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Why It’s Important to Remember Your Dreams

Posted on by Rick Hamlin

God speaks through dreams. We know that from many biblical stories. How did Jacob know what his future would be? Through a dream—with angels ascending and descending on a ladder. How did Joseph know about the Child that Mary was carrying? An angel came to him in a dream. How did the wise men know to avoid Herod on their return to the East? A dream.

But what about today? Some will say God no longer works this way. I would beg to differ. Witness the wisdom of the great Carl Jung and his contributions to the valuable practice of psychotherapy. Dreams are a way of the unconscious to speak to us. They can guide us to life-saving realizations and understanding.

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When I bring up the subject, people often say, “I don’t ever remember my dreams.” I used to agree with them. What dreams could I ever recall when I woke up? Few…if any. But in the last few years, I’ve taken a few steps to reverse that. Here they are.

1)  Write your dreams down. I used to type anything I remembered, even vaguely, into my phone in the morning. Now I keep a paper dream journal next to my bed. When I wake up in the middle of the night, with a dream in my head, I scribble it down in the journal.

“Doesn’t that keep you up at night?” some ask. On the contrary, it helps me get back to sleep when I do wake up. As I put myself back into bed, pulling the sheets over my head, I close my eyes and visualize the dream I was in. Bingo. I’m back to snoring. (Okay…I don’t actually hear myself snore, but my good wife says I do. Not for nothing do we both keep earplugs handy!)

2)  Look at what you wrote. Sometimes my midnight scrawl, admittedly, is hard to read. I’m best able to decipher the words first thing in the morning. I look at the handwritten sentences or phrases and type them into my computer. That gives me an opportunity to reflect on the dream.

The other night I wrote, “Go to visit family in Jerusalem.” Do we have relatives in the Holy Land? Not at all. But this sure felt like a nudge about taking prayerful consideration of what our holy mentors have to say, including the Holy Family.

3)  Pray through a dream. I’ll look at what I’ve written down and might have no recollection of the dream I’ve described. But God certainly does. I linger on a phrase and close my eyes, trying to picture it. Jerusalem, say. Or family. Associations come up. Images. Part of what the dream was communicating.

As the prophet Joel said (in a verse that’s repeated in the book of Acts), “I will pour out my spirit upon everyone; your sons and your daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, and your young men will see visions.” (Joel 2:28)

Not all dreams are earth-shattering, but some are. Let’s keep talking about them. And how they can help us live a godly life. Take it from one of those “old men.”

Why It’s Important to Pray Before You Sleep

Posted on by Rick Hamlin

It’s the last thing I do before I go to sleep. Turn off the light, put away whatever I’ve been reading, sit up with my back against the pillows, close my eyes and pray. 

I’ve talked a lot about praying in the morning, how I plop myself on our lumpy sofa in what we call “the TV room” (although there hasn’t been TV in there in years) and sink into silent, contemplative, meditative prayer. Can’t start the day without it.

But at the end of the day, the need is still there. And for some of the same reasons.

People often complain about the distractions that crowd our minds whenever we pray. Do I find my mind full of distractions? Of course, I do. It’s only natural. But I wouldn’t exactly label them as “distractions,” not after I’ve put them into prayer. They’re what I need to share with God. The emails to send, the texts to respond to, the things on the to-do list…articles (like this) to write. Opportunities to get some heavenly perspective.

That list can still be there in my over-active brain at night. And I’m not going to have a good night’s sleep if I fret over it. Time again to do the work of “catch and release.” Catch the thoughts and release them to God. 

No wonder Mom and Dad made sure all four of us kids said our prayers before bed every night, reciting it as fast as we could: Jesus, Tender Shepherd, hear me, bless this little lamb tonight. Through the darkness be down near me, keep me safe till morning light.

It was the last thing we did. Then Mom or Dad would kiss our foreheads. Lights out.

