Will

–verb (used with object), verb (used without object)
1. to wish; desire; like: Go where you will. Ask, if you will, who the owner is.


There were quite a lot of definitions for the word, ”will”, but none of them were used in accordance with the Lord’s Prayer except for the one above. God’s desire for us is always what is best for us. How do we know this? Because He tells us so in the way He leads us. He tells us so in the way He teaches us, in the way He loves us and in the way He forgives us. Many times throughout our salvation history God intervened with man by way of holy men. Starting with Adam, moving on to Noah, to Moses, to Abraham, to David, and finally sending His own beloved son as a man, God made specific covenants with us that would lead us to His will. Each time God communicated with us His divine will for us in our lives so that we could eventually get back to Him which is what we all want, whether or not we know it. Each time he made a covenant with us, we would blow it. We could not hold up our end of the bargain. So the Father decided to send his Son to make one final covenant with us. This one could not be blown. This one was for all time. All we have to do is say, “Amen”, and we are His. All we have to do is enter into his will for us. Where do we find out His will? It’s right there in every book of the bible.
Long ago, I wondered why God didn’t just send me a note to let me know exactly what He wanted me to do with my life. It turns out He did. Letter after letter is listed there in the New Testament, letters from Paul to the Romans, Colossians, Ephesians, Galatians, and Corinthians. Letters from Peter, James, Timothy, Titus, and John. And these are not all of them by any means. Through those letters, He sent me note after note. And He sends them to you too. All we need do is begin to read and to study. Then all we need to do is apply this wisdom to our lives, just exactly where we are. Most of the time we won’t have to pack up and move to a new life. No, God put us here in the first place. If we’ve made a mess of things it’s because we forgot to read the note, or the letter, or the plan of His will. Thy will be done!

Thy
thy
–pronoun
the possessive case of thou (used as an attributive adjective before a noun beginning with a consonant sound): thy table.
thou
,pronoun, singular, nominative thou; possessive thy or thine; objective thee; plural, nominative you or ye; possessive your or yours; objective you or ye; verb
–pronoun


Thy will be done……It is a very formal way of speaking. It reminds me a little of the Shakespearean poetry. The old English usage from hundreds of years ago seems to equate more respect somehow, so therefore it remains here in the prayer.
Have you heard the prayer spoken aloud with the word “your” in place of the “thy”?

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done…. Somehow it loses a bit of the respectful nature of the prayer. It seems all of a sudden that the Father is a buddy of ours. Not that that in itself is a bad thing. Familiarity breeds comfort. But sometimes comfort breeds self-ish-ness. It is just lacking a little when it comes to the respectful nature that the prayer has otherwise.

Our Father who art in heaven,
Hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come,
Your will be done.

It starts to sound a bit like a rap song to me too. It could be a song that others would relate to more readily. Perhaps it would.

As for me, I think I’ll keep the “thy”.

Come
Spelled Pronunciation [kuhm] verb, came, come, com⋅ing, noun
–verb (used without object)
1. to approach or move toward a particular person or place: Come here. Come closer!
2. to arrive by movement or in the course of progress: The train from Boston is coming.
3. to approach or arrive in time, in succession, etc.: Christmas comes once a year. I'll come to your question next.
4. to move into view; appear.
5. to extend; reach: The dress comes to her knees.
6. to take place; occur; happen: Success comes to those who strive.
7. to occur at a certain point, position, etc.: Tuesday comes after Monday. Her aria comes in the third act.
8. to be available, produced, offered, etc.: Toothpaste comes in a tube.
9. to occur to the mind: The idea just came to me.
10. to befall: They promised no harm would come to us.
11. to issue; emanate; be derived: Peaches come from trees. Good results do not come from careless work.
12. to arrive or appear as a result: This comes of carelessness.
13. to enter or be brought into a specified state or condition: to come into popular use.
14. to do or manage; fare: She's coming along well with her work.
15. to enter into being or existence; be born: The baby came at dawn.

