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[expand title=”Devotion Text”]Matthew 6:9a
Pray then like this: Our Father in heaven…
When Jesus taught us to pray, he could have used many titles for the holy God. He could have used names like Creator, Almighty, Most Glorious, or Most High. But when Jesus taught about a personal conversation with God, he instructed us to address God as Father. We have the privilege of knowing the God of eternity in an intimate, personal way.
Prior to the name Father is the personal pronoun “our.” We can personalize it even further with the word “my.” That pronoun tells me that I belong to God and he belongs to me. Through the work of Jesus on the cross, I have a personal relationship with the living God. He loves me so much that he sent his son to pay the penalty for my sins. What a privilege it is to call God “my Father”!
I remember speaking with a person once who had a very difficult time calling God her Father. Her earthly father brought much pain into her life. Maybe you feel the same way. Your earthly father is distant or absent. Maybe all you have ever known is conditional performance-based love. That’s one reason Jesus reminds us that our Father is in heaven. He will never leave us or forsake us. He will never disappoint us. His love is unconditional. He will never hurt us. He will never abuse us. God is my perfect Father in heaven.
Lord Jesus, thank you for teaching me how to pray. Thank you for allowing me to have a personal relationship with the God of creation—the one and only God that I can call, my Father. Thank you for making the way through the cross and resurrection. Thank you for never letting go of me. In your name, I pray. Amen.
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