“When you pray, say…” (Lk 11:2).
Pre-approved. That’s the word used to describe someone who is promised a certain amount of credit in advance. Pre-approved loans or credit cards are offered to consumers so they can do business with the confidence that the money will be available. But wait! Imagine if we had pre-approved prayers! Yet that is exactly what we have in the Word of God: hundreds of Spirit-inspired prayers that match the will of God and which we may pray in the confidence of faith.
The sentence fragment that begins this meditation came from the lips of our Savior in response to the disciples’ request, “Lord, teach us to pray” (v 1). It’s not that He was providing a formula, a verbal coin to place in a heavenly vending machine. Rather, prayer is communion between a trusting soul and a trustworthy God. And our prayers should always be according to God’s will and consistent with His character. But these requests will inspire us to daily lay hold on the generosity of our God.