One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples."
-Luke 11:1

Of the many enrapturing moments and incredible travels experienced by the disciples, I'd like to think that few must have been more utterly captivating than watching Jesus pray. I can just imagine how the disciples might carefully study his posture, his voice, his words and his heart. Who, among them, wouldn't feel the spirit of pure supplicant sincerity flowing from those precious words as they soared through the expanse of creation directly into the heart of the one who sent him.

Witnessing such a thing would draw them near; near to the one who spoke life into the dead...hope into the hopeless; the very one who, in person, plucked each of them from the clutches of eternal penalty and set them aflame with truth and purpose. This was as much a miracle as any other, to see the Master speaking directly to God. Of course, they wanted to know how to share in this priceless conversation themselves. Who wouldn't?

We can forget, sometimes, how miraculous a gift prayer really is. Beyond that, we can also feel as if we don't really know how...as if there is some kind of hidden trick to it; some special ingredient that only pastors and worried moms have. The disciples probably felt the same way...watching and trying to discern that something extra that they might then absorb and duplicate it.

Can you imagine the loving satisfaction Jesus must have felt when the disciples asked him how to pray? He must have felt the same way a father does when his son expresses interest in his trade. Well, Jesus' answer, of course, is what we have come to call the Lord's Prayer, the substance of which is layered with nuggets of incalculable spiritual wealth. There are two accounts of the prayer. One in Luke 11: 2-4 and one in Matthew 6: 9-13. This prayer is likely one you have not only read many times, but have probably recited dozens, if not, hundreds of times in various settings.

I want to encourage you, sometime in the coming days, to return to Jesus' answer and really immerse yourself in what Jesus was actually telling them to do and the spiritual implications of the same. Even if you already have a good didactic grasp of its etymologic or hermeneutic textures and even if you've studied that scripture your whole life, I would still entreat you to quiet your mind and open your heart to a brand new revelatory encounter with the God of the universe, through the words of his Son; who was not only speaking to his disciples...but to you and me as well. Therein, can be found the truth of just how amazing prayer actually is.