As parents, my wife and I did something similar with our two boys. They got in their p.j.’s, brushed their teeth, jumped into their bunkbeds (in what we still call “the boys’ room”) and we’d sing our prayer altogether: “Tender Shepherd, Tender Shepherd, let me help you count Your sheep, one in the meadow, two in the garden, three in the nursery, fast asleep.” We kissed them goodnight, then lights out.

These days I don’t sing a lullaby before falling asleep, but the need for prayer is still there. To check in with the Good Shepherd before I check out. No song, no hurried verse. Just an emptying of the mind.

My eyes closed, a few thoughts pass through the mind’s eye. A concern someone’s shared, a pestering irritation of my own, something I need to let go of. Now is the time. After all, what is a Tender Shepherd for but to look after His sheep?

A car outside might pass by; I’ll hear someone walking their dog; the radiator rattles. Forget it all. Listen to the wind blow, know how the stars are shining and the moon rising or setting.

God’s got it all in His hands. Lights out.

Why Forgiveness Is a Big Deal

Posted on by Bob Hostetler

When Jesus taught his followers to pray, He said to pray, “Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us.” (Luke 11:4, NLT)

Notice that He linked our forgiveness from God with our forgiveness of others. “Forgive us,” he told us to pray, “as we forgive.”

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As. That has to be the biggest two-letter word imaginable. Forgive us as we forgive. It can be taken several ways. And that may have been intentional on Jesus’ part. Because each of the possible meanings is instructive and potentially life-changing.

1)  Pray to forgive willingly.
When Jesus says, “Pray like this…. Forgive us as we forgive,” he teaches us to pray graciously. He also teaches us that our forgiveness of others somehow activates the Father’s forgiveness of us.

The phrase can be taken to mean, “Forgive us in the same way we forgive others.” It can be understood as a suggestion that our forgiveness of others will set the tone for the Father’s forgiveness of us.

Jesus said as much. In Matthew’s account, after Jesus taught his model prayer to his first followers, he did what most rabbis would do—he offered a little commentary, rewinding things a bit and going back to the prayer for forgiveness:

For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. (Matthew 6:14-15, ESV)

Wow. Jesus didn’t mince words. I don’t know how he could make it any clearer: Forgiveness is a big deal. And it’s a big deal not primarily because it’s bad for the people we can’t or won’t forgive; it’s a big deal because it’s bad for us. It’s a soul-eating infection. It will eat away at us from the inside out, and it will short-circuit our experience of forgiveness.

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2)  Pray to forgive fully.
The words, “Forgive us as we forgive,” may also be taken to mean, “Forgive us to the extent that we forgive others.” None of us wants partial forgiveness from God, so we pray for grace to forgive fully, because that is how God forgives—and what we need.

Jesus’ parable in Matthew 18 has as its main character a “king” and one of his “servants” or “officials.” Jesus depicts that man as owing the king an enormous sum that he was unable to pay.

In those days, rather than filing for bankruptcy as we do now, it was common for a man and his family and possessions to be sold for such a debt. So the servant begged for patience and pleaded for time, and the king did more than give him an extension—he forgave the debt completely! The servant begged for a little mercy, but the king gave him immeasurable grace.

That is my story. Maybe it’s yours, too. I begged for mercy, and received grace. I bartered for help, and received the Helper. I asked for heart medicine and received a heart transplant.

Key to the ability to forgive is the grace to grasp the reality, the depth, the height, the extent of our own forgiveness, of how much and how completely we have been forgiven.

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Unfortunately, we are too often like the man in Jesus’ parable, who went out, found someone who owed him a pittance and rather than forgiving as he had been forgiven, demanded immediate payment in full. Despite the incredible grace we have received, we withhold mercy, harbor a grudge and nurse bitterness in our heart toward someone who has hurt us.

We think that withholding forgiveness is going to make us feel better…even though we’ve been withholding forgiveness and yet we’re still miserable, still struggling, still flailing, still trying to move on, still trying to figure out why we can’t get better and even why we seem to be getting worse, as if something keeps eating away at our happiness and hope and spiritual strength.

