Psalm 53 The fool says that there is no God.  The fool is corrupt and unjust.  He does not seek God.  He does no good.  He has no knowledge.  He is in great fear.  He is scattered. He is put to shame.
Father, let me never be a fool.  You are God Most High.  I seek Your face, I fear only You.  You are the One I call upon and You hear me and answer.  Thank You!

Matthew 6: 9-13  The Lord's Prayer.  The model that Jesus gives us, to teach us how to pray correctly.

Our Father who is in heaven.   We pray to Almighty God, the Creator and Sustainer of life.  He is our Father.  Our Abba.  We come as children to our Daddy. To draw near to Him.  To rest in Him and know Him.  Like a child waking in the morning and snuggling up close to their daddy, we come to Him and delight to be near.  To breathe in His spirit.

Hallowed be Thy Name.  Jesus shares his prayer requests, Dennis Fuque teaches.  His first request is that we ask that God's Name be honored.  Father, let Your Name be honored today.  May Your Name not be used in vain.  May it not be used as a curse word.  May it be praised and lifted up in true worship.  May we speak Your Name with sanctified lips and purified hearts.  May Your Name be honored by my life.  May You be honored in my family and my church.  May our nation honor You once again.

Thy Kingdom come.  Dennis teaches that this is the second prayer request that Jesus shares with us.
Ask God our Father to send His Kingdom.  Come and rule and reign.  "Let your Kingdom come down.  Let your kingdom come now."  The kingdom of God is a rule of peace and righteousness.  A rule of justice and mercy.  A rule of truth and love.  Yes, let your kingdom come, Lord!

Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.  The third request.  Ask God for His will, His perfect, holy, amazing, wonderful will to be accomplished here on earth.  In heaven His will is always done and there is always rejoicing!  There is always peace.  There is always love.  There are no tears. There is no pain. There is no sin or death.  Yes,  let Your will be done here, today, in me and in this world.

Give us today our "daily bread",  our provisions, that You know we need. Jesus tells us to simply ask and trust that our Father "knows what you need before you ask Him".  Just ask.  It is in His hands.

"And forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors."  Jesus knows this is a tough one for us, so He gives a little more information in verses 14 and 15.  "For if you forgive men for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions."  In Matthew 18 Jesus illustrates this further in the parable of the king who forgave his servant of a huge, impossibly large debt, but that same man refused to forgive a small debt from his fellow slave.  When the king found out what had happened he called the man back in and handed him over to the torturers.  "So shall My heavenly Father also do to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart."  Forgiveness is a big deal to the Father.  It is a big deal to Jesus too. It is why He came to die for us.
However, forgiveness does not mean forgetfulness.  It does not mean that we automatically trust the other person again.  It means only that we let go of the debt or the offense that was made.  We consider that person to not owe us anything.  Just as God lays aside our offenses and trespasses and considers us free.

"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil."   We pray for our Shepherd to "lead us in paths of righteousness for His Name's sake." ( psalm 23)  To keep us from the places where we are tempted to forget or to doubt Him.  To keep us from  the temptation of worry or unforgiveness.  Or from going our own way instead of His.  We pray that He will keep us from the lure of the evil one who desires to kill, steal, and destroy us.

These requests cover the most vital areas of our lives.  The first 3 cover the area of our relationship with our Father.  Honoring His Name, seeking His Kingdom, and submitting to His will.  The next 3 have to do with our everyday, ordinary lives.  We need food to live.  We need forgiveness.  We need His guidance and deliverance.  We need to pray this way!

"For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen"