A great way to engage in prayer is by praying the Scriptures, and one of the ways to do this is by praying as a response to a psalm or another meaningful passage of Scripture. Some work better than others, but one that I've really enjoyed praying is The Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6:9-13.

So for example, I would start at the beginning of the The Lord’s Prayer reading: “Our Father in heaven”. I would pause, and take a moment to pray in response to the truth that God is my Father, “God, thank you that are my Father. and that you love me as your child.” If you struggle with God as Father, you should tell him that too and ask him to reveal himself as the loving and caring Father that he is.

You could then focus on “Our Father in heaven”. God isn’t only concerned with my life or your life, nor is we part of an individualistic faith. We’ve been brought into a family. He’s our Father. Spend some time praying in response to that truth.

Next reflect on that God is not just our Father, but that he is “Our Father in heaven.” You could praise him for his power and protection. That he is the perfect father. That he is sovereign over everything.

A few lines down is “your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Here you can pray for God’s will to be done in your life and through your life. In the places where you know what God’s will is, you can pray boldly for those things. In areas where you are unsure, you can ask for his will to be done.

And one final example is the next line, “Give us this day our daily bread.” This is a great opportunity to ask God for what you need that day. And for of us who don’t worry about where our food comes from day to day, you can use it as a time to thank God for his provision as well as praying for those who don’t have daily bread.

These are of course just a couple examples to get you started. Feel free to take your time praying through The Lord’s Prayer. There’s no rush. If you pray through the whole passage in one day, that's great. If it takes you a week, that’s great too!

If you find yourself having some difficulty knowing how to respond to the different sections of the prayer, you can get started by asking these three questions – What can I rejoice about in this passage? What comes to light in this passage that I need to repent of? Request - What in this passage can help me know how to pray for myself and others?

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