Our Father: A Personal Journey of Discovery into the Lord’S Prayer
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About this ebook
Our Father is one persons journey of discovery into the Lords Prayer. You are invited to enter into your own journey of discovery of your heavenly Father and His love for you and for all of humankind. Scripture reveals to us that His desire for His children is overall restoration and wholeness. Through the Lords Prayer, Jesus taught us that we can ask our heavenly Father for every facet of that wholeness, and He encourages us to do just that.
In Our Father, Renee Noseworthy discloses the Scriptures that have meant so much to her and shares her personal experience of how they have directed her ongoing path toward wholeness. Each petition of the Lords Prayer contains key elements of Gods nature that can guide you along that journey for yourself. Each chapter concludes with some very thought-provoking questions for personal or group study. Those questions are intended to highlight the attributes of God as our heavenly Father and how thoroughly He provides for the needs of those who are willing to trust Him.
Feel free to visit www.reneenoseworthy.com to learn more about Renees ongoing journey.
Renee Noseworthy
Renee Noseworthy has profoundly experienced God’s love and healing in the midst of many intense challenges. She desires to encourage others by sharing how God has revealed Himself and His faithfulness in a manner that transcends those challenges. Renee and her husband, Bruce, reside in Mount Pearl, Newfoundland and Labrador.
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Our Father - Renee Noseworthy
Copyright © 2013 Renee Noseworthy.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the King James Version of the Bible.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The NIV
and New International Version
are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™. All rights reserved.
WestBow Press books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:
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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.
Cover art © 2013 Kenneth Allen Chandler. All rights reserved.
Library of Congress Control Number: 2013918614
ISBN: 978-1-4908-1239-7 (sc)
ISBN: 978-1-4908-1240-3 (hc)
ISBN: 978-1-4908-1238-0 (e)
WestBow Press rev. date: 11/05/2013
Table of Contents
DEDICATION
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
INTRODUCTION
Chapter One
OUR FATHER IN HEAVEN
Chapter Two
HALLOWED BE YOUR NAME
Chapter Three
YOUR KINGDOM COME
Chapter Four
YOUR WILL BE DONE ON EARTH, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN
Chapter Five
GIVE US THIS DAY, OUR DAILY BREAD
Chapter Six
FORGIVE US OUR DEBTS, AS WE FORGIVE OUR DEBTORS
Chapter Seven
DO NOT LEAD US INTO TEMPTATION, BUT DELIVER US FROM THE EVIL ONE
CONCLUSION
ENDNOTES
Dedication
This book is dedicated to my family. Through your love and devotion to me in all of my life’s victories and challenges, you have shown me how powerful love can truly be, when it is given selflessly and beyond measure.
This book is dedicated to my church family at the Parish of St. Stephen the Martyr and to my Pastor and friend, Reverend Howard Hynes. Your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, your strength and your loving kindness have impacted my life and inspired me greatly.
Acknowledgments
My heartfelt thanks to…
My husband, Bruce. You are truly the love of my life and my best friend. Your partnership and multifaceted contribution to this book has been deeply treasured and appreciated.
Gloria Chafe, Lois Drover, Nina Brown O’Brien, Rita Russell, Ruby Chapman and Ruth Stanley. Thank you for being my companions on this journey, and for lovingly offering your time and talents to this book’s development.
Right Reverend Donald F. Harvey, Right Reverend Charlie Masters, Reverend Garth V. Hunt, and Reverend Howard Hynes. Your support, encouragement, and invaluable words of wisdom have meant more to me than any of you will likely ever know. I appreciate the time and effort that you have contributed to the production of this book.
My Senior High School English Teacher, Mr. Eldred Barnes. You believed in me, even when the challenges in life were more apparent than the victories. Your inspirational, supportive, and encouraging words and actions during those delicate years of my life have never been forgotten.
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
(Matthew 6:9-13 NKJV)
Introduction
I have neither formal theological training nor any credentials that qualify me as a masterful writer. Nevertheless, my life is a testimony to God’s unfailing love, His grace, and His faithfulness. In the midst of the most difficult season of my life, God revealed Himself to me as my heavenly Father, as I became captivated by the words of The Lord’s Prayer.
