JW subtitle extractor

Devotion, trust,
respect,
and a dependence upon the one
to whom it is directed
—those are the components of prayer.
And prayer is really a marvelous provision.
It’s an undeserved kindness
that should not be taken for granted.
But the question
that we should consider today is,
How should we pray?
Well, the answer may seem obvious to us
because many of us
have been praying for years
and some of us for many decades.
But Jesus made this
the subject of a conversation
that he had with a disciple.
Let’s open, please, to Luke chapter 11,
and we’re going to see
that the setting was near the end
of Jesus’ ministry in 32 C.E.
He had about six months to go
in his earthly ministry,
and he was near Judea.
So a disciple requested Jesus’ thinking
on an important matter.
So let’s notice what happened
at Luke 11:1:
“Now he was in a certain place praying,
“and when he stopped,
one of his disciples said to him:
“‘Lord, teach us how to pray,
just as John also taught his disciples.’”
“Lord, teach us how to pray.”
That was his request.
And, really, we could say
that was a very humble request as well,
especially when we consider
the man’s background.
See, he was a Jew,
and prayer for Jews was a part of their life.
It was a part of their worship.
By this time in the first century,
local synagogues had copies of scrolls
for reading the Hebrew Scriptures,
and they would do so regularly every Sabbath.
So he would be familiar
with Hannah being distressed
and pouring out her heart before Jehovah.
He would also be familiar with Daniel
when he was supplicating Jehovah
regarding the welfare of his people.
And Daniel had to wait “21 days”
to get the answer from the angel.
He would be familiar with Jonah
praying from the belly of a fish.
So he was well-versed in the Scriptures.
Also, the Jews at this time
would customarily pray every morning
around 9:00 a.m.
and in the afternoon around 3:00 p.m.,
the hour of prayer when burnt sacrifices
were made at the temple in Jerusalem.
So if a Jew was not close to the courtyard
to be able to go
to the courtyard in Jerusalem to pray,
and if he wasn’t near a synagogue
to go stand and pray,
then he would pray on his own.
So prayer was a part of Jewish life.
This unnamed disciple
was likely a man of prayer.
But by making this humble request
to “teach us how to pray,”
what was he doing?
Well, he wasn’t just asking
about the mechanics of prayer
but also he was asking
to draw closer to Jehovah
—to see how he could offer
more meaningful prayers
to our Father, Jehovah.
And whom did he ask?
Did you notice?
Well, he asked the right person,
an authority on the matter.
He asked the Son of God,
“the firstborn of all creation.”
No one knew the Father
better than Jesus.
And so there’s no doubt
that the disciple’s request
warmed Jesus’ heart
and also that of his Father, Jehovah.
And in many ways
we’re like that unnamed disciple.
See, we know what prayer involves.
Really, prayer is a way of life for us.
If you think about it, at morning worship,
we offer these two prayers
(to begin and to end).
When we go to our congregation meetings,
we have prayer.
When elders get together and meet
to discuss important matters,
we pray.
When we go out in field service, we pray.
When we’re in a Bible study, we pray.
When we have family worship, we pray.
So we are living a life of prayer.
But it’s interesting.
At the same time, like that unnamed disciple,
what do we desire?
Well, we desire to be more Christlike.
We desire to be able to love Jehovah
in a more complete way.
And, really, we have the opportunity
to continue to draw closer and closer
to Jehovah every day
—and every day for all eternity.
But this starts with our very next prayer.
But let’s look at how Jesus responded
to this unnamed disciple
at Luke chapter 11,
and let’s look at verse 2:
“So he said to them: ‘Whenever you pray, say:
“‘“Father, let your name be sanctified.
“‘“Let your Kingdom come.
“‘“Give us each day our bread
according to our daily needs.
“‘“And forgive us our sins,
“‘“for we ourselves also forgive everyone
who is in debt to us;
and do not bring us into temptation.”’”
So, what do we see
from this answer that Jesus gave?
