OUR FATHER KNOWS OUR NEEDS
The "Lord's Prayer" reveals our true dependence on Him... Our need is to depend on our heavenly Father each step of this life's journey.
The prayer we call the "Our Father" was, it seems, given to the disciples by Jesus as a model of how to pray, and a pattern of priorities that should be contained in each of our prayers. It has become, of course, the most popular prayer among us as a Christian people. Praying is not a matter of informing God of our necessities and desires. Prayer must be an expression of trust, a matter of genuine statement of our needs and hopes, and a way of preparing our hearts for what is now or for what will be in the future. We need to put the emphasis on the quality of time and conversation with our heavenly Father.
Perhaps we can look at it this way: prayer doesn't begin, end, or depend on our technique. Prayer begins, ends, and depends on the God to Whom we pray. The "Lord's Prayer" reveals our true dependence on Him. We pray for daily bread, trusting that God will provide all we need from day to day. In this prayer, we dare to call God "our Father" and boldly ask for the things we need to live as His children in this world that He created for us. Jesus gives us words to acknowledge that, on our own, we face temptations, trials, and doubts that would otherwise draw us away from a life of faith. Our need is to depend on our heavenly Father each step of this life's journey.
God's nature is to love generously and to forgive mercifully. He gives more than we need so we will have something to share with others in their need as well. In our Responsorial Psalm, today, we hear the words, "Your works, O Lord, are justice and truth" (Ps 111:7a). May we also call to mind Jesus' words, "Your Father knows what you need before you ask Him" (Mt 6:8).