How many times have we seen the word, “come”? It appears on every invitation. Come to our party! Help us to celebrate! Come to our open house. Come and join us in whatever endeavor. It appears, not only on an invitation but as an invitation, to welcome others, whether to a party or to a lesson or to a service. Come…It’s an open door just waiting for a response. How is the door to my heart? Is it open, open to the Father’s kingdom? Each and every time we recite the Our Father we invite the Father, come, and enter my heart, Lord God of all. Once the door is opened by us, the Father can work miracles through us, for us, by us. He uses each one of us in marvelous ways. Look around you and behold the people of the Lord. They are there in service to one another in a thousand different ways. Some come as doctors, some come as teachers, some as priests, many come as parents. Once we have opened the door to our hearts, our own wills are cast by the wayside. It is now the Father’s will in which we live. His will is the same, yesterday, today, and tomorrow, that we love one another as He has loved us.

Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Matt 26:34

Kingdom

Kingdom

king⋅dom
Spelled Pronunciation [king-duh m]
–noun
1. a state or government having a king or queen as its head.
2. anything conceived as constituting a realm or sphere of independent action or control: the kingdom of thought.
3. a realm or province of nature, esp. one of the three broad divisions of natural objects: the animal, vegetable, and mineral kingdoms.
4. Biology. a taxonomic category of the highest rank, grouping together all forms of life having certain fundamental characteristics in common: in the five-kingdom classification scheme adopted by many biologists, separate kingdoms are assigned to animals (Animalia), plants (Plantae), fungi (Fungi), protozoa and eucaryotic algae (Protista), and bacteria and blue-green algae (Monera).
5. the spiritual sovereignty of God or Christ.
6. the domain over which the spiritual sovereignty of God or Christ extends, whether in heaven or on earth.

All of the definitions above speak of the meanings of the word, ”kingdom”. Only two, number’s 5 and 6 speak of the kingdom that belongs to God. That is, those are the only two that mention God’s name as the sovereign power.
The other definitions talk about kingdoms governed by man or of kingdoms being separations in science or separations in thought.
If we begin to separate the kingdoms of the earth into animal, vegetable, or mineral, we begin to see the complexity of the creation of the earth. We begin to see the incredible ordering of all the elements and how they work together to cause the changing of the seasons and the cycles of life that abound through them. If you look then, at the classifications of the scientific kingdoms and see the levels of life therein, you can see the mighty power of the creator of all those forms of life. Some of them are not even visible to the naked eye. Some are not visible unless a high powered lens is included the study. Some are too sublime to be understood by the unscientific lay person. Regardless of our understanding, though, they remain an important part of the world, part of the kingdom.
There are countless debates going on today about kingdoms. The obvious debates are the countries who remain at war. There are fights about kingdoms, whose is whose, and what is whose. There are debates about the kingdoms of when life is life and when it is deemed valuable. We, as a people, have a bit of that kingdom over which we lord power too. We get to vote in this country and give voice to the overall governing of our little piece of this kingdom of the earth. With that comes responsibility, especially from those of us who pray the “Our Father”. We pray thy kingdom come, not my kingdom come. He, the Father, has already given us a clear cut set of rules. When next we vote, dear Lord, help us to remember thy kingdom.
When again we look at the definitions, we can see that they are all about God’s Kingdom. Because God’s kingdom is everything and everywhere and everyone, seen and unseen. Thy kingdom come!

THY

Spelled Pronunciation [th ahy]
–pronoun
the possessive case of thou (used as an attributive adjective before a noun beginning with a consonant sound): thy table.
thou
Spelled Pronunciation [th ou] ,pronoun, singular, nominative thou; possessive thy or thine; objective thee; plural, nominative you or ye; possessive your or yours; objective you or ye; verb
–pronoun
Thy will be done……It is a very formal way of speaking. It reminds me a little of the Shakespearean poetry. The old English usage from hundreds of years ago seems to equate more respect somehow, so therefore it remains here in the prayer.
Have you heard the prayer spoken aloud with the word “your” in place of the “thy”?

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done….

Somehow it loses a bit of the respectful nature of the prayer. It seems all of a sudden that the Father is a buddy of ours. Not that that in itself is a bad thing. Familiarity breeds comfort. But sometimes comfort breeds self-ish-ness. It is just lacking a little when it comes to the respectful nature that the prayer has otherwise.

Our Father who art in heaven,
Hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come,
Your will be done.

It starts to sound a bit like a rap song to me too. It could be a song that others would relate to more readily. Perhaps it would.

As for me, I think I’ll keep the “thy”.

