WEBVTT 00:00:05.661 --> 00:00:06.241 Good morning. 00:00:06.241 --> 00:00:09.550 Good morning, what a great day to be in church. 00:00:09.550 --> 00:00:10.391 You glad to be here today. 00:00:10.391 --> 00:00:13.929 All right, yeah, thank you. 00:00:13.929 --> 00:00:14.612 I like that. 00:00:14.612 --> 00:00:15.253 I like that. 00:00:15.253 --> 00:00:17.100 Hey, kids, why don't you all head out to kids? 00:00:17.100 --> 00:00:20.170 Man, let's give it up for our kids Is they're rolling out today? 00:00:20.170 --> 00:00:27.000 Hope they're, hope their leaders are ready for what's heading down that hallway here in just a moment. 00:00:27.000 --> 00:00:30.325 So we are. 00:00:30.645 --> 00:00:37.414 We are jumping in today to a series called Seven Transformational Habits. 00:00:37.414 --> 00:00:49.126 Seven Transformational Habits, and the goal of this series is to talk about what it means to live a life of following after Christ. 00:00:49.126 --> 00:00:58.609 If we're saved by grace, through faith and the end goal of our faith is that our faith would be sited, we would see Jesus face to face. 00:00:58.609 --> 00:01:04.606 What happens in the meantime, in the distance between where we are and where we're going? 00:01:04.606 --> 00:01:09.462 Well, how do we cultivate a life with Christ? 00:01:09.462 --> 00:01:16.040 That's the question that we're asking this series to start and to kick us off today. 00:01:16.200 --> 00:01:18.024 Let me tell you a quick little story. 00:01:18.024 --> 00:01:25.627 So a couple of weeks ago, I needed to pick up some six foot tables from the gym at our downtown campus. 00:01:25.627 --> 00:01:38.392 It was a Friday afternoon, the boys were home from school, and what you need to know about that is that once my boys get home from school, they don't want to go anywhere, like anywhere else. 00:01:38.392 --> 00:01:41.041 Like when they're home, they're home and they don't want to leave. 00:01:41.041 --> 00:01:46.320 They want to play Legos and football in the backyard and dig stuff up and not go places. 00:01:46.320 --> 00:01:47.262 That's what they want to do. 00:01:47.262 --> 00:01:51.421 And so I'm like, hey guys, we got to go to the church to pick up some tables. 00:01:51.421 --> 00:01:57.323 And they're like we don't want to go, like you know, nice little compliant humans, right, like no, we're not going anywhere, we're staying right here. 00:01:57.323 --> 00:02:00.827 And I was like, no, we have to go get these tables, we need them, no. 00:02:00.827 --> 00:02:07.594 And so I was like, all right, we need to rethink this, or this isn't going to go well for anybody, so let's let's create a new strategy here. 00:02:07.594 --> 00:02:11.264 I was like, guys, this is Star Wars and we have a mission. 00:02:11.264 --> 00:02:16.354 We have a mission, and the mission is that there is an imperial base. 00:02:16.354 --> 00:02:21.221 Hindsight probably shouldn't have used imperial base for the church, but that's not the point today. 00:02:21.221 --> 00:02:25.435 There's an imperial base and we are part of the rebel alliance. 00:02:25.435 --> 00:02:27.682 We need to raid the imperial base. 00:02:27.682 --> 00:02:33.848 There is equipment in the base that is essential to our fight for survival is the rebel alliance We've got to go get it. 00:02:33.848 --> 00:02:35.795 We need the two six foot tables from the gym. 00:02:35.795 --> 00:02:39.731 But in their minds they're like, yes, we're in, we're in. 00:02:39.752 --> 00:02:41.358 So there, you know, the conversation starts. 00:02:41.358 --> 00:02:41.920 Okay, who are you? 00:02:41.920 --> 00:02:42.562 Who are you? 00:02:42.562 --> 00:02:43.205 Who are you? 00:02:43.205 --> 00:02:45.033 We got our characters worked out. 00:02:45.334 --> 00:02:49.147 And you know, my four year old says dad, we need a map. 00:02:49.147 --> 00:02:50.914 So that's great, we do need a map. 00:02:50.914 --> 00:02:53.664 We need a map to get from one sector of the galaxy to another. 00:02:53.664 --> 00:02:54.769 Let's make a map. 00:02:54.769 --> 00:02:55.471 And so we did. 00:02:55.471 --> 00:03:03.718 And we started our map about a half a mile from here, ended in the far outskirts of the galaxy, 417 central Avenue, downtown church campus. 00:03:03.718 --> 00:03:06.557 And then my boys were like, okay, we're going to play dinosaurs for a few minutes. 