But maybe, just maybe, if we can grasp the reality of our own forgiven-ness, and grant forgiveness to those who hurt us, we can actually move down the path toward healing. Maybe healing comes as we learn to pray, “Forgive us as we forgive.” And maybe forgiving fully opens the door to healing fully.

3)  Pray to forgive constantly.
That little word, “as” in the prayer Jesus taught his followers can also be taken to mean “while.” That is, it can be taken to mean, “Forgive us while we are in the act of forgiving those who sin against us.”

When God forgives, it’s a done deal. When He forgives, He forgets. But for us, forgiveness is not so simple or so complete. Often, with us, forgiveness must be a daily decision. Jesus structured his model prayer to include the prayer for forgiveness in the same breath as prayer for daily bread. So, just as we pray for “daily” bread, we pray for “daily” forgiveness.

In other words, “forgive us today as we are forgiving today.”

You can choose—today—to grasp the reality of your own forgiven-ness, and extend that same mercy to whoever hurt you. You don’t have to feel like it. You don’t have to gin up any warm feelings for that person. But you can refuse not to retaliate today. You can wipe the slate clean today. You can forgive that debt today.

And as you do that, the forgiven-ness that accompanies your forgiveness will place a growing distance between you and the thing you’ve forgiven, like setting a toy boat into a flowing stream or river. Once you release the boat into the current, it will be taken farther and farther away until, some time in the future, you’ll lose sight of it.

And it will lose hold of you.

Excerpted from The Red Letter Prayer Life by Bob Hostetler (Barbour Books, 2015)

Why Bowing is an Essential Part of Prayer Life

Posted on by Bob Hostetler

Have you bowed today?

To many in the 21st-century, bowing is a lost art. Sure, you may “bow your head” in prayer at mealtimes. You may bow as you enter your church. If you practice the divine office or worship in a certain kind of church, you may bow when reciting the “Gloria” (Glory to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). 

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But historically and biblically, bowing is an essential part of the prayer life, as evidenced in the Bible’s psalms:

But I, by your great love, can come into your house; in reverence I bow down toward your holy temple (Psalm 5:7 NIV).

Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker (Psalm 95:6 NIV).

I will bow down toward your holy temple and will praise your name for your unfailing love and your faithfulness (Psalm 138:2 NIV).

Bowing—whether in public worship or private prayer—does some important, even indispensable, things for us: 

1)  It slows us down. It’s hard to run while bowing. It can be done, but bowing helps us to “be still” (Psalm 46:10 NIV) and even, if we let it, pause long enough to get quiet. 

2)  It encourages humility. It’s also hard to bow proudly. Bowing is one way to do as James urges: “Humble yourselves before the Lord” (James 4:10 NIV). 

3)  It conveys reverence for God. As David, the shepherd king of Israel, sang, “in reverence I bow down” (Psalm 5:7 NIV). Bowing reminds me that “the Lord on high is mighty” (Psalm 93:4 NIV).

4)  It invites submission and surrender. Bowing is the posture of a servant toward a master, a subject toward a king. When we bow, we obey the biblical injunction to “Submit yourselves, then, to God” (James 4:10 NIV). 

5) It drives away temptation and the tempter. Though many translations of James 4:10 insert a full stop between the verbs “submit” and “resist,” we may understand the verse more as a continuum, as expressed in the Douay-Rheims version: “Be subject therefore to God, but resist the devil, and he will fly from you.” Bowing can be resistance against evil.

So, whether or not you come from or participate in a “bowing tradition,” you might consider finding a way to bow in prayer. Perhaps take a moment to bow as you enter church or approach your place of prayer. You might bow at certain points in public worship (such as when a song lyric includes the word “holy” or “king”). Or (depending on your agility) bow before taking a seat or rising from your seat.

However you do it, try incorporating the physical act of bowing into your life of prayer and worship, and see if it helps you express and experience some things you otherwise might not.

Which Bible Translation Should You Use?

