“Jesus never taught His disciples how to preach, only how to pray. He did not speak much of what was needed to preach well, but much of praying well. To know how to speak to God is more important than knowing how to speak to man. Not power with men, but power with God is the first thing. Jesus loves to teach us how to pray.”

Andrew Murray, With Christ in the School of Prayer

Have you received clarity and direction from the Holy Spirit on how He would have you participate in the spiritual discipline of fasting during this 21 Days? For some guidance and ideas, read our post on “Why Fast?”

We want to encourage you to grab a journal or a notebook – something to write on as you walk through each prayer guide or devotional. Yes, it will add a few minutes to the time it takes to do the devotion, and it will also deepen your experience and shape your walk with God for years to come. This journal or notebook will be a keepsake to remind you of God’s faithfulness during this challenging season for all of us.

Engage the Word

Over these several days, we are exploring Jesus’ words where He taught His disciples (and us) how to pray, in what has become known as The Lord’s Prayer. Here, Jesus says to His disciples (and to us):

Matthew 6:9-13

9 Pray then like this:

“Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name.

       10     Your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

       11     Give us this day our daily bread,

       12     and forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

       13     And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

Connect the Heart

Jesus said pray then like this:

       11     Give us this day our daily bread,

Jesus is reminding us here that, regardless of who we are or where we are, we are all totally dependent on God for everything we need. Of course, this means life, breath, relationships, guidance, emotional support, vision, hope… but in this part of His epic model prayer, Jesus is focusing primarily on our physical needs. There are other times when Jesus would say “Man does not live on bread alone” (Matthew 4:4) or “I am the bread of life” (John 6:33), but here He has in mind the physical necessities of life, represented by bread. And every provision for our daily need comes from Him. It’s just that sometimes we have the tendency to take that for granted. The truth is that “bread” would have no value to us if it weren’t for the value that has been supplied by our Creator.

Reflect on the Truth

1. How is your heart – your words, your actions, your desires, your motivations – expressing dependence on, and gratitude for the “bread” that God has supplied for you?

2. If we don’t discipline ourselves to express our dependence on God, we can have the tendency to gravitate toward dependence on our own strength, skills, abilities and talents. Take a moment to express your gratitude for what God has provided, and your dependence on Him for not only the air that you breathe, but the actual “bread” you need to live daily.

3. How are you sensing God might be asking you to reorient your perspective – or even adjust, in some way, how you live your life?

Depend on the Spirit

Ask the Holy Spirit to help you see the deeper longings, desires or motives in your heart that these thoughts are pointing to. (For example: you may write down, “O Father in heaven, I depend far too often on myself. Help me to have a better perspective on my total dependence on you not just for some things, but for everything.”) The Lord can help us discern the path forward – through His word, His Spirit, His people.

For Prayer:As we conclude our devotional time, pray that our church would live with open hands, totally dependent on God alone for all that we need – every moment of every day.

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Read our post “Why Fast?” to learn about the spiritual discipline of fasting and gain a better understanding of why Jesus asked us to fast. We fast not to get something we want from God, but for God to change our wants. We fast because Jesus fasted, He expected we would fast, and we see that the early church fasted.

Read yesterday’s post HERE.

Catch up on all our 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting posts on the blog HERE.