Young People's Group

Lord, Teach Us How to Pray

by Mitchell Tan
March 11, 2016

LOOKING FORWARD TO A SPECIAL TIME OF LEARNING ABOUT PRAYER

A humble and learning attitude is the best thing to possess as we begin Family Camp 2016 soon. Many relevant principles of prayer would be taught at this camp and whether we learn them well would be determined by the kind of attitude we have. A learning attitude was reflected in a request made by one of the disciples when he saw his Master praying one day.

“Lord, teach us to pray…”
Luke 11:1

This disciple made a strong entreaty to the Lord to help him and the others to pray. There was a sincere sense of purpose to want to be instructed by the Lord Jesus. Their request reflected a good desire to want to learn and grow in the realm of prayer. Their request is an important one that we all should make too. Let’s come to the Family Camp with the desire to sincerely learn about prayer.

SEEING JESUS AS A GREAT EXAMPLE OF A MAN OF PRAYER

“Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him”
Luke 11:1

Why did the disciples of Jesus ask Him to teach them about prayer? One of the reasons was that they had come to see Him as a great example of One who prayed. The Lord Jesus had just spent some time in prayer. He went to a certain place and there He prayed. They must have seen the Lord Jesus pray in such a manner on many occasions. In Luke 4:42, the Lord had departed to a deserted place to pray. He got up early in the morning to be in solitude with God (Mark 1:35). There was a tremendous display of discipline and devotion to the Lord God. In Luke 5:16, the author of the gospel also noted that the Lord Jesus Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed. He took time to be with God and to commune with Him. In Luke 6:12, Luke noted that He prayed all night to God so that He would be able to select 12 disciples for leadership. In Luke 9:18, Luke further noted the Lord Jesus was praying alone and His disciples came and joined Him. They had seen how the Lord Jesus consistently prayed to the Father. They recognised that they were sorely lacking in this spiritual discipline and they wanted to learn from the Lord Himself.

THE PROBLEM WITH HAVING PRE-CONCEIVED IDEAS ABOUT PRAYER

“As John also taught his disciples.”
Luke 11:1

There was a slight problem with the disciples’ request. They wanted to learn to pray in the same manner as John taught his disciples. In Luke 5:33, we have a glimpse concerning how John and his disciples prayed. They often fasted and prayed in a similar manner as the Pharisees did. The disciples of the Lord Jesus had assumed that their way was the best way to pray. They already had some pre-conceived ideas about prayer. The Lord Jesus had to teach and gently correct the disciples concerning how to really pray to God in a right manner.

PRAYING FOR THE LORD GOD TO TEACH … EVEN CORRECT US

Perhaps, we too may have wrong pre-conceived ideas of what prayer should be. Young people, may we seek be corrected of them. Let’s come and learn from Pastor about what it really means to call on the Lord as we turn to Him in prayer. May the Lord teach and guide us on how we can better relate to Him. Let’s pray, “Lord, teach us to pray…”

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