00:03:06.557 --> 00:03:09.813 And I was like, okay, that's fine, we've got a map, we've got our costumes, we know who we are. 00:03:09.813 --> 00:03:12.223 Y'all go play dinosaurs, I'll get our shoes and then we'll go. 00:03:12.223 --> 00:03:20.167 So they play dinosaurs for like five minutes, come back together and know what happened Judah had lost the map. 00:03:21.189 --> 00:03:22.212 I'm like Judah, where's the map? 00:03:22.212 --> 00:03:22.673 I don't know. 00:03:22.673 --> 00:03:25.866 Lost the map, my bud, what was it with your dinosaur? 00:03:25.866 --> 00:03:26.868 I don't know, lost the map. 00:03:26.868 --> 00:03:43.462 And so then Judah looks at me and he says dad, we can't complete our mission without the map and I was like, well, that that will preach right there, that is a good word in the mission to get the six foot tables from the imperial base. 00:03:43.903 --> 00:03:53.293 We can't complete the mission without the map, and that is the premise of this series, that that God has called us into his mission. 00:03:53.293 --> 00:04:03.805 Right, we're saved by grace through faith in Christ, and we're saved not just from our sin, not just from hell in the wrath of God. 00:04:03.805 --> 00:04:09.283 We're saved for something Visions to tense as we're saved for good works. 00:04:09.283 --> 00:04:13.497 There's a mission, a calling, a purpose that is on our lives. 00:04:13.497 --> 00:04:18.748 And for us to complete the mission that God has for us, we need a map, do we not? 00:04:18.748 --> 00:04:32.327 Aren't you grateful that God has given us a map, that we're not here trying to navigate this journey called life, this mission called following Jesus, on our own, but that we have a map. 00:04:32.327 --> 00:04:43.794 There's a way in which God has ordained and organized this world that we get to partner with him in this pursuit of Christ. 00:04:43.794 --> 00:04:48.426 And the map is what we'll call for this series spiritual formations. 00:04:49.448 --> 00:05:08.646 God has given us a set of habits that, by cultivating these habits in our lives, we're not just creating good habits Like it's one thing to create some good habits right, you want to eat better or get to the gym more, or be more patient or be more kind. 00:05:08.646 --> 00:05:12.722 Like those are some good habits that we can cultivate in our lives. 00:05:12.722 --> 00:05:18.259 This series is about so much more than just the cultivation of good habits. 00:05:18.259 --> 00:05:32.294 It's about building a rhythm of life by which we're able to walk with God, so that when you go into your meeting on Tuesday afternoon, you know that God is with you. 00:05:32.294 --> 00:05:47.191 You've been meeting with God, you've been hearing from God, you've been walking with God so that you know, when you're parenting your kids, that you're not parenting on your own Anybody grateful you don't have to parent in your own strength. 00:05:47.191 --> 00:05:55.789 When you're dealing with that relational tension, that conflict that you can't resolve, you're not in that by yourself. 00:05:55.789 --> 00:05:58.626 You're walking with God. 00:05:58.626 --> 00:06:04.459 You're cultivating this rhythm of life that is conducive to walking with God. 00:06:05.082 --> 00:06:10.228 Anybody feel like life is just hectic and hurried and busy and there's no time for anything. 00:06:10.228 --> 00:06:16.796 This series is about taking a moment to take a deep breath and reset and go. 00:06:16.796 --> 00:06:44.346 How do we, in the middle of everything that's going on in our world, build a life in the presence of Almighty God so that, as we go, our Monday, our Tuesday, our Wednesday, our Thursday, our Friday, our Saturday is all marked by the presence of God, not just the moments where we intentionally come to church and lift our hands in worship and pause to pray, but our everyday. 00:06:44.346 --> 00:06:54.779 How many of you want your Wednesday to be marked by the presence of God, your workplace to be marked by the presence of God, your family, your marriage, your relationships? 00:06:54.779 --> 00:06:57.068 Like wouldn't that be amazing? 00:06:57.068 --> 00:07:00.106 That's what this series is about. 00:07:00.106 --> 00:07:02.819 And today you may know you may not. 00:07:03.103 --> 00:07:04.099 Today's Super Bowl Sunday. 00:07:04.099 --> 00:07:06.099 Anybody aware of the Super Bowl happening tonight? 