Scholars call chapter 17 of St. John’s Gospel the High Priestly Prayer of Jesus. The evangelist carefully constructed the prayer and it can serve as a model for our own life of prayer. Jesus begins by praying for himself. He then prays for his disciples and finally opens up his prayer to include the whole world. That seems like a good pattern for us to follow. Certainly we have our own prayers of praise, thanksgiving and petition that we offer for ourselves. (This is the smallest part of the prayer of Jesus.) We then pray for our family, our friends, our church — all those woven into our lives. Finally, we pray for the wider world and the many needs that we know are out there.
MAY152018
By Church Staff