are you talking about here? Jesus. I mean, raises a good, good question.

Why should I even pray then if God already knows what’s going on? Why should I pray? And I think Jesus answers that to some degree here. Prayer, what prayer is in this upside down sort of life that we’ve been talking about here and what Jesus is talking about here in the sermon on the mountain, not following the old traditions, not the ways of the Pharisees on the street corners.

Certainly not like the pagans living as one. Who’s actually living in the power and the, and the grace of Jesus Christ for God’s glory and our. This is what he says. You should pray it. And again, one of the thing in Luke, you’re going to find the same prayer, a little bit abbreviated, the same thing, but there, the context is the disciples had come to Jesus.

They’d seen him bring and they asked him, Lord, teach us to pray. And Jesus does this here in Matthew. That is not the question. This is Jesus. As he’s giving a sermon, as he’s talking about things, don’t be this way. Don’t follow the old ways. He just very simply comes to this. Let this be your heart. As you pray.

What is prayer? First of all, remember who is the object of your prayer? He says something here. He uses a phrase that is, that is powerful to all of us. Probably he starts to prayer how our. And today we have heard that phrase so often, and we’ve used that phrase so many times and it is a good phrase. It is a good thing, but you have to understand that when Jesus is talking to the disciples here, when he’s talking to the people here in the sermon, they have not heard this phrase very often.

Jesus has just been talking before. He’s bringing up the whole idea of our father, who father is in the old Testament economy, the old covenant, that covenant, that God made with Israel, a wonderful thing, and all his promises and all was going to happen. But as you look at there in the, in terms of how they looked out for God, who he is, they didn’t use the term.

Our father very many times, as far as I could find, there are four times in the old Testament. And each time that phrase is connected to the whole nation of Israel, not on a personal basis, but as a whole nation, you understand that. And then Jesus comes to this and what this is, is really an indication of what the new covenant God’s promised to us found in Jeremiah, in Jeremiah 31, he talks about this new covenant.

This new covenant is, is not just wrapped around Israel. It is for all people. It becomes a very personal sort of covenant. And in that he says, my law will be on their hearts. I will be their God. They will know me the words and what he says there. It becomes very, very personal. And so when Jesus starts his prayer, our father, he’s talking about that relationship chip that we have, that we can have with the God of the universe, not as someone who is way out there, but someone who is deeply personally.

To us by his grace, by the blood of Jesus, knowing who God is, is very, very powerful. And you look at the scriptures, you can see who he is and, and the names of God do mean something. You know, when you read and you see God almighty else had, I, that means something doesn’t it. As to who God is, or Jehovah Gyra, the one, the God who provides or add NAI Lord, and there are many more, you look at those, those names are very, very powerful, and it does describe who he is and what he is like to us.

But now, now he says, there’s something else. He is my father. He is your father. If you know him, that’s the power prayer. What prayer is, is remembering, first of all, who it is, you’re talking to, you are talking to your father. Okay. And with that as a father, he knows what is best. Some people don’t always understand that some people have had, uh, a hard time with their father growing up.

And I understand that I understand there is that pain. Sometimes there is that disconnect and, and I was talking to someone, oh, uh, maybe three weeks ago. And they were relating to me the, the whole idea of God being a father that said, I have a hard time with that because of their relationship with their earthly father.

Man, I get that our fathers have influenced us whether we agree or not, whether we see or not, they have influenced even how we think about who God is. As our father, many of us have had great experiences. I I’m very thankful for my dad. There were many things he wasn’t perfect. There were some things that I do not ever want to be like with him, but there were so many good things that he taught me.

And I think some of that, I relate to God as being father, but, but whether you’re that way or not, you know, whether you’re listening here online and you’re sitting here just listening, don’t fixate so much on walls. I don’t like my father. I don’t like what he did perhaps perhaps think about who God is in the fullest sense, whatever you understand, being a good father.

God is the best of all that you can think of, of what a father is. It all that is good and loving and helpful and kind that’s who God is. So if you’re struggling with something with your earthly father, put that aside and think about that, which would be the best father you can think of. And that at least partly is who God is our father.

He knows us. Yeah. A little bit later in chapter seven is Jesus continues here on the sermon. He does talk a little bit more about prayer and what he gives, and he talks about the goodness of the father. He doesn’t give the child evil gifts, but he gives good gifts. That’s that’s who he is, understand who he is.