00:07:06.099 --> 00:07:11.000 Anybody got some appetizers and chicken wings ready to go Like I'm pumped about the Super Bowl. 00:07:11.000 --> 00:07:12.646 Couldn't care less about the game. 00:07:12.646 --> 00:07:16.981 Let's be honest, my team didn't make it Like I'm just excited about chicken wings and pizza bites, you know. 00:07:16.981 --> 00:07:18.587 But it's gonna be a great day. 00:07:18.587 --> 00:07:22.810 And here's what I've loved in the lead up to this game. 00:07:22.810 --> 00:07:38.750 I don't have a dog in the fight with the teams, but what I've loved is that the biggest stage in the football world is happening tonight and so much of the conversation, the press conferences coming out of Super Bowl week. 00:07:39.239 --> 00:07:49.545 We've had players like Brock Purdy and Christian McCaffrey and Pat Mahomes and MVS from the Chiefs talking about their faith. 00:07:49.545 --> 00:07:53.668 And I don't know if you saw, there was a great interview with Brock Purdy the other day. 00:07:53.668 --> 00:08:06.008 They were asking him what his secret weapon is to the calmness that he exudes on the field, and I think he floored the reporters when he looked back and he said the answer to your question is I pray. 00:08:06.008 --> 00:08:18.334 And I think they were expecting, like, well, you know, we got the X's and the O's down and I got my coach in my ear telling me what the defense is doing and I know when the free safety rolls, here's the coverage that they're playing. 00:08:18.334 --> 00:08:21.736 No, brock Purdy says I pray, and he went on. 00:08:21.736 --> 00:08:24.463 He says I'm not praying for us to win. 00:08:24.463 --> 00:08:34.880 He said I'm praying that God, by his spirit, would allow me to represent him well as I play this game of football. 00:08:34.880 --> 00:08:41.275 And that was the last question, cause, what do you say to that Right? 00:08:41.295 --> 00:08:53.601 And so today we're going to talk about prayer, as we talk about these seven habits, seven habits that will transform our lives and help us cultivate this rhythm of life that is conducive to walking with God. 00:08:53.601 --> 00:08:57.925 Today we're going to talk about prayer, about prayer. 00:08:57.925 --> 00:09:04.463 So, with that in mind, let's go to Matthew, chapter six and we're going to read Jesus's words. 00:09:04.463 --> 00:09:08.962 I actually read this a few Sundays ago, but it's a great passage of scripture. 00:09:08.962 --> 00:09:12.259 You know it's okay to read the same passage twice in a month, isn't it? 00:09:12.259 --> 00:09:13.158 Y'all good with that today? 00:09:13.158 --> 00:09:15.079 It's where we're going, so let's go. 00:09:15.674 --> 00:09:33.103 Matthew six beginning in verse five, jesus is teaching a sermon called the Sermon on the Mount, and he's describing to his followers gathered together that day what it looks like to be part of the kingdom of God, to live life as a member of the kingdom of God. 00:09:33.103 --> 00:09:40.145 And he begins to talk about prayer and he says this when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. 00:09:40.145 --> 00:09:45.563 They love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. 00:09:45.563 --> 00:09:49.684 Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 00:09:49.684 --> 00:09:59.684 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your father, who is in secret, and your father, who sees in secret, rewards you. 00:09:59.684 --> 00:10:06.776 And when you pray, don't heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think they'll be heard for the many words. 00:10:06.776 --> 00:10:11.223 Don't be like them, for your father knows what you need before you ask him. 00:10:11.223 --> 00:10:17.603 Pray, then like this our father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. 00:10:17.603 --> 00:10:20.443 Your will be done on the earth as it is in heaven. 00:10:20.443 --> 00:10:31.000 Give us this day our daily bread, forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors, and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. 00:10:31.000 --> 00:10:33.766 Prayer. 00:10:35.414 --> 00:10:38.884 So I have to tell you, initially this message looked a lot different. 00:10:38.884 --> 00:10:41.122 There's like two versions of this thing for us this morning. 