When it comes to prayer, my thesis is simple; as Jesus taught us to pray, He did more than give us a rote model prayer to repeat. He gave us the chiefest tool for prayer in how His model functions. Let me try to explain by continuing with my tuning analogy.

‌If you were to sit down with a 6 string guitar, you would start by tuning it. The E string is the lowest, thickest string, and you end up tuning all the others to that one ascending higher as you go: E-A-D-G-B-E. Now that’s all good and well, but the E string you begin with, has to be tuned itself. There is an objective “E”. When the string vibrates at about 82 Hz (82 times per second), the sound that it makes is – E.

‌Back to prayer.

‌Prayer as Jesus taught it, is designed to tune our hearts to the mind, plans and purposes of God. Without getting wonky or New-Agey, it finds us in tune with Him. So when Jesus taught the Disciples to pray, starting at the top (the prayer runs from top down) He was in effect saying: “Do you know what the most important thing in all the cosmos is? It is that the whole of creation, especially all sentient beings – would come to honor, revere, sanctify, love – hallow – My Father’s name. That He might be seen and responded to as is right and fitting for who and what He is.”

‌This, was Jesus’ heart. And in order, nothing else beneath it can come to its proper place until this is set.

‌Do you remember Jesus’ own prayer in John 17? “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son THAT the Son may glorify you.” And “I glorified you on earth,” and, “I have manifested your name to the people.” (Emphases mine)

‌What does it mean to “glorify” God? The key is located in Jesus’ words “I have manifested your name.” In other words – I have made you known. To glorify God, is to reveal Him for who and what He is, and does.

‌To reveal Him.

‌Not to make Him greater than He is, for that is an impossibility.

‌Not to make Him other than He is, for that is idolatry.

‌Especially not to make Him less than He is, for that is blasphemy.

‌But to make Him known AS he is.

‌And why is this so important? Because the obscuring of God’s glory, the casting of a shadow on His goodness, greatness, justice, love, etc. is at the root of all sin. It was at the root of The Fall. Satan’s great ploy was to get Adam and Eve to question God’s character. To make Him suspect. To besmirch His name. To make Him seem as though petty, jealous, and withholding from them what was best and most pleasing.

‌So it is, the reversal of The Fall requires the undoing of what was done in The Garden. The restoration of His name. For all to see Him in His beauty, His majesty, His holiness, His goodness, His mercy, grace, kindness and power. To see Him in such august wonder that the creature cannot help but burst out into transcendent praise. To be overwhelmed with His wonder so as to be lost in an ocean of joy and awe.

‌This, is the very heartbeat of Christ – “O that all peoples everywhere would know My Father the way I know my Father. That they would love Him as I love Him. That they would honor Him as is right and proper and good. That they could see Him as He really is.” For He is the very fountain of all goodness.

‌Now I will do my best to unpack this first petition for the hallowing, the holy-ing of the Father’s name next time. But I want to emphasize here that until we are in tune with Jesus on what is most important cosmically, and enter into it purposefully ourselves, our prayer lives will really suffer loss. Not that God does not hear and answer – He does – ALL THE TIME! He is SO good, SO gracious, SO pleased to meet us in our needs from the most mundane to the most profound. He is ever and always open to the cries of His blood-bought ones. Hallelujah! But I do think we are missing much of the freedom and joy and pleasure that prayer can hold for us, when we fail to start by tuning our hearts and minds to His from the get go. It will make everything else flow in a most sweet and captivating way.

‌As I said, more on this next time as we see this initial petition as the foundation of all prayer. We’ll look at it in 4 brief dimensions. And I hope it will open a door to a true adventure in the growth of your own prayer life. In the meantime, I would only ask that you give this initial thought a little time to marinate within. What would the universe be like, if once again, the Father’s name was reverenced, cherished and delighted in as is proper given who He is? Let your mind soak that in a bit.‌

One last thing.

‌Note that in Jesus’ prefacing words to this prayer in Matt. 6 – how He instructs us first of all to enter into a room – someplace alone, shutting the door, and praying to the Father in secret. For this, Beloved, in all He has done for us in His life, Crosswork and resurrection is truly amazing. He has made the way for you and I, to step directly into the presence of His Father.

“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” (Heb. 10:19-22)

‌When we pray beloved, we are not engaging in some disconnected religious exercise – we are coming to His Father and now ours (if we are in Christ), in personal, face to face communion. So it is right this be done alone. In secret. It need not be with prescribed time limits – great or small. It DOES need to be thoughtful and deliberate, even if we do not know what to say. But to be someplace, where we acknowledge – for these moments – Father, I recognize I am before you. I’ve come to meet with you, and I take a moment to remember who and what you are.

‌Begin here Christian. And so very much will follow easily.