Since that time, I have been on a personal quest to discover the genuine treasures it contains. In teaching His followers to pray The Lord’s Prayer,
Jesus set a model of prayer for believers of that day and the days to come, that could lead to deeper knowledge of, and intimacy with, our heavenly Father.
Through many hours of prayer, study, and quiet reflection, I believe I have an understanding of God’s character, as revealed through the Bible, that I did not have in the past. I live in greater knowledge and revelation than ever before, about God’s love for me and His plan that I be willing to be a means of expression of that love to others. My life has been changed by God’s love and I desire to see others experience that same renewal in their lives.
Throughout these pages, I have shared how God’s Word has ministered to me personally and introduced me to my heavenly Father in a remarkable way. I have shared my personal journey as I step forward toward freedom from Satan’s hold on my life, and wholeness, while discovering the richness in The Lord’s Prayer.
Nowadays, I realize that as God’s child, I can ask my heavenly Father, Almighty God, for every aspect of wholeness with confidence, because He is faithful and He has countless blessings in store for me. At the conclusion of each chapter, I have included some questions for you to consider; either individually or perhaps even in a Small Group setting, if you desire. I have shared my personal journey of discovery into the prayer that Jesus Christ Himself taught His followers, and I invite you to embark on your own journey of discovery of God’s character, His favor and His goodness. My desire is that if you have never taken a close look at each portion of this prayer before, this book will raise a new awareness in you, of your relationship with Almighty God, your heavenly Father, and those around you.
As we begin this journey of discovery together, let’s remember that Scripture says, You do not have because you do not ask God.
(James 4:2 NIV) Throughout our pilgrimage, may we determine to lay hold of,
which is "to boldly take hold of" all that our heavenly Father has awaiting us, as we choose to trust Him every step of the way.
Chapter One
Our Father In Heaven
Just a few short years ago, my physical condition deteriorated to the point that I required major surgery. In that season of my life, the information that I was being given by my doctor and his team, was very difficult for me to accept at first. Fear became an issue in my life, like never before. The possible outcome was the same without the surgery as it was if something were to go wrong during it. I could have died or ended up in a state of existence where I wouldn’t have recognized anyone or anything in my formerly familiar surroundings.
I remember clearly, seeing my husband, Bruce, on the day of my surgery as I was being moved from the Recovery Room to Special Care. There he was, anxiously waiting to see me. While I was still groggy from the anesthetic and heavy surgery, I saw him and was able to recognize him immediately. Neither of my worst fears had been realized. I had survived the surgery and I was able to recognize my loved ones and my surroundings.
Admittedly, my physical condition, though no longer life threatening, is not ideal. However, I am thankful for my life and my many blessings. As I walk step by step, through my life’s journey, my deepest desire is that God’s strength be revealed through my weakness. I live daily in the knowledge that His grace truly is sufficient for me. (2 Corinthians 12:9)
During those years, as my physical condition was getting progressively worse, I lived in hope for a healing miracle from God. Even though I was born with spina bifida and a malformation at my brainstem, known as Arnold-Chiari Malformation (Type II), for a number of years I lived relatively asymptomatic from the effects of the malformation. At least, I was able to live my life with relatively normal activity. When life-altering symptoms manifested that were caused by the malformation at my brainstem, I knew that this major surgery was a possibility but for the first couple of years, I was unwilling to accept that God would actually allow me to have to go through that. I knew that He was able to heal me without it involving surgery.
What God had in store for me, was a different type of healing, one that I needed more than a physical healing. His plan for me at that time was to heal me of the fear that I was dealing with. I now realize that most of us encounter fear in our lives in any number of areas, at different times, but through that part of my journey with the Lord, He turned extreme fear into a very strong faith in Him. I now live in the assurance that even when I can’t see what He is doing, I can trust Him.
God has given me the tools that I need to stand strong in faith in Him whenever an issue arises in my life that causes me to be fearful. He has given me revelation of His love like I never knew before. I’m learning more and more with each passing day, the truth of Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV) when God says, "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord,
plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." I have learned to trust God and I have experienced His faithfulness in a way that I may not have, had I not been faced with these circumstances. By giving me the revelation that He truly is a perfect father and that His love for me is perfect, He has shown me that I have no reason to be fearful in any circumstances. He wants me to live my life in complete faith in Him. While I don’t know exactly how my future will unfold, He does, and He has made provision for all of my needs.
