Ask yourself, "What is the one thing that keeps me from growing deeper in prayer?" Most Christians recognize and accept, at least intellectually, the need for and the importance of prayer. We know we need to pray. We ask people to pray for us. We say we’ll pray for other people. But for many and maybe even most Christians, there’s not really what we would call a vibrant prayer life. As Pastor Whit begins this series on The Lord's Prayer we will look at Why we ray, How NOT to pray and How we SHOULD pray. This is Part 1 of the series, Living on A Prayer from Matthew 6:5-15. An Open Invitation Matthew 6:5-15 WHY DO WE PRAY? • To express our complete dependency on God • To experience intimacy with God o Primary point of prayer is not to get something but to know someone • To enjoy the experience of participating with God HOW NOT TO PRAY? • Do not pray like the Hypocrites • Do not pray to Impress HOW DO WE PRAY? • Praise – “Our Father in Heaven” o Worship God for who He is • Repent – “Forgive us our debts” o Confess your sin and acknowledge your need for Jesus • Ask – “Give Us This Day” o Intercede for specific needs in your life and others’ • Yield – “Lead Me” o Surrender your life to following Jesus wherever and however He leads you