The Lord’s Prayer

by | Jun 11, 1997 | Poem, Relationship

(This is a little long but it is well worth reading)

Our Father who art in Heaven. . . .
Yes?
Don’t interrupt me. I’m praying. . . .
But you called Me.
Called you? I didn’t call you. I’m praying. Our Father
who art in Heaven.
There, you did it again.
Did what?
Called Me. You said, “Our Father who art in
Heaven. . . ” Here I am. What’s on your mind?
But I didn’t mean anything by it. I was, you know,
just saying my prayers for the day. I always say
the Lord’s Prayer. It makes me feel good, kind of
like getting my duty done.

All right. Go on.
Hallowed be thy name.
Hold it. What do you mean by that?
By what?
By “Hallowed be thy name.”
It means…. it means ….good grief, I don’t know
what it means. How should I know? It’s just part
of the prayer. By the way, what does it mean?
It means “honored,” “Holy,” “Wonderful.”
Hey, that makes sense. I never thought about
what “Hallowed” meant before.

Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth
as it is in Heaven.
Do you really mean that?
Sure, why not?
What are you going to do about it?
Doing? Nothing, I guess. I just think it would be
neat if you got control of everything down here
like you have up there.
Have I got control of you?

Well, I go to church.
That isn’t what I asked you. What about that habit
of lust you have? And your bad temper? You’ve really
got a problem there, you know. And then there’s the
way you spend your money…all on yourself. And what
about the kinds of books you read?
Stop picking on me! I’m just as good as some of
the rest of those phonies at the church.
Excuse me….I thought you were praying for My will
to be done. If that is to happen, it will have to start
with the ones who are praying for it. Like you, for
example.

Oh, all right! I guess I do have some hang-ups. Now
that you mention it, I could probably name some others.
So could I.
I haven’t thought about it until now, but I really would
like to cut out some of those things. I’d like to, you
know, be really free.
Good, now we’re getting somewhere. We’ll work
together….you and I can have some victories that can
truly be won. I’m proud of you.
Look, Lord, I need to finish up here. This is taking a

lot longer than it usually does…. Give us this day
our daily bread.
You need to cut down on the bread too… You’re
overweight as it is.
Hey, wait a minute! What is this, “Criticize Me Day?”
Here I was doing my religious duty, and all of a sudden
You break in and remind me of all my hang-ups.
Praying is a dangerous thing. You could wind up
changed, you know. That’s what I’m trying to get across
to you. You called me, and here I am. It’s too late to stop
now. Keep on praying. I’m interested in the next part of
your prayer…… Well, go on.

I’m scared to.
Scared? Of what?
I know what you’ll say.
Try Me and see.
Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin
against us.
What about Sally?
See I knew it! I knew you would bring her up! Why
she’s told lies about me, cheated me out of money.
She never paid back that debt she owes me. I’ve
sworn to get even.

But your prayer……What about your prayer?
I didn’t mean it.
Well, at least you’re honest. But it’s not much fun
carrying the load of bitterness around inside is it?
No, but I’ll feel better as soon as I get even. Boy,


have I made some plans for ol’ Sally! She’ll wish she
never did me any harm.
You won’t feel any better. You’ll feel worse. Revenge
isn’t sweet. Think of how unhappy you are already.
But I can change all that.
You can? How?
Forgive Sally. Then I’ll forgive you. Then the hate
and sin will be Sally’s problem and not yours. You
may lose the money, but you will settle your heart.
But Lord, I can’t forgive Sally.
Then I can’t forgive you.

Oh, you’re right! You always are. And more than I
want revenge on Sally, I want to be right with You.
All right! I forgive her. Help her to find the right road
in life, Lord. She’s bound to be awfully miserable,
now that I think about it. Some way, some how,
show her the right way.
There now! How do you feel?
Hmmm….not bad. Not bad at all, In fact I feel pretty
great. You know, I don’t think I’ll have to go to bed
uptight tonight for the first time since I can’t remember.
Maybe I won’t be so tired from now on because I’m not
getting enough rest.

You’re not through with your prayer…..Go on.
Oh, all right…..And lead us not into temptation, but
deliver us from evil.
Good…good. I’ll do that. Just don’t put yourself in a
place where you can be tempted.
What do you mean by that?
Quit hanging around the wrong places, watching
inappropriate movies and television, listening to sinful
conversations; getting into compromising situations.
Change some of your friendships. Some of your
so-called friends are beginning to get to you. They’ll
have you completely involved in wrong things before
long. Don’t be fooled. They advertise they’re having
fun, but for you it would be ruin. Don’t use me for an
escape hatch.

I don’t understand.
Sure you do. You’ve done it lots of times. You get
caught in a bad situation, you get into trouble and
then you come running to me. “Lord, help me out
of this mess, and I promise you I’ll never do it again.”
You remember some of those bargains you tried to
make with me?
Yes, and I’m ashamed, Lord. I really am.
Which bargains are you remembering?

Well, when the woman next door saw me backing
away from the neighborhood bar. I’d told my wife I
was going to the store. I remember telling you, “Lord,
don’t let her tell my wife where I’ve been. I promise
I’ll be in church every Sunday.”
She didn’t tell your wife, but you didn’t keep your
promise, did you?
I’m sorry Lord, I really am. Up until now I thought if
I just prayed the Lord’s prayer everyday, then I could
do what I liked. I didn’t expect anything to happen like
it did.

Go ahead. Finish your prayer.
Oh yes….For Thine is the kingdom and the power,
and the glory forever and forever. Amen.
Do you know what would bring me glory? What would
make me really happy?
No, but I’d like to know. I want to please You. I can see
what a mess I’ve made out of my life, and I can see
how great it would be to really be one of Your followers.
You just answered the question.
I did?
Yes, the one thing that would bring me glory is to
have people like you truly love me. And I can see
that happening between us. Now that some of these
old sins are exposed and out of the way, well, there’s
no telling what we can do together.

Lord, let’s see what we can make of me, OK?
Yes, let’s see……

Author unknown. If anyone has a proprietary interest in this story please authenticate and I will be happy to credit, or remove, as the circumstances dictate.

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