Is it really true that God is our Father?
Many human fathers are not a true representation of our heavenly Father. For some, the experience with those human fathers can make it difficult to accept that Almighty God, our heavenly Father, loves us dearly. God does not consider us a mistake nor has He abandoned us in any way but rather, He tells us that He chose us when He planned Creation. "For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters."(Romans 8:29 NIV)
God has provided many earthly blessings to us, but through Jesus Christ, He has also provided every spiritual blessing that we will ever need and those blessings will never fade away and will last for all of eternity. Ephesians 1:3-14 has a great deal to say about those spiritual blessings, but for now we will look particularly at verses 3-6 of Ephesians. We can live in the peace and confidence of knowing that we are accepted by our heavenly Father. Even before the first sin had been committed in the Garden of Eden, Almighty God had chosen to make us holy and blameless through His Son, Jesus Christ. Once we have repented of our sins and accepted Jesus Christ into our lives, we are in Christ,
are cleansed by His most precious blood, and our eternal Salvation is secure because of Him. Through the Spirit of adoption, we know that we have become God’s children and are fully accepted and dearly loved by our heavenly Father.
We no longer have to live in the darkness of this world. Through God’s grace and mercy we can live as those who have been called into His marvelous light and as those who have been sanctified and set apart for His glory. Spiritual blessings are freely given to us and all we need to do is accept them by accepting Jesus Christ into our lives.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. (Ephesians 1:3-6 NKJV)
Many of us live in bondage to fear or a sense of inadequacy or not being accepted. However, it is God’s will that we walk as those who have received the Spirit of adoption, thus we are God’s children and His heirs. In Scripture, we see that Abba
is used as a term of intimacy in the relationship between Almighty God and His children. (Mark 14:36, Galatians 4:6, Romans 8:15) Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God and through Him, we can become joint heirs with Him as Almighty God’s sons and daughters through adoption. God’s desire for us is that we embrace that relationship with Him, and are certain that we can cry out to Him as Abba Father.
For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, Abba, Father.
The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs-heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. (Romans 8:14-17 NIV)
With our Salvation through Jesus Christ, we receive a new identity. Therefore, we can be certain that we are a part of God’s family and that our sense of identity and belonging comes from Him. All too often, people strive to find a sense of identity or validation in the wrong things. We can find it in our worldly possessions, our careers, our educational accomplishments or even from our relationships with other people such as I’m someone’s mother, father, son, daughter, spouse, etc.
Part of our new identity is that we receive a new name. In Scripture, a change of name is indicative of an inward change in the person. Just a few examples are, Saul became Paul after his conversion (Acts 13:9), Jacob became Israel after he wrestled with God (Genesis 32:28), Abram became Abraham when God told him that he would be the father of many nations
(Genesis 17:5) and Sarai became Sarah which means mother of nations,
when God told Abraham that he and Sarah would have a son. (Genesis 17:15-16).
When we are made new, Almighty God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, becomes our Father though the Spirit of adoption. It is through Him that we get our new name. In the next chapter, we will take a deeper look into God’s names, but according to Jewish practice, the purpose of a person’s name is not to simply identify them, but rather, to be an expression of their nature. God has many names and each name expresses an aspect of His nature.¹
According to the meanings of just a few of His names, we know that Almighty God is the source of our peace, He is our provider, He is love, He is always with us and He is the One who guides us and protects us to lead us to safety, as a shepherd does for his sheep. Some human fathers don’t really model those qualities, yet others do, to the best of their abilities within their human limitations. Whatever our example of a father is, we can be joyful in knowing that our heavenly Father is a perfect father and He always possesses those qualities. We can become secure in Him as our Father, and that sense of belonging to Him defines our whole perception of who we are. He loves and values us, so if we embrace that truth, it can become the foundation of the heritage that we pass on to future generations.
It is God’s desire as our heavenly Father, that we would be strengthened by His Holy Spirit for the daily struggles that will come our way. When we invite Him in, by faith, we can be sure that Christ comes to dwell in our hearts, and He is doing a