Not Fatherless

Welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread. Today's reading titled, not fatherless was written by Albert Lee John Sauers in his book fatherless generation writes that no generation has seen as much voluntary father absence as this one with 25 million kids growing up in single-parent homes in my own experience if I bumped into my father on the street. I wouldn't have known them. My parents were divorced when I was very young and all the photos of my dad were burned so for years I felt fatherless then at age 13 I heard the Lord's prayer and said to myself, you may not have an earthly father, but now you have God as your heavenly father. In Matthew six verse nine were taught to pray our father in heaven, hallowed be your name previously.

Verse seven says not to keep on babbling. One praying and we may wonder how these verses are connected. I realize that because God remembers we don't need to repeat.

He truly understands.

So we don't need to explain he has a compassionate heart so we don't need to be uncertain of his goodness, and because he knows the end from the beginning we know his timing is perfect because God is our father. We don't need to use many words to move him through prayer, where talking with a father who loves and cares for us and made us his children through Jesus. Today's Our Daily Bread devotional Scripture reading is from Matthew chapter 6 verses five through 13 and when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others.

Truly I tell you they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your father who is unseen. Then your father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your father knows what you need before you ask him. This then is how you should pray our father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today Our Daily Bread and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one. Let's pray dear heavenly father, thank you for the gift of prayer and the freedom we have two talk openly and honestly with you. Help us to grow more comfortable with speaking to you like a trusted friend, so that we speak from a place of pure authenticity, rather than trying to impress you with our many words.

Thank you Lord it's in Jesus name we pray. Amen long.

Today's encouragement was provided by Our Daily Bread ministries