When someone asks me how Jesus taught us to pray, I always feel a quiet joy rise within me. This question comes from a heart that truly wants to draw closer to God. And Jesus Himself welcomed that longing. In the Gospel of Luke, the disciples come to Him and simply say, “Lord, teach us to pray.” It is a request He still hears from us today.
Jesus begins by reminding us that prayer is not about performance. He tells us to step away from the noise, to enter the “inner room” of the heart, and speak honestly to the Father who already knows our needs. There is such gentleness in this teaching. Prayer, for Jesus, is not a burden but a relationship—one rooted in trust, like a child leaning into the embrace of a loving parent.
And then Jesus gives us the most precious gift of all: the Lord’s Prayer. “Our Father…” These two words alone changed everything. We are invited to speak to God not as a distant ruler, but as a Father who loves us. In this prayer, Jesus teaches us to praise God’s holiness, to seek His will above our own, to ask for our daily needs, to seek forgiveness and offer it, and to trust in God’s protection. Every line is a path that leads our hearts toward the Kingdom.
What this means for us today is beautifully simple. When we pray, we don’t need complicated words. We need openness. We can speak to God honestly about our fears, our joys, our hopes, and even our confusion. Jesus teaches us to pray with humility, with forgiveness in our hearts, and with confidence that the Father listens. And the more we pray, the more we discover that prayer is not just something we do—it becomes the way we live in God’s presence.
May our hearts echo the disciples’ request each day: “Lord, teach us to pray.” And may the words Jesus gave us draw us ever deeper into the tenderness of the Father’s love.
— Fr. John Matthew, for Christian Way