NAME

Name

Spelled Pronunciation [neym]
noun, verb, named,
–noun
1. a word or a combination of words by which a person, place, or thing, a body or class, or any object of thought is designated, called, or known.
2. mere designation, as distinguished from fact: He was a king in name only.
3. an appellation, title, or epithet, applied descriptively, in honor, abuse, etc.
4. a reputation of a particular kind given by common opinion: to protect one's good name.
5. a body of persons grouped under one name, as a family or clan.

Shakespeare says that a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, and that is absolutely true. On the other hand, there is such a wide variety of roses. Each one has a unique scent unto itself. Some smell sugary sweet. Others have a spicy scent. Still others give off an air of innocence and mildness. And at the same time all of the roses are virtually the same. Their genus provides that they grow on canes, that they have thorns, that they produce exquisite flora. The rose has long been a symbol for love and friendship and sympathy and many other emotions.
The rose is comparable to the Name of God. He is Creator. He is Wonderful Councilor, Great Protector, Yahweh, and Adonai. He is the Great I Am. He is Jesus, Emmanuel, Savior, Christ, King of Kings, and Merciful Lord. He is Wisdom, and the Word. He is The Still Small Voice. There are countless other names by which we know our God. All of these names tend to our souls in a different manner. When we are lost, we speak to the Shepherd who guides our way. When we are lamenting our sinful natures, the Savior gives us hope. He is the same God, the one God, and the mighty God. But he has many faces for us, His people. A rose by any other name would smell as sweet. Similarly, our God by any other name, is as awesome.

Thy
thy
–pronoun
the possessive case of thou (used as an attributive adjective before a noun beginning with a consonant sound): thy table.
Three times during this prayer, Jesus uses the word thy. It is of course interchangeable with the word “your” in our current vernacular. He says, “Hallowed be thy name.” And “Thy kingdom come.” And “Thy will be done.”
There is nothing special about the word except in using it we give over our own wills to God. Did I say nothing special? That is an incredibly difficult thing to do for me and for many others. Give over our own power to another. How many of us can do this with ease? Could you give yourself over to your boss? How about your spouse? Let it all go into the hands of a friend? It’s really not so easy.
There’s a common saying in my house, “Don’t tell me what to do!” Have you heard that at your house? Maybe not in those exact words, but I am willing to wager that you have heard it. How many times then, do you think God has heard this same statement? He heard it from Jonah, and Jonah ended up in the belly of a whale. He heard it from Elijah and Elijah ended up tasting a burning coal. He heard it from all of the Israelite people in the desert, and they ended up with poisonous seraphs surrounding them.
No wonder Jesus urges us to say, “Thy will be done.” And what exactly does that mean? God’s will, if we are willing to accept it, is right there in our daily lives. It is exactly the place where we are, doing exactly as He guides us to do. Remember the Ten Commandments? They are still a guide that we should be following. Jesus enhanced these commandments with, “Love God with all your strength, your heart, your soul.” And, “Love one another as I have loved you.”
As long as you put these two things together, that is, your life and His commandments and His guidance, you are giving over the power to Him. It is when we take the power back into our own hands that we get ourselves into trouble. Now, trouble like Jonah’s doesn’t come along too often, but I think you know what I mean.
“Thy” only seemed like a tiny little insignificant word in these three places. On the other hand it is huge. Hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done.

Be

Be
–verb (used without object)
1. to exist or live: Shakespeare's “To be or not to be” is the ultimate question.
2.to take place; happen; occur: The wedding was last week.
3.to occupy a place or position: The book is on the table.
4.to continue or remain as before: Let things be.
5.to belong; attend; befall: May good fortune be with you.
6.(used as a copula to connect the subject with its predicate adjective, or predicate nominative, in order to describe, identify, or amplify the subject): Martha is tall. John is president. This is she.
(used as a copula to introduce or form interrogative or imperative sentences): Is that right? Be quiet! Don't be facetious.

I think we need to look at definition #’s 1 and 4 this time. The first definition of being is to exist. In the gospel of John, John refers to Jesus as the Word. He reminds us that, “In the beginning was the Word.” Thereby he says that Jesus, the Word, who we know is a part of the most Holy Trinity, was in existence before all time. He says so gently and eloquently when he says, “Through him all things came into being, and apart from him nothing came to be. Whatever came to be in him found life, life for the light of the world.” John1:3-4 In the fourth definition, that “to be” means to continue or to remain as before. If then, the Trinity existed before time, it stands to reason that the Trinity will remain as before, until all time. So when we say, ”Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name”, we are saying that He will be revered forever and for always just by using the word “be”. That’s a whole lot of meaning packed into a little tiny word.
Doris Day used to sing a song called “Que Sera,Sera”, that is, Whatever will be, will be. That is very hopeful when we put God in the “whatever” place, God is, so He will be. It doesn’t matter what happens, He will still be. Paul said as much to the Romans in chapter 8, “neither life nor death nor angels, nor principalities can separate us from His love.
Isn’t that comforting? No matter what happens, God will always be. Glory! Glory be!

