The beginning of the Lord’s prayer brings us face-to-face with two of the most beautiful things about our God.  First, we acknowledge that God is our Father. In doing this, we confess that He is intimately present in our lives.  We do not speak to him as a distant and cold deity but as One who loves us like the best dad ever. Second, we confess that His name is holy. In this, we remember that God is a holy God and is not to be talked to lightly, flippantly, or irreverently.  He is infinitely powerful and unspeakably glorious. So, in the first sentence of Jesus’ prayer, we encounter both the intimate presence and infinite power of our God. What a remarkable truth for us to celebrate and savor in just eight words!

One of the ways we internalize the most precious truths about God is by meditating on them (Psalm 1:2, 119:15). Meditation is commonly known as the practice of emptying your mind, but in the Christian faith, it is the exact opposite. Christian meditation is about filling your mind with the truth of God and His promises. And one of the best ways to do that is to practice what are known as breathing prayers. 

A breathing prayer takes a simple two-part sentence of Scripture and turns it into a repeated prayer.  For example, you would take a deep breath in and, as you do, pray “Our Father in heaven” and then as you slowly exhale, pray “Hallowed be Your name.” This is typically done repeatedly, every breath, for a duration of time (1 minute, 5 minutes, 15 minutes, 1 hour). Over time that phrase would seep deeply into your body, mind, and soul and encounter God through meditative prayer on His Word.

Other examples of breathing prayers to try:

Jesus Christ Son of God….Have mercy on me (based on Luke 18:38)

The Lord is my shepherd…I shall not want (based on Psalm 23:1)

Be still and know…that He is God (based on Psalm 46:10)

The Lord is my light and my salvation…whom shall I fear? (Psalm 27:1)

Nothing can separate me…from the love of God (based on Romans 8:38-29)

Final Thought: Pick a phrase from the list above and do a breathing prayer for 2 minutes.