Well, he basically made it simple.
He didn’t overcomplicate it,
and he, in fact, repeated some
of the expressions that were said
in the Sermon on the Mount
some 18 months earlier.
In short, Jesus said
to focus on Jehovah’s name
(and that’s important),
then on the advancing of His purpose,
and then to also pour out our hearts
about our personal needs
that will help us
maintain our integrity to Jehovah.
So Jehovah’s things first
and then us in second place
—simplicity, practicality, depth.
And so we can benefit
from that for our prayers as well.
And today,
Jesus continues to help humble ones
strengthen their relationship with Jehovah.
And think about some of the suggestions
that we’ve gotten
from the organization over the past years.
Here’s one: Find a quiet setting.
At Mark 1:35:
“Early in the morning,
while it was still dark,
“[Jesus] got up and went outside and left
for an isolated place,
and there he began praying.”
So, what’s your isolated place?
Is it in the morning?
Is it in your bedroom?
Well, we want to find a place
where we can have quiet time,
private time, with Jehovah.
One married sister named Julie says:
“I go for a walk in the park every day.
There I can be alone, concentrate,
and really talk to Jehovah.”
Here’s a second suggestion: Linger in prayer.
Before selecting his disciples,
Jesus spent the whole night in prayer.
(Luke 6:12)
So rather than
rushing through our personal prayers
like it’s a to-do list,
perhaps we can take our time,
pray at length, linger in our prayers.
Oftentimes, two friends will linger
when they’re talking with each other
late into the night,
even though they have something to do
in the morning.
Why?
They enjoy each other’s company.
So we want to have
that same type of relationship
with Jehovah as we approach him.
Now, a third suggestion
is to pray not only at regular times
but also incidentally
as the opportunity affords.
Good friends will often text each other.
They’ll call each other.
They’ll even stop in to see each other
during the day randomly.
Why?
Because they’re just thinking of their friend.
Well, we want to do the same with Jehovah.
We want to just think about Jehovah
throughout the day
and also reach out
to stay in contact with him.
Jesus did this.
After getting some nice experiences
from his followers in the ministry,
Jesus said: “I publicly praise you, Father,
“Lord of heaven and earth, because
you have carefully hidden these things
from the wise and intellectual ones
and have revealed them to young children.”
Now, a fourth suggestion is this.
Have you ever found yourself
repeating the same expressions?
Perhaps we might feel our prayers have
become a little stale, a little superficial.
Well, if that happens,
perhaps before praying we could do this:
We could just think for a few moments
about what we are going to say.
For example, ponder some of the themes
that Jesus mentioned in his model prayer.
How can we do Jehovah’s will more fully?
What about our Bethel assignment?
How can we be more effective
in carrying it out?
What about our ministry?
How can we improve in offering Bible studies?
What about sins that we’ve committed?
What about sins we need to forgive others of?
See, these are all things
that we can think about before our prayer,
and then our expressions
will be more meaningful.
And our personal prayers (5)
need not be cold, unfeeling expressions.
Real relationships involve real emotion.
So we want to put our hearts into our prayer,
and that’s what we see in the Psalms
as we’ve been reading them
over the last few months.
For example, Psalm 13:1, 2:
“How long, O Jehovah, will you forget me?
“Forever?
“How long will you hide your face from me?
How long will I have anxious concern,
with grief in my heart each day?”
See, we can look at the Psalms
and see the agony and the joy,
but these were expressed to Jehovah.
And so we want to have
a real relationship with Jehovah,
and that involves real emotion.
So in summary, our prayers can be likened
to a bridge, to friendship with Jehovah.
And all bridges, they need repair,
they need inspection,
they need improvements
to stay in working order.
But as we continue to put forth effort
to analyze our prayers
and to enhance our prayers,
we will be able to maintain
a strong relationship
with our Father and Friend, Jehovah.

