Our Father which art in heaven ...

"Yes?"

"Don't interrupt me.� I'm praying."

"But you called me."

"Called you?� I didn't call you.� I'm praying.
� Our Father which art in heaven ..."

"There ... you did it again."

"Did what?"

"Called me.� You said,
�Our Father which art in heaven.
�Here I am.� What's on your mind?"

" �But I didn't mean anything by it.
�I was, you know, �just saying my prayers for the day.
� I always say the Lord's Prayer.
� It makes me feel good,
��kind of like getting a duty done."

"All right.� Go on."

��"Hallowed be thy name ..."

"Hold it!� What do you mean by that?"

"By what?"

"By 'hallowed be thy name'?"

"It means ... it means ... good grief!
� I don't know what it means.
� ��How should I know?
� It's just a part of the prayer.
� By the way, what does it mean?"

"It means honored ... holy ... wonderful."

"Hey, that makes sense.
� I never thought about what 'hallowed' meant before.
� Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done,
��on earth as it is in heaven."

"Do you really mean that?"

"Sure, why not?"

"What are you doing about it?"

"Doing?� Nothing, I guess!
� ��I just think it would be kind of neat
if you got control of everything down here
like you have up there."

"Have I got control of you?"

"Well ... I go to church."

"That isn't what I asked you.
� ��What about your bad temper?
� You've really got a problem there, you know.
� And then there's the way
you spend your money ... all on yourself.
� And what about the kind of books you read?"

"Stop picking on me!
� �I'm just as good as some of
��the rest of those people at the church."

Excuse me.� I thought you were praying
for my will to be done.� If that is to happen,
��it will have to start with the ones who are
praying for it ... like you, for example."

"Oh, all right.� I guess I do have some hang-ups.
� Now that you mention it,
��I could probably name some others."

��"So could I."

"I haven't thought about it very much
until now, but I really would like
to cut out some of those things.
� I would like to ... you know ... be really free."

"Good ... now we're getting somewhere!
� We'll work together, you and I.
��Some victories can truly be won.
� I'm proud of you."

��"Look, Lord, I need to finish up here.
� This is taking a lot longer than it usually does.
� Give us this day, our daily bread."

��"You need to cut out the bread.
� You're overweight as it is."

��"Hey, wait a minute!�
��What is this ... 'Criticize me day?'
� Here I was doing my religious duty,
��and all of a sudden you break in
and remind me of all my hang-ups."

��"Praying is a dangerous thing.
� You could wind up changed, you know
That's what I'm trying to get across to you.
� You called me, and here I am.
� It's too late to stop now.� Keep praying.
� �I'm interested in the next part of your prayer ...
�(pause).� Well ... go on!"

��"I'm scared to."

"Scared?� Of what?"

"I know what You'll say."

"Try me and see."

"Forgive us our sins,
��as we forgive those who sin against us."

��"What about Sarah?"

"See?� I knew it!
� �I knew you would bring her up!�
�Why Lord, she's told lies about me,
�spread stories about my family.
� She never paid back the debt she owes me.
� I've sworn to get even with her!"

"But your prayer?� What about your prayer?"

��"I didn't mean it."

�"Well, at least you're honest.
� But it's not much fun carrying that load
of bitterness around inside, is it?

"No, but I'll feel better as soon as I get even.
� �Boy, have I got some plans for that neighbor.
� �She'll wish she had never moved into this neighborhood."

"You won't feel any better.
� You'll feel worse.� Revenge isn't sweet.
� Think of how unhappy you already are.
� But I can change all that."

"You can?� How?"

"Forgive Sarah.� Then I'll forgive you.
� Then the hate and sin
��will be Sarah's problem and not yours.
� You will have settled your heart."

��"Oh, you're right.� You always are.
� And more than I want to revenge Sarah,
I want to be right with you.
� Sarah, I want to be right with you ... (pause) ...
(sigh).� All right!� All right!� I forgive her!
� Help her to find the right road in life, Lord.
� She's bound to be awfully miserable
��now that I think about it.� Anybody who goes
around doing the things she does to others
has to be out of it.
� Someway, somehow, show her the right way."

"There now!� Wonderful!� How do you feel?"

��"Hmmmm ... well, not bad.�� Not bad at all.
� In fact, I feel pretty great!
� You know, I don't think I'll have to go to bed
uptight tonight for the first time
��since I can remember.
� ��Maybe I won't be so tired from now on
because I'm not getting enough rest."

"You're not through with your prayer.� Go on."

"Oh, all right.� And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil."

"Good!� Good!� I'll do that.
� Just don't put yourself in a place
where you can be tempted."

"What do you mean by that?"

Don't turn on the TV
��when you know the laundry�needs to be done
and the house�needs to be picked up.
� Also, about the time you spend
having coffee with your friends ...
��if you can't influence the conversation
to positive things, perhaps you should
re-think the value of those friendships.
� Another thing, your neighbors and friends
shouldn't be your standard for "keeping up with."
� And please don't use me for an escape hatch."

"I don't understand the last part."

"Sure you do.� You've done it a lot of times.
� You get caught in a bad situation.
� You get into trouble and then
you come running to me.
� "Lord, help me out of this mess,
and I promise you I'll never do it again."
� You remember some of those bargains
��you tried to make with me?"

"Yes and I'm ashamed, Lord.� I really am."

��"Which bargain are you remembering?"

"Well, there was the night that Jim was gone
and the children and I were home alone.
� The wind was blowing so hard
I thought the roof would go any minute
and tornado warnings were out.
� I remember praying,
'Oh God, if you spare us,
��I'll never skip my devotions again."

��"I protected you, but
�you didn't keep your promise, did you?"

��"I'm sorry, Lord.� I really am.
� Up until now I thought that if
��I just prayed the Lord's Prayer every day,
then I could do what I liked.
� ��I didn't expect anything to happen like it did."

��"Go ahead and finish your prayer."

"For Thine is the kingdom, and the power,
and the glory forever.� Amen."

"Do you know what would bring me glory?�
What would really make me happy?"

"No, but I'd like to know.
� I now want to please you.
� I can see what a mess I've made of my life.
� And I can see how great it would be
��to really be one of your followers."

"You just answered the question."

"I did?"

"Yes.� The thing that would bring me glory
is to have people like you truly love me.
� And I see that happening between us.
� Now that some of these old sins are exposed
��and out of the way, well, there is no telling
what we can do together."

"Lord, let's see what we can make of me, okay?"

��"Yes, let's see."