We are down to the last sentence of the “Lord’s Prayer”. “For Thine is the Kingdom, and the Power and the Glory, Amen.” Matthew 6:9-13, does not include this sentence. Why, then, did many of us, particularly Protestants, add this sentence? To find an answer, I did some research on Google and found this…
These two commandments formed the foundation of Jesus’ living here on earth. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and might. Love your neighbour as you love yourself.” (Matthew 22:37-40) Like Jesus, we also try to live those two commandments. I love you – three precious words. When spoken and acted…
Lead Us Not Into Temptation “Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, 2 where for forty days he was tempted by the devil.” (Luke 4:1) Some scholars interpret Luke 4:1 as God’s Holy Spirit leading Jesus into the wilderness where God knew he would be tempted or tested. Jesus turned…
“The Innocence of Wonder” This morning, the miracle of nature unfolded before my sleepy eyes. Clean, sparkling snow draped cedar branches, coated bare limbs of our maple tree, greeted me as I settled in my favourite chair. A lonely little rose breasted beauty, feathers ruffled by the wind, feasted at the feeder, tiny beak beating…
Can I Forgive? Do I want to? Today’s sentence from our Christian family prayer is “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” As I think about this verse, the little word “as” stands out for me. Forgive “AS” we forgive. We all need forgiveness. Every one of us makes the…
Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread “Give us this day our daily bread.” Like every sentence in this prayer, this one has great significance. Of course, I am grateful that I don’t have to worry about having enough to eat. Of course, I pray that all people everywhere will have enough. I don’t want…
Thy Kingdom come. Thy Will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. What would it be like if God ruled this earth? What would it be like if we all actually did God’s will? Those are interesting questions. We complain about our government. Could we do better? Doubtful….
Hallowed be Thy name. Without thinking very much, we say this part of the first sentence in our Christian family prayer. It just slips out of our mouths by rote. “Hallowed” is an unusual word in our vocabulary today. It means greatly revered and honoured, set apart. I can think of two reasons why Jesus…