Michael E. Banks: How Should We Pray? (Luke 11:1-4)
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Michael E. Banks: How Should We Pray? (Luke 11:1-4)

Devotion, trust,
respect,
and a dependence upon the one
to whom it is directed
—those are the components of prayer.
And prayer is really a marvelous provision.
It’s an undeserved kindness
that should not be taken for granted.
But the question
that we should consider today is,
How should we pray?
Well, the answer may seem obvious to us
because many of us
have been praying for years
and some of us for many decades.
But Jesus made this
the subject of a conversation
that he had with a disciple.
Let’s open, please, to Luke chapter 11,
and we’re going to see
that the setting was near the end
of Jesus’ ministry in 32 C.E.
He had about six months to go
in his earthly ministry,
and he was near Judea.
So a disciple requested Jesus’ thinking
on an important matter.
So let’s notice what happened
at Luke 11:1:
“Now he was in a certain place praying,
“and when he stopped,
one of his disciples said to him:
“‘Lord, teach us how to pray,
just as John also taught his disciples.’”
“Lord, teach us how to pray.”
That was his request.
And, really, we could say
that was a very humble request as well,
especially when we consider
the man’s background.
See, he was a Jew,
and prayer for Jews was a part of their life.
It was a part of their worship.
By this time in the first century,
local synagogues had copies of scrolls
for reading the Hebrew Scriptures,
and they would do so regularly every Sabbath.
So he would be familiar
with Hannah being distressed
and pouring out her heart before Jehovah.
He would also be familiar with Daniel
when he was supplicating Jehovah
regarding the welfare of his people.
And Daniel had to wait “21 days”
to get the answer from the angel.
He would be familiar with Jonah
praying from the belly of a fish.
So he was well-versed in the Scriptures.
Also, the Jews at this time
would customarily pray every morning
around 9:00 a.m.
and in the afternoon around 3:00 p.m.,
the hour of prayer when burnt sacrifices
were made at the temple in Jerusalem.
So if a Jew was not close to the courtyard
to be able to go
to the courtyard in Jerusalem to pray,
and if he wasn’t near a synagogue
to go stand and pray,
then he would pray on his own.
So prayer was a part of Jewish life.
This unnamed disciple
was likely a man of prayer.
But by making this humble request
to “teach us how to pray,”
what was he doing?
Well, he wasn’t just asking
about the mechanics of prayer
but also he was asking
to draw closer to Jehovah
—to see how he could offer
more meaningful prayers
to our Father, Jehovah.
And whom did he ask?
Did you notice?
Well, he asked the right person,
an authority on the matter.
He asked the Son of God,
“the firstborn of all creation.”
No one knew the Father
better than Jesus.
And so there’s no doubt
that the disciple’s request
warmed Jesus’ heart
and also that of his Father, Jehovah.
And in many ways
we’re like that unnamed disciple.
See, we know what prayer involves.
Really, prayer is a way of life for us.
If you think about it, at morning worship,
we offer these two prayers
(to begin and to end).
When we go to our congregation meetings,
we have prayer.
When elders get together and meet
to discuss important matters,
we pray.
When we go out in field service, we pray.
When we’re in a Bible study, we pray.
When we have family worship, we pray.
So we are living a life of prayer.
But it’s interesting.
At the same time, like that unnamed disciple,
what do we desire?
Well, we desire to be more Christlike.
We desire to be able to love Jehovah
in a more complete way.
And, really, we have the opportunity
to continue to draw closer and closer
to Jehovah every day
—and every day for all eternity.
But this starts with our very next prayer.
But let’s look at how Jesus responded
to this unnamed disciple
at Luke chapter 11,
and let’s look at verse 2:
“So he said to them: ‘Whenever you pray, say:
“‘“Father, let your name be sanctified.
“‘“Let your Kingdom come.
“‘“Give us each day our bread
according to our daily needs.
“‘“And forgive us our sins,
“‘“for we ourselves also forgive everyone
who is in debt to us;
and do not bring us into temptation.”’”