Posted on by Rick Hamlin

Do you ever feel burdened by the number of Bible translations out there? Do you wonder, “Which one should I use?” I just gathered a few of my favorites and now have five sitting next to me on the couch—and there are more on the shelves! Which one to use?

Quick answer: all of them. They’re all good guides. Sometimes what matters most is the convenience, finding helpful Scripture when you need it. For instance, take a verse from the Psalms, “God of Zion, to you even silence is praise.” (Psalm 65:1)

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That’s from the Common English Bible, the CEB, and I found it an inspiration in my daily prayer practice. I even used it as the title of my book on meditative prayer, Even Silence Is Praise (Thomas Nelson, Feb. 8 2022).

The CEB gives the Scripture in easy-to-understand, everyday English. No highfalutin phrases. Plenty of contractions. It’s the language we speak.

On the other hand, sometimes I want that beautiful Shakespearian language I remember from childhood, “He maketh me lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside the still waters…” (Psalm 23: 2). The wondrous King James Version.

Published in 1611, the KJV was the primary English-language Bible for centuries. I have a tattered pocket version I used on my subway commute to work for years. “The Bible that’s falling apart belongs to someone who isn’t,” they say. Here’s my witness!

These days, at home, I turn to the New Revised Standard Version and read three Psalms over breakfast. Food for body and soul. The NRSV was published in 1989 by the National Council of Churches and was itself an update of the RSV released in 1952.

The Oxford version offers tons of scholarly comments, should I need them. The language of the Psalms amplifies my prayer life, with a tone that’s not too forbidding and yet dignified.

Then there’s the American Standard Version, an earlier revision of the KJV, first published in 1901. The language is less archaic and more approachable, for instance here it’s “He makes lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.” Notice the period, no semi-colon.

The copy I treasure belonged to my father and in its pages is a prayer where he uses his own vernacular, signing off, “Love ya,” to God. You gotta love that. Some Bibles you treasure because of who owned them.

I could go on and on but let me end with the New International Version. First published in 1978, incorporating the work of scholars and linguists, with a text true to the original as well as readable, it has been updated twice, in 1984 and 2011.

I have this one on my Kindle, handy to read when I want to refer to the Bible. Trustworthy and dependable, it’s one of the most popular versions out there.

Of course, there are differences of opinion about any of these versions and choices that are made. What matters most is not just how you read them but how you live them. The Bible we live is the best version out there.

When It’s Powerful to Repeat a Prayer

Posted on by Bob Hostetler

The 1993 film comedy, Groundhog Day, starring Bill Murray and Andie MacDowell, isn’t about prayer. It tells the story of a man stuck in a time loop, repeating the same day over and over, who eventually realizes that his strange circumstances present him with the opportunity to become a better person. 

Perhaps in a sense, each new day presents us with a similar opportunity, especially when it comes to prayer. When Jesus taught on the subject of prayer, He warned against “vain repetitions” (Matthew 6:7, KJV), denouncing the mindless recitations of those who “think they will be heard because of their many words” (Matthew 6:7, NIV). But the modifier in Jesus’ phrasing is important. He didn’t advise against all repetition when we pray. In fact, I’ve learned that the daily renewal of certain prayers makes me a better person in many ways. 

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Here are just four examples of prayers I send heavenward every day:  

1)  “Our help is in the name of the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.”
I pray this prayer (which is a Bible prayer found in Psalm 124:8) every day, and sometimes more than once each day. Once, when my heart was heavy, and I was battling panic and anxiety, I spoke these words over and over, for as long as a half hour at a time. When my heart and mind calmed down and agreed with the words, my fear subsided. This prayer reminds me that I’m not in control, but the mighty God who created all things is, which makes me calmer and more trusting day by day. 

2)  “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done.”
I pray the Lord’s Prayer every day—some days more than once. I don’t always pray it in the words of the King James Version of the Bible; I often substitute “Your” for “Thy.” The whole prayer is an indispensable part of my daily routine.

