In Luke, Jesus’ teaching about prayer follows close on the heels of his words about love. As the church shares the Lord’s Prayer, the true gift of this prayer might be the plural “us.” Each time we say, “Our Father,” we are reminded that we are all connected–all of us saints and sinners, flawed and yet beautiful, made in God’s image. We may not all love each other, but we are all beloved of God.
As we pray “give us . . . forgive us,” we pray with family and friends, enemies and strangers. We pray together with people who have shown us kindness and cruelty, people whose hearts contain the same good and evil as our own hearts.
What might happen if you committed to praying for the wellbeing of someone you find it difficult to love?
This message is an excerpt from a September 2016 Cafe faith reflection, “The labor of love” by Meghan Johnston Aelabouni.
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