So, what do we see
from this answer that Jesus gave?
Well, he basically made it simple.
He didn’t overcomplicate it,
and he, in fact, repeated some
of the expressions that were said
in the Sermon on the Mount
some 18 months earlier.
In short, Jesus said
to focus on Jehovah’s name
(and that’s important),
then on the advancing of His purpose,
and then to also pour out our hearts
about our personal needs
that will help us
maintain our integrity to Jehovah.
So Jehovah’s things first
and then us in second place
—simplicity, practicality, depth.
And so we can benefit
from that for our prayers as well.
And today,
Jesus continues to help humble ones
strengthen their relationship with Jehovah.
And think about some of the suggestions
that we’ve gotten
from the organization over the past years.
Here’s one: Find a quiet setting.
At Mark 1:35:
“Early in the morning,
while it was still dark,
“[Jesus] got up and went outside and left
for an isolated place,
and there he began praying.”
So, what’s your isolated place?
Is it in the morning?
Is it in your bedroom?
Well, we want to find a place
where we can have quiet time,
private time, with Jehovah.
One married sister named Julie says:
“I go for a walk in the park every day.
There I can be alone, concentrate,
and really talk to Jehovah.”
Here’s a second suggestion: Linger in prayer.
Before selecting his disciples,
Jesus spent the whole night in prayer.
(Luke 6:12)
So rather than
rushing through our personal prayers
like it’s a to-do list,
perhaps we can take our time,
pray at length, linger in our prayers.
Oftentimes, two friends will linger
when they’re talking with each other
late into the night,
even though they have something to do
in the morning.
Why?
They enjoy each other’s company.
So we want to have
that same type of relationship
with Jehovah as we approach him.
Now, a third suggestion
is to pray not only at regular times
but also incidentally
as the opportunity affords.
Good friends will often text each other.
They’ll call each other.
They’ll even stop in to see each other
during the day randomly.
Why?
Because they’re just thinking of their friend.
Well, we want to do the same with Jehovah.
We want to just think about Jehovah
throughout the day
and also reach out
to stay in contact with him.
Jesus did this.
After getting some nice experiences
from his followers in the ministry,
Jesus said: “I publicly praise you, Father,
“Lord of heaven and earth, because
you have carefully hidden these things
from the wise and intellectual ones
and have revealed them to young children.”
Now, a fourth suggestion is this.
Have you ever found yourself
repeating the same expressions?
Perhaps we might feel our prayers have
become a little stale, a little superficial.
Well, if that happens,
perhaps before praying we could do this:
We could just think for a few moments
about what we are going to say.
For example, ponder some of the themes
that Jesus mentioned in his model prayer.
How can we do Jehovah’s will more fully?
What about our Bethel assignment?
How can we be more effective
in carrying it out?
What about our ministry?
How can we improve in offering Bible studies?
What about sins that we’ve committed?
What about sins we need to forgive others of?
See, these are all things
that we can think about before our prayer,
and then our expressions
will be more meaningful.
And our personal prayers (5)
need not be cold, unfeeling expressions.
Real relationships involve real emotion.
So we want to put our hearts into our prayer,
and that’s what we see in the Psalms
as we’ve been reading them
over the last few months.
For example, Psalm 13:1, 2:
“How long, O Jehovah, will you forget me?
“Forever?
“How long will you hide your face from me?
How long will I have anxious concern,
with grief in my heart each day?”
See, we can look at the Psalms
and see the agony and the joy,
but these were expressed to Jehovah.
And so we want to have
a real relationship with Jehovah,
and that involves real emotion.
So in summary, our prayers can be likened
to a bridge, to friendship with Jehovah.
And all bridges, they need repair,
they need inspection,
they need improvements
to stay in working order.
But as we continue to put forth effort
to analyze our prayers
and to enhance our prayers,
we will be able to maintain
a strong relationship
with our Father and Friend, Jehovah.


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