But one phrase—“Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven”—helps me particularly in the mornings. That’s when I’m reminded that not only do I invite God’s kingdom and submit to His will, but that I enlist as His co-worker in bringing about those things. That’s a focus I easily lose, so this daily prayer turns my mind and heart in the proper God-facing direction.

3)  “I have sinned against You.”
My daily prayers always include prayers of confession and cleansing like the following: 

Almighty God, my Father, I confess that I have sinned against You in thought, word and deed, by what I have done and by what I have left undone. I have not loved You with my whole heart; I have not loved my neighbor as myself. I am truly sorry, and I humbly repent. For the sake of Your Son Jesus Christ, forgive all of my offenses, and grant that I may serve You in newness of life, to the glory of Your Name. Amen.

That daily prayer (or one like it—I often revise the exact wording to keep it fresh and meaningful) humbles me; reminds me that I need mercy, forgiveness and grace; renews in me a hope and determination to follow Jesus more closely; and allows me to begin and end each day with a clean conscience and tender heart. 

4)  “Keep me as the apple of Your eye; hide me in the shadow of Your wings.”
Every evening (and often in the morning too), I pray this line from Psalm 17:8. Such tender words. Such sweet imagery. I especially value it as an evening prayer, because soon thereafter I lay down my head on my pillow with a renewed awareness that God loves me, values me, cares for me and protects me. It makes me a better person to know that though I am a sinner, I am “bought with a price” (1 Corinthians 6:20, KJV) and loved with the “greater love” of Jesus (see John 15:13). 

Are there daily prayers you’re praying—or could be praying—that will make you a better person? 

What Tone of Voice Do You Hear from God?

Posted on by Bob Hostetler

Among the many shortcomings of email and texting is that they don’t always accurately convey the sender’s tone of voice.

Say you reply to a work colleague about a solution you find satisfactory. You type, “Fine.” The next day, when your coworker apologizes for annoying you, you realize that your text may have sounded peeved, when all you intended to say was, well, “fine.” 

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Similar misunderstandings can arise in short verbal exchanges as well, when the other person infers a meaning or attitude we didn’t intend to convey. Or we think we hear something the other person never meant to imply. It can all be very confusing. That’s why it’s important when praying or reading the Bible to listen carefully…for God’s tone.

The Bible tells us that “The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love” (Psalm 103:8 NIV). Yet for various reasons, including our own personalities or past experiences, we may “hear” a harsh, even cruel tone from Him. 

When Jesus’ closest friends and followers cried out to Him for help on the turbulent Sea of Galilee, before He calmed the storm, He said, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” (Matthew 8:26 NIV). We read the words, but what tone do we “hear?” Anger? Impatience? Disgust? But perhaps His tone was “compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.” 

I try to remember that verse from Psalm 103 when I’m reading my Bible and praying, especially when I’m trying to listen in prayer. Maybe it’s because I grew up as the youngest in my family or that I’ve always craved approval from those I love or some other reason, but I often tend to “hear” my Lord speaking sternly to me. “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Or “Why did you doubt?” (Matthew 14:31 NIV). Or “Why do you worry?” (Matthew 6:28 NIV). 

But as I grow in faith, I am learning to hear a different tone when I pray or read God’s Word. I’m listening for His “compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love” voice. When I remember to listen for God’s tone, it often changes the whole conversation. 

How do you hear God’s tone of voice?

What to Do When Your Prayer Practice Is Stuck

Posted on by Bob Hostetler

Maybe it’s never happened to you. Maybe it never will. But if it feels as if you can’t pray, or your prayers are going nowhere, here are a few things you might try to overcome your “prayer blockage”: 

1)  Face the blockage
Don’t ignore reality. Don’t make excuses. Call it like you see it and tell God all about it. You may be surprised to find (as I have a few times) that in the act of complaining about your prayers going nowhere, they suddenly start to go somewhere. But even if not, it’s usually unhelpful to pretend or deny that you’re experiencing a prayer blockage.  

