Luke 11:1-13 NRSVue
1He was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” 2So he said to them, “When you pray, say:
Father, may your name be revered as holy. May your kingdom come.
3Give us each day our daily bread. 4And forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us. And do not bring us to the time of trial.”,
5And he said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, 6for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.’ 7And he answers from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’ 8I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything out of friendship, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs.
9“So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. 10For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. 11Is there anyone among you who, if your child asked for a fish, would give a snake instead of a fish? 12Or if the child asked for an egg, would give a scorpion? 13If you, then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
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Reflection on Luke 11:1-13
Inspiration from 2025-07-27 Daily Prayer
Our Father can be seen as a guide to us in our prayer. In it, the Father comes first in our petitions, and then we pray as the people of God when we say, ‘Give us, forgive us, lead us.’ In the prayer of petition, we acknowledge that everything is from God, and so, we praise him.
God hears every prayer but will answer in his own time as he sees what is best for us. Our part is to be patient with him and with our own poor efforts in prayer. We always need to persevere with prayer and to remember that every encounter with God changes us and blesses us.