As Christians, prayer is integral to our faith as it enhances our relationship with God and deepens our faith. In Luke’s Gospel we see the disciples asking Jesus for guidance on how to pray. Like all good students they are eager to have some advice on this important aspect of their faith. They have identified John’s disciples using prayer to enrich their lives and Jesus’ disciples want to do the same.

As a child, whenever I heard this Gospel, I always thought it was simply explaining the origins of the Our Father. I would imagine the disciples watching Jesus pray and asking him to teach them to do the same. It’s a simple image but a strong image. Even as adults, they had a desire to learn more and to deepen their faith. This Gospel moves beyond teaching believers how to pray but also why we pray and what to expect when we pray.

By persevering when we pray naturally allows prayer to become part of our daily routine. This then directly strengthens our personal relationship with God where we will then turn to God in both the good and not so good times. It is when we are praying consistently and routinely every day, that we receive God’s grace. The faithful are empowered by the Holy Spirit in their everyday lives and motivated to continue to strengthen this special relationship by simply praying every day. Jesus’ example of praising God, asking for guidance and forgiveness highlights just how simple our personal prayer can be.

As we go about our week, let us be inspired to pray with confidence that our Father in Heaven will hear our prayers. Let us persevere with our prayers and expect our relationship with God to deepen so that we have complete faith in God’s divine plan for us.