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2)  Confess
Sometimes a prayer blockage is due to unacknowledged or unconfessed sin. So let this be a lesson: get to confessin’. A sincere heart-search and confession of sin, whether in thought, word or deed, may break through the blockage.

3)  Try silence
“We are not reservoirs, but channels,” wrote theologian E. Stanley Jones. Sometimes we get “all prayed out” because prayer has flowed from us but not into us. Half of prayer is listening, so not talking may help. Sit. Be silent. Listen. Stop the outward flow; open yourself to hear and receive.  

4)  Pray the Psalms
Your prayer blockage may need a boost of fresh expression, creativity or thought. If so, turning to a psalm or two and praying the inspired and honest words of others, such as David or even the contemporary Christian band Sons of Korah, can supply what you lack. You may select a psalm randomly or purposefully. You may turn to a psalm of lament or confession or choose one that expresses faith and trust. In any case, a psalm—or several days’ worth of psalms—may be just what your heart needs.

5)  Pray someone else’s prayers
In addition to regularly praying the psalms, I often find that the recorded prayers of others grease my prayer wheel, so to speak, and clear that “stuck” feeling. The prayers of Peter Marshall, John Baillie and Lancelot Andrewes are just some that have broken through for me.

6)  Change your posture
Shake things up. Take a walk. Pray on the treadmill, in bed, at your bedside. Pace. Stand. Kneel. Bow. See if a simple change of posture can make a difference.

7)  Change places
If your prayers are going nowhere, go somewhere. A simple change of scenery may help. Go to the park to pray. Spread a blanket by a lake and instead of praying with your eyes closed, lie on your back and let your prayers ascend into the cloud-filled heavens. Pray in your car. Pray in a bubble bath. 

Sometimes I think an effort—even a small one—tells my mind and heart that this is important, and that reminder contributes to a breakthrough. At other times, I wonder if God smiles on my little exertions and adds His efforts after giving me a chance to make mine. Either way works. Most important, I know from long experience that prayer blockages don’t last; even if it takes some time, the clouds will part and the channels will open, sometimes in a trickle, sometimes in a flood. And a new season of prayer will begin.

What My Dad Taught Me About Prayer

Posted on by Rick Hamlin

As my two sons prepare to enter into that wonderful phase of life called fatherhood, I reflect on what I learned from my father. What fills my head and heart is a life of prayer, something we four kids witnessed. Here’s what I learned from Dad about prayer: 

Anything goes. Dad said grace every night at dinner, long extemporaneous prayers, full of whatever was going on in his head or the news he’d heard on the radio as he drove home from work. Is there anything we shouldn’t pray about? No. God knows the secrets of our heart. Why not share it with the Lord? Anything and everything.

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When our boys were young, they’d take turns saying grace at dinner. They were good models for us. Because indeed we heard—and learned—what was going in on their lives. A laundry list of requests? Not for a parent. Heavenly or otherwise.

Rick's dad at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles
   Rick’s dad at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles

Pray with your loved ones. As a kid, when I couldn’t fall asleep at night, I’d amble into Mom and Dad’s room, groggy-eyed and tired. Dad would walk me back to bed—no remonstrating—and tuck me in. Then he’d pray me to sleep. 

Quietly he’d talk to me, putting my body to rest. “Now you can feel your feet getting tired, and your legs, your arms too…” From my toes to the crown of my head. Even today, when I can’t fall asleep, I’ll picture Dad there, talking me to sleep, his hand on my back. 

Sing a prayer. Dad wasn’t much of a singer, but it never stopped him from singing, especially in church. As I used to joke, “He had a few good notes…and sometimes they were the right ones.” I still feel his joy when I sing.

For our own two boys, we’d sing a lullaby every night. “Tender shepherd, tender shepherd…” A round. We would all sing together until we reached those final lyrics, “Fast asleep, fast asleep.”

Living together in a family requires harmony. Not everyone has the same range or the same notes. But when you put the voices together, they merge into tuneful melody.