And I was wondering, well, what’s a good way to work in that in my heart. How can I focus on him more and understand the goodness and the greatness of who God is? I would suggest this. That as you read the Bible, and I hope you take time to read the Bible. And as you do that, take time to see who God is. As you read a passage, you suddenly see others.

That’s one of the character qualities of God. Many of you want to write that down. Maybe as you look at a passage and you see how God has worked, you might want to note that this is who God is. And as you begin to take time, as you look at that, you begin to build a picture of the greatness and goodness of who God is and understand that that God is your father and that God, as your father, you can trust you see he is our father and he does know exactly what is best for us.

And so you come before him, my friend, Dave Clemens writes in his prayer letter sometimes. And sometimes even talking things are difficult things they’re questioning. And he uses this phrase so many times, but father knows. Yeah. That’s our father. We pray to him what a great thing that’s remembering who remembering what, and we don’t have time here to go over the whole prayer.

There are six petitions here. Most people say, but let me boil it down here real quickly. Uh, as he talks here, our father who art in heaven, you can tell how I memorized this. How would be your name, your kingdom come your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread, forgive us our debts.

As we also forgive our debtors and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one, four things here real quickly, maybe to focus on in remembering what

the prayer is not remember. He’s speaking here of what it is not, is not long. Great. Repetitions is not necessarily loud. It is not continuing as the Pharisees on the corners or the pagans. He’s singing it very simply make it, make it this number one, pray that God’s will, will be accomplished. All he’s saying is I’m putting my heart and my mind life in alignment with what Christ wants.

Uh, I, I pray. I want really, God, I really want what you want. Not my desires are not my priority, your heart, your desires. I want that to be my priority. So first of all, just what you pray that God’s will, will be accomplished in me and the situation God, on looking to you, secondly, praying for God to provide.

And this is the whole thing of giving us our daily bread. Most people think it goes beyond just the bread, but he’s talking about mice. What I need, what we need in order to fulfill God’s purposes in our lives. I’m praying for God’s to provide Matthew Henry in his commentary. He, he said it this way, we asked for bread that that teaches us sobriety and temperance.

And we ask only for bread, not for what we do not need. We asked for our bread that teaches us honesty. And in industry, we do not ask for the bread of others. No, the bread of deceit, nor the bread of idleness, but the bread honestly gotten. We asked for our daily bread, which teaches us constantly to depend upon divine Providence.

We beg of God to give it to us, not sell it to us, not lend it us, but give us it. I mean, he’s just saying, God, we really want you to provide. And rather than me to somehow connive and scheme and come up with all other things, God, just very simply, I’m asking you to provide that doesn’t mean we become idle.

That doesn’t mean we don’t use common sense, but we’re saying God, I’m asking you, I’m trusting you to provide God’s remembering God’s gracious. Forgiveness has come to forgive us, our debts, the word there is our moral fallings. Remember his gracious forgiveness to us. It leads to personal confession of our sin.

When we recognize that we have fallen short and, and he redeems us in first, John one nine, he says, but he forgives us as we come before him. It’s not holding grudges then on to others in first, John, if we confess our sins, he’s faithful. And just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness and then our response to others, Ephesians 4 32, be kind to one another tenderhearted forgiving one another as God in Christ, forgave, you is that hard.

And it’s so important that Jesus gives a little bit of commentary even there at the end, but we’re praying God, look at my heart, help me understand your forgiveness and live in that forgiveness. And the last thing God’s guiding hand and protection, the keep us from temptation is a little bit different, a difficult passage, but, but most people would say, and I would agree that it did he say not that you’re not going to get into some sort of temptation.

Now God doesn’t tempt us to evil. But he does allow some things in our life that are hard to use to, to increase us and to cause us to depend on him. But don’t lead us into temptation. The ID here probably is especially don’t lead me into something. Don’t take me somewhere in something that is so hard that I’m most likely to fail to fall away.

The temptations are things that God uses in our heart and our lives. We know that, but here are the prayer is don’t take me so far. God, that I can’t, I can’t endure. And I think God does that. Doesn’t he, he goes on to say, and also

to deliver us from the evil one there he’s talking, I think is there especially about the great enemy about Satan, about not letting him come in and really somehow take over or to tear us apart to keep the enemy from bringing, um, pain division and distress. You know, even with job and you remember the story there, that what Satan did, and God gave him certain leeway to come and, and test the job in so many ways, but he still didn’t have all control.

