James 1:7  Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

James includes an interesting phrase: "coming down from the Father" (1:17). Christians and unbelievers alike wonder why God doesn't provide according to their expectations. "A loving God would give everyone a million dollars!" "Lord, I need a job today; what are You waiting for?" Recall Exodus 16, when God sent manna to the Israelites in the desert. The Lord instructed the people to take what they needed for each day. Their heavenly Father would certain;y provide, but in such a manner that the people would be mindful of Him. Were God to give all we wanted or even needed immediately, we would be apt to disregard Him and waste all that He has provided. Remember the prodigal son?

We should never doubt or be surprised that God desires to and will provide our earthly needs. Why would He be stingy with food, clothing, or home when He has given us His very self in the Son, our Savior, Jesus blessing those who are His children and reaching out to those who are not. Beyond all the earthly needs and wants God satisfies, He knows that burden of our sins in order to bring sinners back to Himself. Our heavenly Father longs to bring home His prodigal sons and daughters. For when we have Him, all the provisions of this world will seem vain and pale.
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

John 6:39  And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I should lose nothing of all that He has given Me, but raise it up on the last day.

Math can be extremely challenging to even the brightest students. Yet all of math is simply counting.  Addition, multiplication, fractions, algebra, and geometry are all advanced counting. God's will can likewise be challenging for Christians to discern in certain arenas of life. And yet all of God's will is simply faith in Jesus. God's will for us is that we believe.

Is it God's will for us to do other good works as well? Yes, certainly it is. But first and foremost, His will is always that we believe in Jesus and never be cast out. So He gives us His Word. And He keeps us firm in that Word until we die. And then He will raise us up to see Jesus face-to-face. That's His will.

Truthfully, God's will isn't the most challenging will for Christians. Rather, it's the other wills that are lined up for battle against God's will. The devil's will is that we don't believe in Jesus or His Word. The world's will is to take all power and glory for ourselves rather than trust in the power and glory of God. And even our own flesh wants to be god rather than believe in God. So we pray for God to break their wills.

If we believe in Jesus, we are doing the will of God. After that, we can talk about His other will for us to love Him and love one another. But only after some simple counting - God counting our faith in Christ as righteousness (Romans 4:5).
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

Luke 22:41-42  And He withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done.

A three-year-old girl sat at the dinner table. Her uneaten food was the only thing left on the table. It had been forty-five minutes since the rest of her family had cleared their plates and enjoyed dessert. No amount of bribery or threats would get the girl to eat. Even though she usually liked the dish, this particular night she simply refused to eat it and demanded something else.

When in faith we pray, "Thy will be done," we are asking God to ignore the three-year-old who lives inside us and screams, "My will be done!" To utter these words is admitting to God that His ways are better than ours. Even when we don't understand His ways, they are better than ours.

To utter the words "Thy will be done!" in prayer to our Lord requires one of two things: either total laziness to rattle off words without thinking about what we are saying, or great and God-given faith to bravely ask God to ignore our selfish will and enact His good and gracious will, even if we do not comprehend or like it.

When one considers the selfish nature of humans in comparison to the good and gracious character of our God, revealed especially in Jesus, our Savior, perhaps it is wise to pray these words after all.
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,
 

1 Peter 1:3-5  According to His great mercy, He caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

God rules and reigns the way He wishes. What God says, His truth, goes no matter what. Life with God is about following the King as He understands following. When Jesus says He is "the way, and the truth, and the life" (John 14:6), He is expressing what it means for Him to lead, to be the King. God the Father brings His kingdom through Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit's power into our world. He invites us in faith to confess this and live well with Him as King. And what a King He is!

His Word is not just something to be written down as cool thoughts to be remembered when we have a moment. His Word, who is Jesus, brings us everything we need for daily life. Our King actively takes the battles to our sinfulness, to the power of Satan, and to death. All have been defeated through Jesus' death and resurrection. The very life of King Jesus, who lives in those who have been baptized and believe, now leads us in our daily living. His rule is one of love and power lived out as He sees fit - which means through His Church, His very people.

His reign does not have term limits. There is no successor-in-waiting. Our King has always been and will always be. We rejoice as we faithfully follow our King in life. Long live "us" because our King reigns!
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

1 John 3:8  Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.

Have you ever witnessed a live tug-of-war? The teams straining, the crowds cheering, and the flag in constant flux back and forth across the mid-line all keep spectators engaged and entertained. Evenly matched teams strive to physically outlast each other in a battle of strength. The competition takes an interesting turn, though, when teams are mismatched. The weaker team's strategy is to use logic, rather than brute force, to their advantage. Many a mismatched team has walked to the rope, taken their place, and grabbed hold only to let go once the starter's pistol is fired. It's a brilliant maneuver! When all tension is removed from the rope, the team pulling falls victim to the laws of motion and collapses on the ground. Does the flag cross the line in seeming victory for the fallen team? Yes. Has the weaker team fallen victim to the strength of the other side? No. Quite the opposite.

Luther uses the phrase "engage in combat" to describe the war taking place between the kingdom of the devil and the kingdom of God. No amount of human striving can keep sinners from the temptations that so easily entangle our hearts and minds. It is Jesus alone who saves. Just as a team pulling on the rope has no power over those who have let go, so the devil has no power over those redeemed by Christ. Through Jesus' death and resurrection, the tension in the struggle for our souls is released. Satan may think he has triumphed as he looks out over a sinful world. But in the world that is to come, he already stands defeated. The kingdom of God reigns victorious. 
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

1 Peter 1:14-16  As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy."

If you have lived in a small town, then you know how important it is to have a good name - and how difficult it can be if someone in your family has brought shame to your family name. A good reputation opens doors, while a bad reputation closes them. The same can be said for God's name - except that it is us, His sons and daughters, who all too often drag His name through the mud instead of doing the good works that cause others to give glory to our Father in heaven.

We therefore pray that God's name would be hallowed - that is - be treated as holy. His name is special because it is the name of the God - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - who created, redeemed, and sanctifies us. It is the name of the Lord God who saves us when we call on Him. It is the sign of God's love because with it the almighty Creator of the universe invites us to talk to Him. It would be a sin against His name to drag it through the mud, and it would be a shame to give Him a bad reputation in the world. We pray that His name would be kept holy by other people and most especially by us, who were baptized into His name and who represent it to others. We are saved by His name, so we pray that we treat it as the treasure it is.
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

2 Timothy 2:19  But God's firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: "The Lord knows those who are His," and, "Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity."

Hallowed be Thy name. This first petition of the Lord's Prayer is a good reminder that God doesn't need us, but He does want us. He wants to be a part of our days, our nights, and all our moments. He knows those who are His. He comes to us through His Spirit, given to us in our Baptism, and is active and holy in our families, in our homes, at our dinner table, and on the drive to school, through every door we enter and every conversation we have.

In this petition, we pray that we would embrace the presence of Jesus Christ, to bring out when He is convenient. We pray His mercy would pour out found in our words. We pray His gentleness and truth would be this unjust world. We pray we would be led to open His Word frequently, letting Him give us insight into where the devil would try to fool, kill, and destroy any wisdom for our relationships. Kindness and friendliness are wonderful things, but kindness and friendliness done in the name of Christ Jesus are powerful. Undeserved grace given to those we encounter in the name of Jesus mangles and destroys what the devil would try to do in our families, in our relationships, in our churches, and even in our own bodies. All praise be to His name!
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,