Give Us This Day
The Lord’s Prayer
by
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Prayer is both an outward act of communication and an inner act of communion. It is an external act of encounter and an inner state of penetration. What prayer becomes is an outward expression of an inward state of being. E. Stanley Jones has said that “prayer is not so much an act as an attitude.”
I like to say that prayer is the poetry of the soul.
Prayer, as an attitude, bears a threefold relationship: toward self, with God, and with the world. But more than anything else, prayer is what makes us, as human beings, the image and likeness of God, because when we are praying, we are spiritual beings trying to connect to the Spirit of God. Often prayer includes simply presenting ourselves before the presence of God.
When Jesus began by saying “Our Father,” we know He is talking to His Father. Jesus is The Son of God. He has a very special relationship with God. But we are to address God also as our Father. We are included in this special relationship. If God is our Father, we, who speak this prayer, are all His children, and everyone else is our brothers and sisters … one family. In having us say “our Father,” not only do we claim to belong to God, but to each other!
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About the Book
Give Us This Day is more than a reflective exposition of The Lord’s Prayer – it is about prayer in general and the ways prayer manifests itself in our relationships.
By emphasizing the “us” in the prayer, Tom Kingery nurtures the relevance of what Jesus has given in teaching us this prayer. When Jesus teaches us to pray, “Our Father,” it serves as a reminder that we are all brothers and sisters. Everyone who can pray this prayer is a child of God.
E. Stanley Jones has said that “prayer is not so much an act as an attitude.” The author likes to say that prayer is the poetry of the soul. It becomes an outward expression of an inward state of being.
Prayer, as an attitude, involves a threefold relationship: with yourself, with God, and with the world. But more than anything else, prayer is what makes us, as human beings, the image and likeness of God. When we are praying, we are spiritual beings trying to connect to the spirit of God.
About the Author
Tom Kingery is the preacher at the Church by the Side of The Road in Rockton, Illinois. It is a nondenominational Christian Church with a beautiful chapel and kind heart. He has been there for four years. He retired from ministry in the United Methodist Church after thirty-six years to be his wife’s full-time caregiver. Carol died in May 2019. He has written several other books dedicated to sharing God’s word.