When the Lord’s Prayer Became Just Words

When I was a young Christian, I loved the Lord’s Prayer.

I prayed it often. But as the years went by, saying the words became an empty ritual. My mouth moved, and my heart stayed somewhere else.

Maybe that has happened to you too.

Then I learned something that changed my prayer life for good. Jesus did not only give us words to repeat. He gave us topics to pray through.

“So then, this 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 this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.'” (Matthew 6:9–13, BSB)

Some Bibles carry one more line at the end: For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.

That short prayer holds seven topics. I usually pray the whole thing through once before I stop on each one. When I say it first, my spirit snaps to attention.

Worship. “Hallowed be Your name.” We start by praising God, and often praise turns into thanksgiving.

Salvation for others. “Your kingdom come.” Ask God to save five people you know who do not follow Jesus yet. When one of your five comes to Christ, add a new name.

Obeying God’s word. “Your will be done.” Obeying His word brings life. We confess where we have not obeyed and ask for strength to follow Him whatever it costs.

Daily needs. “Give us this day our daily bread.” God cares about what we need, and we can ask Him without shame.

Forgiveness. “Forgive us our debts.” Forgive the people who have wronged you, then ask God to forgive your own list. As forgiveness becomes a habit, the list grows shorter, and our freedom in Christ grows deeper.

Temptation. “Lead us not into temptation.” Satan tempts some of us with glory, some with gold, some with guys or gals, and some with gadgets. Whatever it is, ask God to lead you away from it.

Surrender. “For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory.” We stop building our own kingdom and seek His. We stop leaning on our own power and rest in the Spirit’s. We stop chasing a reputation and go after His glory.

For many years on the mission field, I prayed through these seven topics every day. We no longer lived in the country where we served, and I could only travel in once a month. Yet discipleship groups and churches kept springing up. I believe those prayers were part of it.

We do not need a new prayer. We may just need to slow down inside the one Jesus already gave us.

The next time you pray, say it through once. Then go back and stay a while on each of the seven. Wherever you find yourself, you can meet with God there.