So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us. – 1 Thessalonians 2:8

This past Sunday I finished a series on the Lord’s Prayer. In this issue, I will briefly review the last 3 petitions. We’ve learned that our heavenly Father cares about our provisions, relationships and temptations. 

Daily Bread. It’s important that we remind ourselves that we’re dependent on our Father’s provisions for our daily physical AND spiritual needs. Praying for these helps us do this. If you put your physical and spiritual requests on a balance, how would these compare to each other? In all cases, we pray that God would be glorified in whatever He provides for us. 

Forgiveness. There is a one-to-one relationship with God forgiving our debts as we forgive our debtors. We forgive our debtors not for God to forgive us, but because He HAS forgiven us in Christ. Forgiving the “debts” of others, is evidence that we have truly been forgiven of our “debts before God. It’s His grace that exposes our sins, compels our repentance and then, as God designed it, flows to our neighbor. If we refuse to forgive others, it may be that we are living under a delusion of God’s forgiveness of us. 

Temptations. Temptations come to us in so many forms. Some are overt or obvious (e.g. Lying to someone) and others are subtle or ambiguous (e.g. gossiping out of care for a person). This is why we must remain spiritually vigilant and watchful for the ways Satan is friendly with our “old man.” To this end, we daily pray for God’s grace to take root in our thoughts and affections. Being empowered by His grace, we resist any temptation. And being enveloped in His grace, we rest knowing that our Savior has and is delivering us from evil (“one”). 

Bread, Forgiveness and Temptation . . . God cares about your provisions, relationships and spiritual dangers. That’s why Jesus wants us to make praying about these things a daily priority in our lives. Is it a time for you to change how you pray?