Intro
When Jesus’ disciples asked him how to pray, he provided a model in Matthew 6 that we are blessed to be able to follow today.

The Lord’s Prayer is often rotely memorized and repeated, but we would do well to view the prayer more as a model than a script. When Jesus says, “Our Father in heaven,” for instance, this is an invitation to reflect on the fatherly love of God and address him as such more than a command to say only these four words.

Over the next six days, as you work through each line in Jesus’ model prayer, the goal is to respond to God’s invitation to a deeper prayer life. He desires communion with you.

 Read

• Read Matthew 6:5-13, focusing on v.9. Consider reading the passage in two different translations, such as the English Standard Version (ESV) and New Living Translation (NLT).
  
  
  

• Why do you think Jesus begins this prayer by saying, “Our Father in heaven”?
• What does calling God “Father” communicate about his nature and character? Why might this have been surprising to Jesus’ audience? 
• How does the word “our” challenge the way prayer is typically viewed?

• If you had to rate your prayer life on a scale from 1-10, where would you rate it? Why? 
• Do you have a specific place you like to meet God in prayer? If not, where could you regularly go to meet God (ex: a chair in your living room, a specific park bench, etc.)? 
• How do you think your prayers would change if you truly believed God welcomes you as a loving father? 
• What would it look like for you to pray more with a sense of “our” rather than just “me”?

Consider the following prayer prompts:

• Meditatively pray through Psalm 103, focusing on God as father. 
• Pray through Matthew 6:9-13, reflecting specifically on God as your heavenly father. Consider what you want to tell your heavenly father, and tell him. 

Matthew 6:5-13, “Hallowed Be Your Name”

Read

• Read Matthew 6:5-13, focusing on v.9. Consider reading the passage in two different translations, such as the English Standard Version (ESV) and New Living Translation (NLT). 

Examine

• “Hallowed be your name” could also be translated as “your name be honored as holy” (CSB) or “may your name be kept holy” (NLT). What does it mean for God’s name to be honored as holy? 
• Why might Jesus have focused on the name of God? Can you think of any other instances where God’s name has been important in Scripture? 

Apply

• What would it look like for you to honor and value God as holy in your prayers? How would this change your prayer habits? 
• How might you know whether you honor God as holy in your prayers or not?

Pray
Consider the following prayer prompts:

• Pray through Psalm 99, riffing off each line in prayer as you read, focusing on the holiness of God. 
• Pray through Matthew 6:9-13, focusing especially on the holiness of God. 

 
Related Resources
Sermon - Why Do We Sing
The Hour of Prayer Podcast

Matthew 6:5-13, “Your Kingdom Come…”

Read 

• Read Matthew 6:5-13, focusing on v.10. Consider reading the passage in two different translations, such as the English Standard Version (ESV) and New Living Translation (NLT). 

Examine 

• What does it mean to pray for God’s kingdom to come? How is God’s kingdom different from how we typically think of kingdoms? 
• Why do you think we must pray that God’s will be done on earth as it is in heaven? What does this imply about the importance of prayer? 
• Why might it be significant to have so many God-centered prayer requests prior to any personal requests?

Apply 

• How does Jesus’ emphasis on the Kingdom of God challenge our tendency toward individualism? 
• Where do you resist God’s will in your life? What would it look like for you to both pray for God’s will to be done and to act in line with it? 
• How do you think praying this verse daily could reshape your desires and ambitions? 
• How should this prayer shape our communal focus on mission? 

Pray
Consider the following prayer prompts:

• Meditatively pray through Psalm 47, focusing on the kingship of God. 
• Ask God to reveal to you whether you’re living for your own kingdom or for his, and to show you what steps you can take to begin living more fully for his kingdom. 

Related Resources
Sermon - On Earth As In Heaven
The Hour of Prayer Podcast

Matthew 6:5-13, “Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread…” 

Read 

• Read Matthew 6:5-13, focusing on v.11. Consider reading the passage in two different translations, such as the English Standard Version (ESV) and New Living Translation (NLT).

Examine 

• “Daily bread” here references our ongoing physical needs. Why is it significant that Jesus’ model of prayer has us asking God to supply our needs every single day? 
• What is implied about our relationship to God by the fact that we ask him to supply our needs? What assumptions about God are present here? 
• Why do you think Jesus’ model of prayer focuses on our needs after God’s glory?  

Apply 

• How does this verse challenge a tendency to live in anxiety about circumstances? 
• What would it look like for you to trust God today rather than just vaguely in the future? 
• How does gratitude connect to the idea of daily bread? 
• How is community the hands and feet of God as he supplies daily bread to people? Are there any ways you can grow in this practice? 

Pray
Consider the following prayer prompts:

• Read through John 6:1-14, 25-58, meditatively praying through the text. Pray about Christ as the bread of life. 
• Petition God for your needs. Ask him to reveal to you what you truly need, not just what you want. 

Related Resources
Sermon - We Are Beggars
The Hour of Prayer Podcast

Matthew 6:5-13, “Forgive Us Our Debts…”

Read 

• Read Matthew 6:5-13, focusing on v.12. Consider reading the passage in two different translations, such as the English Standard Version (ESV) and New Living Translation (NLT). 

Examine 

• What is the relationship between receiving forgiveness and extending it, according to the gospel? 
• How does Matthew 6:14-15 add clarification to this verse? 
• How can we be sure that Jesus is not teaching a works-based salvation here, that we earn God’s forgiveness by being forgiving people? 
• How does this prayer guard against pride? What about cheap grace? 

Apply 

• Forgiven people must be forgiving people. Would you characterize yourself as a forgiving person? Why or why not? Where do you need to grow in the area of forgiveness? 
• Do you regularly confess sin to God? What is difficult about confession? How can you grow in this practice? 
• How can you work towards fostering a church-wide culture that makes space for honest confession, repentance, and forgiveness? What do you think a truly forgiveness-shaped community would look like?

Pray
Consider the following prayer prompts:

• Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal any people you need to forgive. Reflecting on the gospel, ask for the courage and love to forgive them, and do so. 
• Meditatively pray through Psalm 139:23-24. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal any sins that you have not confessed, and as he brings them to your mind, confess and repent. 

Related Resources
Sermon - Forgive Us Our Debt
The Hour of Prayer Podcast 

Matthew 6:5-13, “Lead Us Not Into Temptation…”

Read 

• Read Matthew 6:5-13, focusing on v.13. Consider reading the passage in two different translations, such as the English Standard Version (ESV) and New Living Translation (NLT).

Examine

• What does v.13 imply about God’s nature and character? 
• Why do you think Jesus might have concluded this model prayer with this request? 
• What does the phrase “deliver us” imply about our ability to resist sin alone? How does this confront immature views of the Christian life?

Apply 

• Where do you find yourself spiritually vulnerable to temptation right now? 
• What patterns or environments increase temptation in your life? 
• How might community and accountability strengthen you in your fight against evil?

Pray
Consider the following prayer prompts:

• Reflect on the temptations you’re facing right now. Invite the Holy Spirit into your struggle, asking him to help you withstand the spiritual warfare you’re facing. 
• Pray through Ephesians 6:10-20 and James 1:13-15.

 
Related Resources
Sermon - Helpless and Hunted
The Hour of Prayer Podcast