Let your children hear you pray for them. How powerful it is for a child to hear a parent pray for them. To know they are loved. To know their concerns count. We’d hear Dad pray for whatever was concerning us, whether it was a big test in the morning or a game we were playing or a treehouse we were building. He was on it. We could grasp God’s love because we experienced our earthly father’s love in his prayers.

Pray for others. Dad’s dinnertime graces always ended with “Bless this food to our use and the hands that prepared it.” Mom. That would be Mom’s hands. Truth to tell, she wasn’t a great cook—sorry, Mom—but she was a great mom. And maybe it was because those hands were blessed night after night.

What It Really Means to Pray ‘Thy Will Be Done’

Posted on by Bob Hostetler

Maybe you’ve said it. I know I have: “If I had my way….”

Sometimes it’s prompted by dissatisfaction with the current state of affairs—which has been pretty often so far this year. At other times, it has more to do with a disappointment I’ve faced or a fear I have. And most of the time (maybe all of the time?) it’s an arrogant endorsement of my own wisdom and righteousness. 

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That’s why it’s a good thing that I pray. And even better, that I pray daily. And still better, that the Lord’s Prayer is always a part of my prayers because it includes an important reminder to me in the phrase, “Thy will be done.” It’s a reminder that “my way” isn’t always, or even usually, the best way. It’s a prayer that, when I’m most attentive and aware, says at least three crucial things: 

1)  I Belong

Andrew Murray wrote, “Because the will of God is the glory of heaven, the doing of it is the blessedness of heaven. As the will is done, the kingdom of heaven comes into the heart. And wherever faith has accepted the Father’s love, obedience accepts the Father’s will.” 

Praying “Thy will be done” is an affirmation that I belong to God’s kingdom, and His kingdom belongs to me. Just as His kingdom is undisputed and unimpeded in heaven—where the angelic host does His will instantly, constantly, completely and worshipfully—so I get to play a part in bringing that heaven to Earth. 

2)  I Surrender

Implicit in the prayer for God’s will to “be done on earth as it is in heaven” is the praying soul’s submission to God’s will. It makes no sense to pray for God’s will to be done everywhere but in me. Thus, “May Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” means “I will do what You say.” It is an act of surrender and willingness, an eager and obedient intention.

3)  I Choose Love

If the way of Jesus is the way of love—and it is, for He emphasized the commands to “love God” and “love your neighbor” as the sum of all the commandments—then sincerely praying for His will to be done on earth means obeying His command to love all and love always.

It means rejecting “all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice” (Ephesians 4:31, NIV). It means acting in humility, gentleness, patience, love, kindness, compassion and forgiveness (see Ephesians 4:2, 32) toward others. 

It may also mean personal sacrifice; after all, the words of the Lord’s Prayer were tried and tested, proven and polished, in the Lord’s passion. He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from Me. Yet not as I will, but as you will” (Matthew 26:39, NIV). 

Jesus not only taught, “May Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven,” He prayed it Himself, and lived it “to death—even death on a cross!” (Philippians 2:8, NIV).

“Thy will be done” reminds me daily that having “my way” is an infinitely inferior way to think and live. “Thy will be done” re-orients me to the One whose “good, perfect and pleasing will” (Romans 12:2, NIV) is the one path worth following.   

What It Really Means to Pray ‘Lord Have Mercy’

Posted on by Bob Hostetler

I pray “Lord Have Mercy” a lot. Many people do. Some pray it only in church, others say it only in desperate times. Still others repeat it often in the course of a day. I’m in the last category.  

Jesus told the story of a tax collector and a Pharisee who went into the temple to pray. The Pharisee—an upstanding citizen and religious leader—preened and pontificated in his prayer, while the tax collector confessed his sinfulness and asked for forgiveness, saying, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner”—and thus “went home justified before God” (Luke 18:13, 14, NIV).

