Pray Like Jesus

You can learn a lot about a person by how they pray. As a pastor, I have many opportunities to ask people to pray. Maybe before or after a service or during a prayer meeting. I don't care about their "public speaking" skills, I'm listening for their heart, the content of their prayer, and for the sincerity in their voice.

John 17 records a prayer from Jesus. You can learn as much about Jesus in that one chapter than reading a half-dozen other chapters. Before he even opened his mouth verse 1 says he "raised his eyes to heaven and said..." That's the opposite of how we've been taught to pray-- Bow your head and close your eyes. Try it the next time you pray, be it in private or public. Talk to God as if you are a small child looking up into your father's eyes. The more you pray like Jesus the more you become like Him.