Your kingdom come,…But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Mat 6:10,33

Often, we see prayer as an opportunity to bring our shopping list to God. “Dear God, please please would you help me with this” and “Please give me this”. Absolutely right, but that’s not the main reason for our prayer, and I would argue, that’s not the most important thing about our prayers. In the model Jesus gave us in the Lord’s prayer, the first few requests have to do with God making himself famous and glorious. Our personal needs come later. In today’s statement we are asking God to bring his heavenly kingdom on earth. His kingly rule is not of this world and is much needed in this world.

The way that it spreads is through you and me, through the things we think, say and do. So in a way, you are already praying for yourself, except you are praying that through you, God’s kingdom will pervade the world around you. It’s later in the chapter (v33) that after being told not to worry about food, clothing and shelter that we are told instead to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. It’s a matter of priority. Extend God’s Kingdom today, but first, ask him to help you do so – pray that his kingdom would come!

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