The Blueprint to prayer we often overlook (Nurture Note 011)

Welcome to this week's Nurture Note. Prefer to watch/listen as opposed to reading this week's note? click below for the YouTube link. 📹 To get hem directly to your inbox, fill in the form below this post. ⬇️

I wonder how good you are at reading between the lines?

I ask, because this week’s Nurture Note zoned in on Luke 11 is all about that. Not because we want to read into the text something which isn’t there, but rather because we want to understand the heart behind what Jesus is saying as well as just what we can glean as a result of head knowledge.

If you’ve been on the receiving end of these Nurture Notes for the last 10 weeks, firstly let me just say a huge thank you for all that you’ve shared with me by way of feedback and encouragement. It truly doesn’t go unnoticed and means more than you know. Secondly, you’ll have noted that for longer chapters, it’s impossible to write about everything which happens within them. Luke 11 is no exception and today’s Nurture Note will focus on a small section we read at the beginning of the chapter.

We’re met with Jesus praying in a particular place, clearly in the midst of his disciples as once he’d finished praying, one of his disciples says: “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” (Luke 11:1b)

Although not the crux of the message I want to share here, a quick side thought I had on this verse speaks to a lot of what I shared last week regarding the responsibility we have as disciples. Notice that what provoked the disciples to ask Jesus a question was when Jesus did. Theoretically knowing that prayer is important could have been enough to cause this disciple to ask Jesus this question. However, the point at which he asked followed Jesus actually praying.

What do the people closest to you notice when they see your life lived out in front of them, I wonder? It’s certainly something I’m asking myself as I read this verse. What are the questions people are asking you as you live your life in front of them?

Where I really want to go here is in how Jesus responds. Firstly, he helpfully gives the disciples (and therefore us!) a framework. If there’s anything to know about me, it’s that I love a framework. So let’s take a look…

“Father” - A reminder that who we’re talking to is our spiritual Father, not some far off distant mythical figure! Reminding ourselves of the ‘who’ gets us right before God.

“Hallowed be your name” - Although he’s father, he’s still holy and so despite the fact, we can come to him whenever we like and his arms are wide open - just like my kids running up to their dad at any given moment, working or not and asking something of him - we still have to give him the respect and honour due his name.

“Your kingdom come (on earth as it is in heaven)” - This one’s big, right? I remember first learning this prayer when I was a child in primary school and just reciting it like everyone else. However, when we really truly take stock of what is being said here, how amazing is it that Jesus told his disciples (and therefore us) that we can pray for his kingdom to be here, for heaven to invade earth and our day to day. Are we praying with this in mind, I wonder?

“Give us each day our daily bread” - A reminder that it’s okay to ask God for things for us. Sometimes our prayer list on behalf of others might be long, whilst we neglect to share with God the very things we feel we want and need. Jesus is reminding us to ask (more on this in a moment.)

“Forgive us our sins” - Jesus knew that his disciples (and therefore us) were not perfect people. While we’re not condemned for that, we are required to be real with God when we know we’ve messed up, so that his forgiveness can be granted.

“For we also forgive everyone who also sins against us” - Another huge one here, with a reminder that we can’t be harbouring unforgiveness in our hearts against those who have wronged us, whilst simultaneously asking God (who we have wronged) to forgive us! It’s not always easy of course, but all of the hurt and confusion needs to be given to God.

“And lead us not into temptation” - I love that in this chapter, Jesus’ prayer ends here. This notion of asking that we won’t be led into temptation is somewhat of a battlecry when I read it - essentially it’s like after we’ve gone through all of these steps of the framework, we’re ready to go and ask that he’ll protect us as we do from what’s not for us and from anything which might lead us astray from him and what he’s calling us to.

All of that alone is powerful stuff, isn’t it? And enough for us to sit and chew over. However, Jesus being the master story teller that he is, doesn’t leave it there and this next part is something I’ve really been considering these past few days in preparation for this message…

Rather than retell the whole story, I’ll just briefly recap here that across Luke 11:5-8, Jesus paints a picture of two friends. One receives some visitors in the middle of the night and has no food to give them. He takes it upon himself therefore, to come to another of his friends houses, knock on the door and ask for bread. The friend is a bit startled due to being woken up in the middle of the night and explains that he and his family are in bed and he’s not about to come and be some makeshift bakery for his friend, no matter how much love is there between them. The friend doing the asking isn’t taking no for an answer though and keeps going… and here’s where it gets good. Jesus says in verse 8:

“I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.”

Shameless audacity.

Wow.

When I reread this the other day, I had to pause and check the original text for what these two words had been translated from. The greek word is anaideia, which translated to english means, ‘importunity’. Despite the fact I used to be an English teacher, I (perhaps shamefully) hadn’t come across this word before. The dictionary definition of importunity is: ‘persistance, especially to the point of annoyance.’

Now, while we could just get lost here in the fact that Jesus was telling his disciples a nice story, we mustn't miss the context in which he was telling it.

His disciple asked him how to pray.

Yes, Jesus gave him and us a blueprint with what we now know as the Lord’s prayer, but let’s not miss what he goes on to say after that…

Essentially, he’s talking about our heart and mind attitude as we pray. That's what I meant by reading between the lines and quite frankly, it’s convicted me a bit. Am I going to God with shameless audacity for the things I’m believing Him for in this season of my life? Am I praying with such persistence that it’s actually annoying? Are you?

Verse 9-10 says: “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

Asking, seeking and knocking isn’t just a nice thing we say regarding how we correspond with Jesus, it’s part of his blueprint for prayer.

There’s so much more to say, but this Nurture Note is already very long and so I’ll leave you with this question: What are you going before God with in this season with expectancy? How shamelessly audacious are you being as you ask him for these things?

Want some help in that part? I’ve just re-opened the doors to my new and improved member’s community ‘The Flourishing’. It’s a guided journaling space where we do exactly this - come before God with our journal and pen, expectant of his presence as we free our minds in prayer and prose on the pages. We have a community aspect to hold us accountable, but we can be as public or as private as we like about what’s come out of the journaling. The key is that each week, we’re live together on Zoom journaling in real time with me as we go before God. The Flourishing isn’t a content dump - you don’t need me to tell you we’re in information overload already. Instead, it’s sanctuary for your soul and our first live guided journaling call is this Thursday. Join us for it with your heart, mind and notebook at the ready.

Keep going, keep growing.

Don’t forget, you can get episodes of Nurture Notes free in your inbox every Monday. Just fill in the form below to subscribe.