[Jesus Speaking]
… your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

I find the positioning of this section of the Lord's prayer incredibly critical. It comes after praising God for who he is, his relational aspects, and what he’s done for us. And it comes before asking for our needs and repenting of sin.

When we look at the passages where Jesus chastised the Jewish leaders about their prayers, most of the time it was because of pride. It’s easy to get prideful in prayer. Sometimes we don’t even realize we’re being prideful!

But it is borderline prideful to approach the ruler of the universe, and not regularly focus on 1) who he is 2) what he has done and 3) his priorities and will. I understand there are emergencies and times when we need to be direct. A daily practice that follows the Lord’s prayer pattern thrives.

During this section of the Lord's prayer, I scan my mind to identify people that need to know the Lord. I pray for them by name. And I ask God to give me power and strength to use me to point them to Jesus. It is incredibly freeing to focus on the kingdom priorities that God has. It elevates us into the eternal from this physical world. And it reminds us of this — that we serve an all-powerful, all knowledgeable, and omnipresent God.

Who could I encourage and bless today? What is God’s will for me today? How can I plan the activities that matter to God into my daily life?

This is the part of the prayer that forces me to get humble, set my agenda on the side, and focus on God’s Kingdom building and his will for me.

To truly commit here, it requires a sacrifice. A sacrifice of our own will, our own priorities, our own selfish desires. Let’s sacrifice all for God today!

Lord, you require a complete surrender. There is no partial throne that you will sit on. Your heart is too pure to coexist with human pride and sin. Purify my heart and my priorities, I pray. Make me more like you today.