Hallowed

Hallowed
hal⋅lowed
in liturgical use often hal-oh-id]
–adjective
regarded as holy; venerated; sacred: Hallowed be Thy name; the hallowed saints; our hallowed political institutions.

There is only one definition here. How incredibly coincidental that it uses the “Our Father” as an example of how to use the word, “hallowed”?
The book of Revelation says, ”O Lord our God, you are worthy to receive glory and honor and power. For you have created all things; by your will they came to be and were made.” That sounds like hallowed to me.
Let’s stop for a moment and look at our society. Are there others who are hallowed? How about the leaders of the world? Some of them are hallowed. Are they worthy of our honor, and respect? Sure they are. How about the inventors, the scientists, the builders? Where would we be without them? How about the actors and the musicians and the sports stars? Are they hallowed as well? You know, as well as I that they are, and sometimes to a degree that is well beyond the hallowing given to God. Where exactly should we draw the line or set up some level of honoring God to the degree he deserves?
God always has the answer. This time is no different. In the Ten Commandments he answers this one with the first commandment. I am the Lord thy God, you shall not have strange gods before me. Ex.20:2 So then His answer is clear. All people can and should be revered. But none should be revered before, or ahead, or more than He, ever!
Here are some things we might ask ourselves.
• Am I putting any activity that I hold so dear, ahead of my God?
• Am I idolizing movie stars and sports teams and players?
• Am I hallowing the leaders of the world and forgetting about the creator of the world?
• Do I seek the advice of the fashion designers before I seek the advice of the designer of all creation?
Perhaps it’s time to rethink where we place honor and glory and power. Perhaps we have forgotten to focus on who is really important. Perhaps we should once more say, “Hallowed be thy name!”

Heaven

Heaven

Spelled Pronunciation [hev-uh n]
–noun
1.the abode of God, the angels, and the spirits of the righteous after death; the place or state of existence of the blessed after the mortal life.
2.(initial capital letter ) Often, Heavens. the celestial powers; God.
3.a metonym for God (used in expressions of emphasis, surprise, etc.): For heaven's sake!
4.heavens,
a.(used interjectionally to express emphasis, surprise, etc.): Heavens, what a cold room!
b.(used with a singular verb ) a wooden roof or canopy over the outer stage of an Elizabethan theater.

5.Usually, heavens. the sky, firmament, or expanse of space surrounding the earth.
6.a place or state of supreme happiness: She made his life a heaven on earth.


In the beginning, there were the heavens and the earth. God created the heavens first. He might have done that out of His profound mercy for us that we would have a home after this earthly one. His love for us surpassed even His creating us. He knew we would need a place to be after these earthly bodies failed. He knew we would choose to disobey Him and turn away from Him. And still, He created the heavens and the earth. That is some kind of love.

Because we can understand that the love He has for us is there in spite of what we do to go against His plan, we try to understand what the place, heaven, might be like.
Some of us have picture is our heads of angels playing harps to their hearts content. Some of us have a favorite thing that we imagine might be there in abundance. Some still might have visions of healing comfort, eternal peace. Though these things might be the truth, we really have no idea what it will be like. Eye has not seen, ear has not heard what God has ready for those who love Him. 1Cor 2:9
As the children sing:

Heaven is a wonderful place,
Filled with glory and grace,
I want to see my Savior’s face,
Yes, heaven is a wonderful place.
I wanna to go there!

