PEACE’S – YEAR ON MISSION: In, Through and With Him
8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 9 Pray then like this:
“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
10 Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread,
12 and forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
Have you ever taken time to reflect upon where the Lord is leading you each time you pray the Lord’s Prayer? Here’s what I mean.
Introduction – When we pray “Our Father in Heaven”, we are making profession that He is God and we are not. This leads us to the place we belong, as children fully reliant on the Father.
First Petition – When we name Him Holy, we are reminding ourselves that we are not holy, which leads us to a place of repentance and forgiveness.
Second and Third Petition – When we ask for His kingdom to come and His will to be done, we are dethroning our own will and replacing it with His rule and reign. We are being led to the love and care of a perfect King.
Fourth Petition – When we ask for Him to “Give us this day our daily bread”, we are asking for Him to provide in every way. Thus, being led to trust in His providence.
Fifth Petition – When we ask Him to forgive us, we are also asking Him to help us forgive others in the same manner. In this prayer He is leading us to get over ourselves and admit fault and leads us to forgive others.
Sixth and Seventh Petition – When we pray for Him to help us with temptation and deliver us from evil, we’re giving witness to His power and promise to keep us from all harm. He is leading us to admit we need Him to navigate the burdens and temptations of this world.
Whenever we are praying the Lord’s prayer we’re submitting to the grace, providence and authority of the Lord. We are in some small way being re-oriented to where God created us to live, which is in, through and with Him.
This year Peace is going to step out in mission to our community and abroad by spending a Year on Mission. A part of this initiative is a mission trip to Guatemala, where we’re going to build as many houses as we can with the money we raise and volunteers that step forward.
The reason we’re doing this is because mission trips change people’s lives for the better. Faith grows and eternal perspective is gained. While I’m sure there’s an exception to this, I’ve never met a person whose life and faith hasn’t been drastically changed by involvement with a mission trip.
I’ve never really been able to pin down the reason for this, but I think I’ve reached an age where I now understand why. When you go on a mission trip, you quickly learn you’re not in control. You travel where He leads, eat and sleep where He provides. You don’t understand the language or the culture. You’re a foreigner and usually someone else is leading you. The work you do is not about you, but for His higher purposes and since you feel out of control, you usually spend a lot of time in prayer.
Mission trips are faith accelerants because you get a front row view to God’s Kingdom work. On a mission trip, you get to see God directly answer prayer as He provides for you. You get to see Him change people’s lives through your work and words. You get to see His Kingdom go forward. If the Lord leads us to a life in, through and with Him in a small way every time we pray the Lord’s prayer, then, on a mission trip He does this in a BIG way.
If you choose to go on a mission trip, you’ll learn what you’ve always believed, but not always let yourself experience. He is God; you are not. He will provide, protect and change lives. And when you get back, you’ll realize your life here in Arvada, CO is the same as it was in the foreign country you just got back from. You will realize that He has just as much for you to do here, as He did there.
I hope you choose to avail yourself to the experience of a mission trip someday. Consider this year. I’ll be praying for you as you ask the Lord’s will for your life.
In His Grip,
Senior Pastor – Guy Roberts
