“This, then, is how you should pray:
‘Our Father who is in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.'” (Matthew 6:9-13)
How to pray the way Jesus taught: intimate relationship
God is interested in building a relationship with you so that you can know and experience Him. God is not far away. He’s close. Just as we have relationships with people, God wants us to know Him in a personal way. Can you imagine what it is like to experience a personal, intimate relationship with the God of the universe?
God wants to spend time with you. He wants you to talk to Him with openness and honesty. He loves you, and desires for you to love Him in return.
As a child of God, you have a personal relationship with God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit. God will teach you personally as you spend time with Him and learn to obey Him.
Like other relationships in your life, you need to spend time with God and talk to Him. Prayer is not about reciting special words, but simply talking with God.
Guideline for prayer
How to pray the way Jesus taught? Jesus gave us a guideline for prayer in Matthew 6:9-13. These are the points He wants us to talk about when we pray to Him. He teaches us to pray like this on a daily basis:
“Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name.”
This means you can start prayer by praising God and thanking Him. Praise Him for the things He has made. Praise Him for who He is: He is faithful, good, loving, wise, powerful, and strong. Thank Him for what He has done for you. Praise Him because of His amazing creativity as Creator of the universe. Praise Him because you get to know Him personally. Worship Him.
“Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
Pray for God to help you do His will. Pray for other people too. Ask God to help others to also know Him.
“Give us this day our daily bread.”
Ask God to help you with your daily needs, and provide for you and your family. Be specific about what you need today. Don’t hesitate to ask for His help for things big or small. Practice trusting Him for everything.
“Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors”
Confess any sins to Him and ask Him to cleanse and forgive you. God does not want sin to become a wall between you and God. Ask God to help you to not sin against Him.
Forgive anyone who has wronged you so that your sins would be forgiven too. “For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.” (Matthew 6:14-15)
“Do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”
All of us have been tempted in one way or another. Ask God to help you overcome temptation. Ask God to help you keep away from sin.
Anything else
You can talk to God about anything that’s on your heart. “Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7).
Jesus has called us His friends (John 15:15), and makes known to us what He has heard from the Father. So feel free to share your feelings, dreams, and anything else with Him. But also remember that Jesus is our Lord, and just as Jesus said to the Father, “Not My will, but Yours be done” (Luke 22:42), so we should also learn to say: “Not my will, but the Father’s will be done.”
What do you need God’s help with right now? Take a moment to talk to Him about it.
Remember, prayer is not about reciting the verses in Matthew 6, but using your own words to talk to God. At least once a day, try using Jesus’s model for prayer as a guideline. You will grow much closer to God, and find more peace and joy in your life!
If you would like to learn how to pray effectively for a need, please see the article Effective Prayer.
Read Matthew 6 in the Bible. Learn about how to read the Bible.