Jesus' Prayer RecipeSample

Ask

Asking is the most natural part of our prayer time. Despite the bias in our prayer approach, Jesus still commands us to make requests as we see in Matthew 6:11; “Give us this day our daily bread.” We learn three key truths from this statement in Jesus' pattern.

First, we are to look to God for our provisions. The word give in this request is a command that denotes our powerful sense of dependence and expectation for God to act on our behalf (Jeremiah 33:3). As God’s children, we are to ask God to freely provide what we need rather than bargaining or begging for His provision. No wonder James says, "Every good and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights" (James 1:17a). Dependence upon God is so important that Jesus highlights bringing our requests to God as a measure of whether faith exists on earth (Luke 18:8).

Second, God focuses on our needs before our greed. We see this emphasis in a request for bread over dessert. Daily bread was the foundational item of meals during that time, whereas desserts are a luxury (Proverbs 30:8-9). The phrase “daily bread” keeps us from getting anxious about the future or the unending drive to obtain more than our needs require.

Third, God wants us to be concerned about others. The “our” teaches us to also pray for other people’s bread. We are to care for those without bread and should desire influence in addressing their needs.

After taking time to Recognize and Encourage, take a few moments to communicate your needs, and the needs of others, to our Father who wants to provide.