And so I believe part of the priority here is keep, it keeps Satan away from us. Remember greater is he that’s in us. That’s Jesus that he’s used in the world. Remember that Satan is a defeated enemy, but he is an enemy this last couple of years, some of us met together. We feel like there were ways here that we felt like maybe we were expended experiencing like the attack of the enemy more than maybe we ever have.

And so we prayed often keep away that I was talking with Ann about that just the other day. And she said, Since, you know, a church is moving ahead so much, doing so much for the glory of God, Satan’s going to come and attack, but we don’t have to give into that. And part of the prayer is God protect us, protect us.

Yeah, Jesus here. He’s not talking about, uh, the heart of dependence and the need that he talks about that more in chapter seven, about ass seek not, there are other things that we can pray about. Absolutely. There are other parts of prayer. There are absolutely important. And through the scriptures to see those, but here Jesus is just very simply saying the point here is your heart before God remember who you’re praying to remember what it is.

I’m going to very simply remember why three very simple things here is more than just asking for things. It is a worship of God. Our heart before him saying, God, I know who you are. I want to know who you are. I see what you’ve done. And I seek you with a heart, whole heart. It is a heart of worship, but why would be dependence on God?

We’ve mentioned that the truth is that as we come before God, we are saying, God, I desperately need to depend on you. Not on myself. I’m not sufficient. You are. I trust you and your work. And I grow in humility before God there’s. I understand my pride can tear me away from praying to pray the wrong thing, to pray for the wrong, with the wrong attitude that pride can do that.

Prayer with humility says, God, God, I really do want your way. I do want you in my life. I understand my need for forgiveness. I understand my need to not hold grudges. I understand that. I want you to work in me and I am not the answer. Why both God dependence on God to grow in humility for God. That’s the heart of prayer.

What it is not what it is. James talks about the prayer of a righteous man, uh, is very, very effective. And there is talking about James and especially the time when, when, uh, Elijah, Elijah came in before taking a Haben and he prayed that it wouldn’t rain and it didn’t rain. And then three years later, he prayed that it would be.

And it did rain. That’s, that’s the heart of prayer. But as I was thinking about that, going back to Elijah, remember I talked about the time with bail and all the things and going on there. Cause it’s also there that as he is in that whole contest, finally, after most of the day, the profits of bail had been doing all their things.

And then Elijah steps up and said, it’s my turn. And then a very simple, simple prayer found in first Kings 1836 and 37. And at the time of the ablation, that’s the evening Elijah, the prophet came near and said, oh Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant.

And that I have done all these things in you. Answer me a Lord, answer me that this people may know that you, oh Lord our God. And that you have turned their hearts back. A simple prayer, not loud, not right repetition just before God. That’s the kind of prayer that Jesus is talking about here. That’s the heart that he wants to work in us, understanding, knowing who he is, our father, knowing what to ask for knowing that we can worship him and depend on him and humble ourselves before him and let him work in you for his glory and your good climbing Pagosa peak, looking at everything that was going on there.

God had been working in and very simply I prayed the God. I, I have no idea what to do here. I prayed our father. I need your help. And I don’t know how it’s going to happen, but somehow we need that storm to go around so we can get up over puddles. So peak in many ways, praying the heart here. God, I need you.

And I would say this to the glory of God. I’ve never seen this happen before or since in the mountains of Colorado, but that storm came up closer and closer and then it went around. I have no idea what happened. All I know is I was very thankful. And we got up over, spent enough time. We got to spend two minutes on top of Pagosa peak for, we got down the other side, another storm coming up.

My faith was not so much as to pray again. We got down to a safe place and an incredible storm game, but I learned, I learned a heart before God crying out to our father, asking for his will humbly, depending on him is absolutely absolutely the best way to go. And I’m going to suggest the same thing for you.

Take time to invest in praying, take time to invest and learning about your father. And coming before him and worship and dependence and humility bat, that is a life turned upside down father. We thank you so much for who you are. Thank you that you have given us the avenue of prayer. Thank you. That you are so true and real and loving.

Thank you that you indeed are our father that we can cry out to. So teach us again. I pray about what it means to depend on you in Jesus name. Amen. Now go and serve and love the Lord and pray this week.