00:10:41.122 --> 00:10:54.707 The first time, I sat down and kind of outlined out some thoughts and I was talking about the different types of prayer that we see in the New Testament and a process for prayer and kind of a doctrine of prayer, if you will. 00:10:54.707 --> 00:11:06.227 And when I had finished the outline, I was looking back at it and I was like man, that's like some good content, helpful content, but it didn't feel like what God was leading us to this moment. 00:11:06.227 --> 00:11:26.044 And, to use a football metaphor, I felt like God kind of shifted the goalpost on me a little bit, because it's one thing to talk about types of prayer or a process for prayer, but what I feel like God wants to do in our lives today is he wants us to know why we pray. 00:11:26.044 --> 00:11:36.164 Because if we know why we pray, I'm convinced that God, by his spirit and through his word, he will teach us how to pray, but I don't know if it's. 00:11:36.164 --> 00:11:46.305 Maybe it's just me, maybe I'm the only one, but do you ever feel like prayer sometimes can become too ritualistic? 00:11:46.305 --> 00:11:51.995 You feel like you're talking to God but you're like my prayers aren't getting past the ceiling, like God's distant. 00:11:51.995 --> 00:11:59.855 I don't know if he's hearing me and I feel like I'm just praying because I'm supposed to pray and I'm not even sure I know how to pray or what to pray. 00:11:59.855 --> 00:12:08.355 And prayer, it can feel stiff and ritualistic and it can feel difficult and challenging. 00:12:08.355 --> 00:12:09.861 Anybody ever been there? 00:12:09.861 --> 00:12:11.875 Yeah, and so like in those moments. 00:12:11.875 --> 00:12:24.826 I think this question why pray will help us press through the difficulty and really get to the heart of what prayer is about Jesus. 00:12:25.087 --> 00:12:33.595 In Matthew chapter six, he addresses what I would argue are two main issues that hinder our prayers. 00:12:33.595 --> 00:12:35.870 He begins in verse five. 00:12:35.870 --> 00:12:38.595 He says when you pray, so the expectation is you will pray. 00:12:38.595 --> 00:12:50.266 When you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners that they may be seen by others. 00:12:50.266 --> 00:13:08.858 Now you can draw a direct line from the hypocrites in Matthew chapter six to the Pharisees in Luke, chapter 18, the religious leaders, the people who were responsible for leading the people of God, the nation of God, in the worship of God. 00:13:09.975 --> 00:13:16.130 Jesus has some harsh words and a warning to us. 00:13:16.130 --> 00:13:23.938 When, looking at the lives of the Pharisees, he said they love to pray where other people see them. 00:13:23.938 --> 00:13:27.319 And now listen, you need to understand. 00:13:27.319 --> 00:13:30.319 God's not condemning public prayer. 00:13:30.319 --> 00:13:35.406 Jesus is not speaking against prayer that happens in a setting like this. 00:13:35.406 --> 00:13:38.079 In fact, it's quite the opposite. 00:13:38.079 --> 00:13:42.744 There's beauty when we pray collectively, together, is there not? 00:13:42.744 --> 00:13:49.587 When we all pause and pray and orient our heart towards the things of God, that's beautiful. 00:13:50.500 --> 00:14:01.754 What Jesus is saying in Matthew, chapter six, verse five, is that prayer is about the posture of our hearts. 00:14:01.754 --> 00:14:19.528 For the Pharisees, the hypocrites, their hearts were not postured towards God, they were more concerned about the opinions of others, and so when they prayed, they were not praying to connect with God, they were praying to impress other people. 00:14:19.528 --> 00:14:29.790 In fact, the word that Jesus uses for hypocrite here, in the original language it literally is translated as actors playing apart. 00:14:29.790 --> 00:14:37.928 So what Jesus says is when the Pharisees are offering their prayers, they're standing on the street corners and in the synagogues. 00:14:37.928 --> 00:14:40.127 Their hearts are not towards God. 00:14:40.127 --> 00:14:42.167 They're like actors playing apart. 00:14:42.167 --> 00:14:47.385 They're just trying to impress the people that are listening to their prayers. 00:14:47.385 --> 00:14:50.026 They could care less about what God thinks. 00:14:50.026 --> 00:14:52.607 They could only care about what the people think. 00:14:54.179 --> 00:15:04.268 And isn't that where we find ourselves sometimes when it comes to prayer Worried less about what God thinks and more about what the person sitting next to us thinks? 