Thy Kingdom Come!

When we pray the Lord’s Prayer, do we realize that it is the most perfect prayer? After all, this prayer was given to us by Jesus Himself. Now, imagine yourself at the Sermon on the Mount; the Son of God is teaching us how to pray so that we may have a place in His heavenly Kingdom, now and forever!

The Lord’s Prayer lifts our sights toward Heaven, helping us to seek first the Kingdom of God and all His righteousness [Matthew 6:33], and enabling us to enter into a divine relationship with the Holy Trinity. In essence, for God’s Kingdom to come, we are called to follow His will “on earth as it is in Heaven.”

What Is Expected?

Each time we pray and petition Our Father for what we need to live a holy life, we also are called to adhere to what is expected of us: to trustfully obey His will without hesitation. What is Our Lord’s will? To love God above all else, to love one another as God loves us, to forgive as well as to seek forgiveness, to avoid evil and temptation, and to receive God’s nourishment and strength through the Holy Eucharist, the Scriptures, and the Holy Spirit. Whether we comply is up to each of us.

In other words, we are called to be children of God. Otherwise, how can we call God, Our Father? As children of God, everything we say and do, all the events and circumstances in our lives, have meaning and purpose when we offer them all to God our Father to help those in most need of God’s mercy. With every offering, we strengthen our ties to Heaven—living and working in unity with the Holy Trinity for the forgiveness of sins and the saving of souls.

The Presence of God

How glorious it is to be children of God! Within this holy family, we have Mary as our Mother, Jesus as our brother, the Holy Spirit as our advocate, plus all the angels and saints ready to guide our every step in life as we practice the presence of God – the presence of Love.

When we say “Thy Kingdom come, thy Will be done,” we are inviting Our Father and heavenly family into our lives to lead us, help us, protect us, and to have mercy on us. We are opening our doors to let the love of our Lord into our lives and our world. We also are acknowledging that we cannot live without God’s merciful love because when we rely only on ourselves, the Kingdom of God and the holiness Our Father wants us to have for our salvation are out of reach.

Therefore, as children of God, let our hearts be open, humble, trusting, and loving so we can respond to God’s graces—His call to holiness—to enable each of us to share God’s love and mercy with our world. May our words, thoughts, and actions always be pure and then in unity with the Holy Trinity, we can say with all sincerity: Thy Kingdom come! Thy Will be done! So be it!