The children want to go, though they barely have enough understanding to want to go. How do they know? We have all been created like a jigsaw puzzle with a piece missing. We go along day by day doing and being, but we feel the absence of that one piece. Some of us look to money to fill the space. Others search through food or power or lust or one of the many other vices that tend to take us nowhere. As we age, we begin to see more and more references to that idyllic place called heaven, thereby increasing our desire to go there as well. If we begin to search out God’s word, we find that all the answers and the ticket to heaven have already been given. All we have to do is say Amen. Amen to Our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen to His request of loving God with all of our hearts, with all of our minds, with all of our souls.
It is as simple as, “Amen.” It is as Peter tells us,…. we have been given a new birth unto hope which draws itself from the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead; a birth to an imperishable inheritance, incapable of fading or defilement, which is kept in heaven for you who are guarded with God’s power.
1 Peter 1:4
Heaven is a wonderful place filled with glory and grace. Wanna go there?

In
in
–preposition
1. (used to indicate inclusion within space, a place, or limits): walking in the park.
2. (used to indicate inclusion within something abstract or immaterial): in politics; in the autumn.
3. (used to indicate inclusion within or occurrence during a period or limit of time): in ancient times; a task done in ten minutes.
4. (used to indicate limitation or qualification, as of situation, condition, relation, manner, action, etc.): to speak in a whisper; to be similar in appearance.

There are more samples to be sure, but none pertinent here.



adverb

Over and over, in the definitions for “in”, are the words, ”used to indicate an inclusion” or “to be included.” To be included in the family of Christianity is an important position. To be included is to be invited. Through our baptism we have been invited, we have been included in God’s family. We have been marked and chosen to share in the eternal life that Jesus offers us.
Have you ever seen a movie where the people are all standing in line to get into a popular nightclub? Perhaps you have even stood in one of those lines. The place is so popular that the owners can now be choosey about who comes in and who doesn’t. The guy at the door has the power to use his discretion as to who is cool enough to be let into the club.
The club that I am referring to though, is the eternal life club. We, the baptized, are already card-carrying cool enough! We are permanently “in”!
During the Exodus out of Egypt, the Israelites were told to put the blood of a spotless lamb on their door frames. The angel of death passed over those particular door frames in the night. Those homes were spared. The angels only took the first born of the houses whose doorposts were not marked. Because of our baptisms, we have been marked by the blood of the Lamb too. The Lamb this time, spotless once again, was Jesus. Only this time, it is we who are invited into the kingdom which is, of course, the coolest club around! We get to go right up to the gold rope and St. Peter will recognize us as one of the elect. He will unclip the rope and welcome us home. We are in! How cool are we now?

ART

Art
art
–verb Archaic.
2nd pers. sing. pres. indic. of BE. Also the 3rd person plural

________________________________________
Origin:
equiv. to ear- (see ARE 1 ) + -t ending of 2nd pers. sing.


It is so interesting that Jesus would use the word art or are as the case may be. Our Father who are in heaven….. If he was speaking to only one person, he would have said Our Father who is in heaven. Notice that the definition above speaks of the second person singular. It comes from the verb to be. If we were to conjugate that verb, we would get:

I am
You are(2nd person singular)
He/She is
We are
You are (2nd person plural)
They are


The second person singular would be used when addressing the Father only, thereby making it, Our Father who is in heaven, but that is not what Jesus said. He said who are in heaven. On the other hand the 2nd person plural can be used if the entire Trinity were being addressed. How do we know which Jesus was teaching us to use? All we need do is read, “The Father and I are one” John 10:30
It stands to reason that Jesus was teaching us to speak to the Father as more than one person! It is a very subtle change all with the use of the word “are.” He knew this prayer would go on through the ages and that we would still be using it in the 21st Century. Therefore, He used the word, “are” to show more than one person. To be specific, He showed us that we were really speaking to 3 persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. All of that by using one simple interchangeable verb “are or art.”
I love knowing that this prayer is addressed to all three persons of the Holy Trinity! Some of us automatically relate better to the Father. Some relate better to Jesus. And some relate better to the Holy Spirit. Behold what manner of love is here for us that we can focus on the whole Trinity or just one person of the Trinity.


And speaking of the word art, the other definition would be that which is held as beauty in the eye of the beholder. Here is another appropriate name for us to call our heavenly Father. We, who revere Him, hold him in our hearts as exactly that, something or rather someone of great beauty. The words of Daniel honor Him as praiseworthy and glorious and exalted above all forever. Dan3:52. If that’s not art, what is?

Together these two meanings, the conjugated BE, and the beauty, give us the glory of the Trinity. The Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit all woven together, all painted together, all given together to us as art, a beautiful thing to behold.