00:15:04.268 --> 00:15:11.321 I can't tell you how many times over the years I've talked to people who are like I just can't pray out loud because I don't know how to pray. 00:15:11.321 --> 00:15:13.848 Jesus says it's not about that. 00:15:13.848 --> 00:15:16.519 It's about communicating to God. 00:15:16.519 --> 00:15:21.711 It's not about impressing the people around us In prayer. 00:15:21.711 --> 00:15:25.750 What God is after is a heart that is longing for him. 00:15:27.023 --> 00:15:39.480 It's not about impressing others, the second group that Jesus addresses in Matthew, chapter 6, in verse 7, he says when you pray, don't heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do. 00:15:39.480 --> 00:15:45.860 So he's addressed the hypocrites, the Pharisees, the religious leaders, the insiders, if you will. 00:15:45.860 --> 00:15:52.629 And now he says let's talk about the Gentiles, who were, in this day and time, the outsiders to the Jewish faith. 00:15:52.629 --> 00:16:00.170 He says don't pray like they pray either, because they think that they'll be heard for their many words. 00:16:00.170 --> 00:16:05.079 So some people, when they pray, they're primarily concerned about what other people think. 00:16:05.683 --> 00:16:14.980 When this group of people, the Gentiles, when they pray, they think that they can impress God with the right formula, the right language, the right wording of their prayers. 00:16:14.980 --> 00:16:22.591 In other words, it's the sophistication of their prayers that calls God to move on their behalf. 00:16:22.591 --> 00:16:26.250 And Jesus says that's not how it works either. 00:16:26.250 --> 00:16:28.939 It's not how it works either. 00:16:28.939 --> 00:16:38.299 It's not about a formula, it's not about hitting the right word at the right time or saying the right language, or formulating your prayer in the right way. 00:16:38.299 --> 00:16:42.185 That's not what captures God's attention Either. 00:16:44.630 --> 00:16:51.355 And then Jesus says this in verse eight don't be like then, for your father knows what you need before you ask him. 00:16:51.355 --> 00:16:57.413 And so now, at this point in time, he says hey, the insiders, the religious leaders, they're praying wrong. 00:16:57.413 --> 00:17:00.250 The outsiders, the Gentiles, they're praying wrong. 00:17:00.250 --> 00:17:02.858 And anyway, god knows what you need before you ask. 00:17:02.858 --> 00:17:09.217 So at this point in time, it's like everybody's praying wrong and God already knows what we need. 00:17:09.217 --> 00:17:17.237 So if you just read this passage of scripture, the question is like well then, why pray If everybody's doing it wrong anyway? 00:17:17.237 --> 00:17:24.339 And God already knows what we need before we even ask him why pray? 00:17:24.339 --> 00:17:25.642 Why pray? 00:17:25.642 --> 00:17:30.575 And I'm convinced that for all of us, we've felt that at some point in time. 00:17:30.575 --> 00:17:31.057 Have we not? 00:17:31.057 --> 00:17:39.515 Pretty sure I'm doing it wrong, pretty sure God's in control anyway, pretty sure his will is gonna be done because he's sovereign over it all. 00:17:39.515 --> 00:17:40.599 So why pray? 00:17:41.820 --> 00:17:53.390 There was a survey done a few years ago of pastors nationwide and the survey asked pastors to name the priorities of their ministry, and evangelism and preaching were the top two. 00:17:53.390 --> 00:17:56.390 Dead last on the list. 00:17:56.390 --> 00:17:59.230 Survey of pastors what's the priority of your ministry? 00:17:59.230 --> 00:18:09.479 Dead last on the list, it was prayer, and I saw that earlier this week and I was like we have a problem, I have a problem. 00:18:09.479 --> 00:18:13.832 I have a problem, do we not? 00:18:13.832 --> 00:18:15.492 Why pray? 00:18:16.370 --> 00:18:20.419 See, I'm convinced that for many of us, the solution to this problem is just don't pray. 00:18:20.419 --> 00:18:22.514 But that's not a solution. 00:18:22.514 --> 00:18:31.021 That's like disconnecting our lives from the only power source that actually has the power to change our life. 00:18:31.021 --> 00:18:34.752 You wanna talk about trying to complete the mission without a map. 00:18:34.752 --> 00:18:38.255 Like, let's just take the map completely at the table at that point in time. 00:18:38.255 --> 00:18:38.496 Right? 