Life Audio, a prayer for deeper conversations with the Lord, by Victoria Realano, read by

Liam Martin.

Now he was in a certain place praying, and when he stopped, one of his disciples said

to him, Lord teach us how to pray, just as John also taught his disciples, Luke 111.

Three days the same, before bed my children, my husband and I gather together and pray.

Most days I can almost predict what my younger children will say.

It typically starts like this, thank you Jesus for this day and all your blessings, help

us to be good and not have bad dreams, amen.

Day after day the same, thoughtless repetitive prayers echo from their hearts.

The truth is this phrase, thank you Jesus for this day and all your blessings, was not

when they'd learned on television or in church, their own father had started every prayer

this way since he was a child.

It was only natural then that they would think every prayer must begin in this manner.

After noticing this pattern one day, I paused in the middle of prayer and asked them if they

could try praying for themselves or for a friend or for the world around them.

It seemed that prayer had become just another ritual, like brushing their teeth or taking

a bath.

It was simply what they had to do.

I realized more and more that it was our job as parents to push the envelope, to break

free from routine and teach them how to pray.

We see the importance of prayer throughout the Bible, so much so that Jesus's disciples

asked him personally how to pray.

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