Who

Who
Who
Spelled Pronunciation [hoo]
–pronoun; possessive whose; objective whom.
1. what person or persons?
2. (of a person) of what character, origin, position, importance, etc
3. the person that or any person that
4. Archaic. the person or persons who.

Who do you say that I am? Jesus asked this question of Peter, and the disciples in the books of Mark and of Matthew. Some of the answers that he got were Elijah, John the Baptist, and some of the prophets. But Jesus repeated, “Who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered Him, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God.” Wow. Can you imagine knowing someone so closely and intimately as Jesus? Can you imagine knowing that he is God? Again I say Wow!
The “who” that we talk about today is the Father, rather than Jesus.
He is referred to in the Old Testament as Yahweh, as Jehovah, as the Great I Am. He is the Creator, He is the Alpha and He is The Omega.
Which of these titles best speaks to your heart about the greatness, the wonder, the beauty of the WHO that is the Father?
Is it Yahweh? It is a word that was hardly ever spoken aloud because of all of the glory it implied. It was not used because to use it meant that you were starting to disrespect the Almighty by presuming to be so familiar with such a great power. It is, even now, not used in some religions because it is so filled with holiness that we can never presume to deem ourselves worthy enough even to speak His name.
Is it “I Am Who AM” that speaks to you? He just is! He has no beginning. He has no end. He is the Alpha and the Omega. It is tough to wrap your head around that idea. We are so used to things having a beginning and an ending because all things and people do, except for Him, who is, who was, who always will be. Notice all the who’s here?
Could it be the title, Creator, that makes the most sense to you? Yes, we are familiar with creating. We see things created all the time. Take a lump of clay and turn it into a dish. Take a paper and paint and turn them into art. Take some ingredients and turn them into a delicacy for the palate. Imagine though, take nothing, and turn it into the world filled with all the other somethings that we know and love, we then use those things to create for ourselves. That’s some kind of power. That’s some kind of might. That’s the Creator.
So choose for yourself who the “Who” is for you. It’s all the same person. What will you say when He asks you, ”Who do you say that I am?

Father

Father

–noun
1. a male parent.
2. A father-in-law, stepfather, or adoptive father.
3. any male ancestor, esp. the founder of a race, family, or line; progenitor.
4. a man who exercises paternal care over other persons; paternal protector or provider:
5. a person who has originated or established something: the father of modern psychology; the founding fathers.
6. a precursor, prototype, or early form: The horseless carriage was the father of the modern automobile.
7. one of the leading men in a city, town, etc.: a scandal involving several of the city fathers.
8. Chiefly British. the oldest member of a society, profession, etc. Compare DEAN 1 def. 3.
9. priest
10. Theology. The Supreme Being and Creator; God.
11. a title of respect for an elderly man
12. The Father, Theology. the first person of the Trinity.
13. Also called church father. Church History. any of the chief early Christian writers, whose works are the main sources for the history, doctrines, and observances of the church in the early ages.
14. Ecclesiastical. Pertaining to the Church
15. 15(often initial capital letter ) a title of reverence, as for church dignitaries, officers of monasteries, monks, confessors, and esp. priests
16. Fathers, Roman History. CONSCRIPT FATH/ERS.

–verb (used with object)
17. to beget
18. be the creator, founder, or author of; originate.
19. act as a father toward
20. acknowledge oneself the father of.
21. assume as one's own; take the responsibility of.



As incredible as it may seem, every single definition in this section points directly to the Heavenly Father. In the following comments, each number corresponds to its definition number. 1. Our heavenly Father has always portrayed himself, down through history, as a male parent. Jesus confirmed it for us. 2. Yes, He has adopted us in a covenant that will never be broken. In Romans 8, St. Paul reminds us that we did not receive the spirit of slavery but of adoption, through which we cry out,”Abba”, (that is father.) 3. Since we were created in His image, He certainly is the founder of this human race. “Let us make man in our image” Genesis 1:26. 4. How many times throughout salvation history has He shown His paternal care over us as a people? Starting with Adam and continuing all the way down to you and me. 5. How about the originator of the world? 6. Yes! He is certainly our precursor, here before all of us. 7. He most assuredly is the leading man in the heavenly Jerusalem. 8. We could call Him, ”The Father of Mankind.” 9. He is the most high priest there is! 10. Absolutely, Yes, Yes, Yes, He is the Supreme Being! 11. Well, here’s hoping that all people will one day be respecting Him. He is the Ancient of Days. Isaiah7:9 12. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen! 13. If our Father is not the main source for the history and the doctrines and the observances of the early church, then who is? 14. Yes! Yes, and Amen to Father God who of course, pertains to the church. 15. Hopefully we will all someday reverence Him.16. He is certainly in charge of the Vatican and all of the Roman fathers of the Church. 17. As with Adam, He breathed life into him. And so He did beget us all. Any questions? 18. And to think, He created the entire world, all in just 6 days! 19. I am in the Father and the Father is in me. John14:10 20. Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord. Psalm 33:12 20. He continues to do so for all of us. Aren’t we so very blessed? 21. He is the Father of all mercies.
Isn’t it amazing?