00:18:38.496 --> 00:18:50.107 Like without prayer, without the power of God moving in our lives, our mission is destined to go badly. 00:18:51.430 --> 00:18:51.932 So why pray? 00:18:51.932 --> 00:18:55.296 Well, there are a couple of things that we could talk about here. 00:18:55.296 --> 00:19:08.963 The first is this when you read through the gospels, jesus does a lot of amazing things right Miracles, healings, walks on water, raises dead people. 00:19:08.963 --> 00:19:15.592 He teaches a lot of incredible teachings, a lot of incredible moments in the life and ministry of Jesus. 00:19:15.592 --> 00:19:25.757 But you'll notice when you read the gospels, there's only one thing that the disciples clearly ask Jesus to teach them how to do. 00:19:25.757 --> 00:19:36.735 Now, because of our topic today, at this point in time, you're probably like I think I know what it is, but if I'm there, if you're there, like think about that for a second. 00:19:36.735 --> 00:19:38.496 Like what would you ask Jesus to teach you? 00:19:38.496 --> 00:19:43.261 Okay, that walking on water trick, it's pretty cool, man. 00:19:43.261 --> 00:19:46.136 Do you think you could like show me how to do that on an off day sometime? 00:19:46.136 --> 00:19:53.396 That was pretty neat when you know, when you open the blind guy's eyes with the mud and the spit, like that was next level, like that can you show me? 00:19:53.396 --> 00:19:56.213 No, the disciples. 00:19:56.394 --> 00:20:08.596 In Luke, chapter 11, jesus is off by himself praying and when he finishes, one of the disciples says to Jesus Lord, teach us to pray. 00:20:08.596 --> 00:20:17.630 It's the one clear thing in all the gospel stories that the disciples ask Jesus to teach them. 00:20:17.630 --> 00:20:19.700 Now here's what's interesting about this. 00:20:19.700 --> 00:20:24.684 These are Jewish men who grew up in Jewish tradition, jewish religion. 00:20:24.684 --> 00:20:35.940 They prayed all the time and there was something so compelling, so unique, so different and powerful and moving about the way that Jesus prayed. 00:20:35.940 --> 00:20:38.440 They're like that is what we need to know Now. 00:20:38.440 --> 00:20:41.750 Teach us to pray. 00:20:41.750 --> 00:20:49.923 And so Jesus begins to teach them how to pray, and it's the same prayer that we just read in Matthew, chapter six. 00:20:49.923 --> 00:20:52.531 It's the Lord's prayer. 00:20:52.531 --> 00:20:55.545 So why pray? 00:20:55.545 --> 00:20:57.387 Well, here's our statement for the day. 00:20:57.387 --> 00:21:10.970 This is why we pray, based on what Jesus says in Matthew six and in Luke 11, we pray because you have a heavenly father who loves you and who invites you into his work. 00:21:12.320 --> 00:21:19.526 See Jesus in response to the disciples question of teach us to pray, their request, teach us to pray like you pray. 00:21:19.526 --> 00:21:25.112 He starts with the phrase our father in heaven. 00:21:25.112 --> 00:21:32.747 Our father in heaven, which is a moment in time. 00:21:32.747 --> 00:21:56.650 If you're on the hillside in Northern Galilee listening to the Matthew six sermon, when Jesus says, pray like this and follows that up with our father, your Jewish mind would go because, because in Jewish tradition, jewish religion, they would not even speak or write the name of God. 00:21:57.480 --> 00:21:58.464 Exodus 34,. 00:21:58.464 --> 00:22:02.548 God says to Moses, yahweh, yahweh, god, merciful and gracious. 00:22:02.548 --> 00:22:17.369 He tells Moses his name and the Israelites, aware of their sinfulness, their brokenness and God's holiness and God's righteousness, wouldn't even speak or write down the name of God. 00:22:17.369 --> 00:22:31.288 They rightly recognized hey, there's a gap between who we are as sinful people and who God is in all of his holiness, and so their solution was okay, we're not gonna write or say his name. 00:22:31.288 --> 00:22:36.644 And then here comes Jesus in Matthew, chapter six teach us how to pray. 00:22:36.644 --> 00:22:39.567 We wanna pray like Jesus. 00:22:39.720 --> 00:22:58.384 Jesus says pray like this, our father, in other words, this God who is holy and righteous and just and almighty and sovereign and perfect in all that he does. 00:22:58.384 --> 00:23:01.371 He is your heavenly father. 