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Truth be told, sometimes we use the phrase, “Lord, have mercy,” without thinking. It can become a one-size-fits-all sort of prayer, adaptable to many situations. Yet it is a prayer that is rich in meaning. It says: 

I’m in need.
The prayer, “Lord, have mercy,” is a confession of need—either my own need or someone else’s need. I may pray it as a confession of sin, but I may also say those words to acknowledge that I lack the resources to meet my own need. And, often, I pray, “Lord, have mercy,” for someone else, sometimes without knowing their specific need, as a way of asking God to turn His attention toward a hurting or helpless person.  

God is there.
Obviously, any prayer—if it’s sincere—reflects an awareness (or hope) that God is there, and He is listening. Otherwise, why pray anything? But “Lord, have mercy,” when offered in faith, is an affirmation not only of God’s existence but also of His proximity. He is there, He is near, and He is listening. 

God’s merciful action can change things.
Like blind Bartimaeus, who sat begging by the Jericho roadside as Jesus approached, we cry out, “Lord, have mercy,” because we believe that the Lord shows mercy, granting favor to those who deserve none, and when He does, things change—lives change. The blind are healed. The burdened are relieved. Sinners go home “justified before God” (Luke 18:14, NIV). 

I will show mercy.
Jesus told another parable about a ruler and one of his officials. The official owed a large debt, but the ruler forgave the debt, wiping his slate clean. But then the official refused to show mercy to another man, who owed him—making the ruler angry and bringing punishment on the official (Matthew 18:23-35). Because mercy should beget mercy. When I pray, “Lord, have mercy,” I should remember that God’s kindness to me should make me kind to others.

“Lord, have mercy” is a prayer for all seasons and all reasons, but it’s also a prayer with deep and wide meaning. Pray it often, for yourself and for others, and let “Mercy, peace and love be yours in abundance” (Jude 2, NIV). 

What It Really Means to Pray ‘In Jesus’ Name’

Posted on by Bob Hostetler

We do it all the time. Automatically, perhaps. Even unthinkingly. 

Many Christians pray “in Jesus’ name.” It’s a common coda to our prayers. For many of us, it’s something we learned to say early in our praying lives, in keeping with what Jesus told His followers: “Whatever you ask in My name the Father will give you” (John 15:16, NIV). But what does it mean? And are we using it properly? 

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When my father entered a retirement community, he signed a sheaf of papers granting me “power of attorney.” It was, of course, a safeguard. If he became unable to pay his own bills, make his own decisions, or even sign his name (as eventually happened), I was empowered to act on his behalf, with the understanding that I should (if possible) consult him and always act in keeping with his wishes.

That’s something like what it means to pray “in Jesus’ name.” It’s not an addendum. It’s not punctuation. It’s empowerment to speak and act on Jesus’ behalf, with the understanding that we should consult Him and always act in keeping with His wishes.

It’s an echo of Jesus’ own prayers in the Garden of Gethsemane, when He repeatedly prayed, “Not My will, but Yours be done” (Luke 22:42, NIV). Or, as He told His followers, “I can’t do anything on My own. As I listen [to the Father], I make My judgments. My judgments are right because I don’t try to do what I want but what the one who sent Me wants” (John 5:30, GWT). 

That is why, as Mother Teresa said, “Listening is the beginning of prayer.” And author Robert Benson agrees, saying, “I need to listen, listen for the prayer of God that is rising in my heart, perhaps for the prayer that I should be praying rather than the one that I am praying.”

If I’m going to truly pray “in the name of Jesus,” I must begin by asking and listening to discern what Jesus wants. My hope is to think His thoughts and then to act in keeping with His will. Then I will begin to experience the fulfillment of Jesus’ promises about prayer, those promises that seem to go unfulfilled when my prayers are focused on what I want, how I want it and when I want it. Not that sometimes God doesn’t surprise me by answering those prayers, too. 

But I’m hoping that the prayers I pray in my own name, so to speak, may decrease, and I may more habitually listen for the prayer of God that is rising in my heart, and pray that…in Jesus’ name.