The
Our
Father

Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. Amen.

Our
–pronoun
(a form of the possessive case of we used as an attributive adjective):
Compare OURS to me
Me–pronoun
1.the nominative singular pronoun, used by a speaker in referring to himself or herself.

When something is ours, as opposed to mine, there is an implied ownership belonging to many rather than to one. The use of the word, “our”, in the Our Father then, makes us no longer individuals dealing with God, but a group of individuals dealing with God. Just by the mere use of the word, we are no longer alone. We belong to something much bigger than ourselves alone. We belong to a family. It is the family of the Church. It is the family of all Christians. It is the family of man.
Imagine for a moment that when the disciples asked Jesus, “How are we to pray, Lord?” That He answered, “My Father who art in heaven.” It would have changed the entire feeling of the prayer. It would then have been about “Me” and “Me” alone.
Some of us might think that that would be a good thing. That may be the case, but look at what happens when we start to say, ”Give me this day my daily bread? Wow, now it is really starting to sound more and more selfish. It seems to no longer be a prayer, but turns, more or less, into a demand.
When Jesus gave the word “Our” at the beginning of The Lord’s Prayer, he certainly knew what He was doing! He had us stand together instead of apart. He connected us to one another instead of separating us from one another. He gave us a family in which to pray, together. And we all know that the family that prays together stays together.
Thank you, Lord Jesus, for giving us one another. Whose Father is he anyway? Why, he’s ours.

“Lord, teach us how to pray.” Those are the words of an unidentified disciple in the gospel of Luke (11:1) The words from Jesus that followed, The Our Father, have become the prayer that all Christians pray. This prayer has successfully crossed all lines of much Christian division. It is prayed by all of the 27,000 Christian churches. They are the words of Jesus, so highly revered by us all.
Knowing how much these words are repeated, in my own experience, I try to make them more meaningful by praying them in different ways. One of the ways, which you will see here, is to concentrate a while on each word. Actually stop and meditate on one word at a time. This can take anywhere from 5 minutes to 40 days. The latter is what you will see in this book.
This 40 day method took me, day by day, through the Lenten season. Each day, I meditated on just one word, or group of words, for a few minutes. Then I began to write.
Those of you who journal, already know the value in writing down your thoughts. You can learn things about yourself when you just go, go, go with the pen, or the laptop, or whatever means you choose. Not only can you learn about yourself, but when you invite the Holy Spirit into your experience, you can also learn about what God might have in store for you.
Before seeing my thoughts, you will see the actual definitions of all of the words in the Our Father. There are numerous definitions for each of these words. Each one places a different twist to the word in the prayer. You will see all of the definitions here for that exact reason. Everyone’s interpretation of any given word is somewhat different. Therefore reading through them will perhaps, give you new insights to the prayer itself.

I now invite you into my journaling experience. I offer the suggestion of reading only one or two at a time so that you give the words and definitions time to steep in your head. That will allow you to see what inspirations they may hold for your life. Perhaps God will speak to you through each one as well as He did me. Perhaps He will answer some question that you have had. You may well be surprised at where each word has taken me, or where it will take you. Perhaps it will inspire you to begin your own journal in the same manner. Whichever it is for you, welcome!
The ending words, “For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory are yours forever. Amen.” are not a part of this meditation. That call was made because those were not words spoken by Jesus, but were added later. As beautiful as they are, they are not studied here.
God speaks to all of us in a myriad of ways. Some people get burning bushes. Others tablets of stone. Yet others through what they read. Some just use a pen. More proof that the pen is mightier than the sword.

Deb Potts