00:23:01.371 --> 00:23:05.688 He's closer than you think that he is. 00:23:05.688 --> 00:23:08.548 You have a heavenly father. 00:23:08.548 --> 00:23:09.431 Why do we pray? 00:23:09.431 --> 00:23:13.451 Because God almighty is our heavenly father. 00:23:13.451 --> 00:23:19.163 Now I've got two boys, some of you in the room, your fathers. 00:23:19.163 --> 00:23:24.907 You know that the greatest thing in life is to hear from your kids. 00:23:24.907 --> 00:23:29.387 Like, what a gift it is when your child just wants to talk to you. 00:23:29.387 --> 00:23:34.086 Doesn't matter what about it, doesn't matter the topic of conversation. 00:23:34.086 --> 00:23:43.560 As a dad with the heart of a father for his children, like, you just wanna hear from your kids and my boys would tell you, noah's in the room right now. 00:23:43.560 --> 00:23:50.768 I am not a perfect father, but I love my sons. 00:23:51.580 --> 00:23:56.573 And Jesus says to us we have a heavenly father. 00:23:56.573 --> 00:23:59.259 We have a heavenly father. 00:23:59.259 --> 00:24:03.000 He's got a father's heart for his sons and his daughters. 00:24:03.000 --> 00:24:05.749 He wants to hear from us. 00:24:05.749 --> 00:24:12.430 He's not a cosmic blessing giver that has to be manipulated into doing what we want him to do. 00:24:12.430 --> 00:24:22.900 He's not a spiritual genie waiting on the right formation of words in order to give us our request. 00:24:22.900 --> 00:24:29.320 Nor is he a boss waiting on us to pass our performance review so that he'll do what we want him to do. 00:24:29.320 --> 00:24:32.229 No, he's our heavenly father. 00:24:32.229 --> 00:24:40.340 He's not impressed by our big words or our extensive knowledge or our theological formations, even of our prayers. 00:24:40.340 --> 00:24:44.171 He just wants to hear from us. 00:24:45.861 --> 00:24:46.925 You have a heavenly father. 00:24:46.925 --> 00:24:50.620 That's Jesus's point in Luke, chapter 11. 00:24:50.620 --> 00:24:58.660 He goes on and he says hey, if you, who are earthly fathers, you're imperfect, you're fallen, you're broken, your lives are marked by sinfulness and selfishness. 00:24:58.660 --> 00:25:04.928 If you, who are earthly fathers, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more so? 00:25:04.928 --> 00:25:10.191 Well, your heavenly father, give you what you need. 00:25:10.191 --> 00:25:12.796 Why do we pray? 00:25:12.796 --> 00:25:20.840 Because prayer connects us to the heart of our heavenly father, and I love what one pastor said. 00:25:20.840 --> 00:25:24.570 He said that God is not just a reflection of our earthly father. 00:25:24.570 --> 00:25:29.912 He is the perfection of what it means to be a father. 00:25:29.912 --> 00:25:34.306 You have a heavenly father today. 00:25:34.306 --> 00:25:37.460 He wants to hear from you. 00:25:37.460 --> 00:25:42.250 He's not distant, he's not disconnected from the circumstances of your life. 00:25:42.250 --> 00:25:51.531 He sees you, he knows you, he knows what's going on in your life, and he wants to hear from you. 00:25:51.531 --> 00:25:53.484 Isn't that beautiful. 00:25:53.484 --> 00:25:54.960 You have a heavenly father. 00:25:55.181 --> 00:26:00.030 The second part of our statement is this who loves you? 00:26:00.030 --> 00:26:01.757 Who loves you? 00:26:01.757 --> 00:26:03.122 Who loves you? 00:26:03.122 --> 00:26:06.411 Your heavenly father loves you. 00:26:06.411 --> 00:26:12.514 I'm convinced that for some of us, we operate with this sense of. 00:26:12.514 --> 00:26:27.579 We know, on one hand, that God loves us, but we're also a little bit concerned, on the other hand, that we disappoint him quite often and we are convinced, somehow, that our disappointment of God outweighs his love for us. 00:26:27.579 --> 00:26:31.951 And I just want to tell you today God loves you. 00:26:31.951 --> 00:26:35.320 Remember, he's not a reflection of your earthly father. 00:26:35.320 --> 00:26:47.211 He's the perfect father, which means that there is absolutely nothing that you could say or do or think that will cause your heavenly father to love you any less. 00:26:47.211 --> 00:27:02.445 I love my boys and I love them as much when they get it right as I do when they get it wrong, and I love them as much when they get it wrong as I do when they get it right. 00:27:02.445 --> 00:27:09.519 Y'all this is why prayer to our heavenly father no-transcript.