Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation (Luke 11:4). Jesus, in Luke, I can see that these debts include those things that are sins. Help me see that I, like all the rest of humans, have done things that have hurt people. In some cases I didn’t mean to; in others I did. There have been times when I couldn’t identify with other’s situations and that caused me to say and do things that damaged them. There have been times when I was insensitive to their needs and problems. They tried to reach out to me and I couldn’t or wouldn’t help. Help me understand that God calls this behavior sin.

Jesus, even though I am a Christian, I still hurt people because I am damaged myself. Teach me that God knows I am going to continue to hurt people until I have been healed in all the damaged areas of my heart. Help me understand that He knows that, if He doesn’t help me, sin is going to keep on making me worse. Show me that no matter how hard I try, I am going to keep on mistreating more and more people. That is one of the reasons I made You the Savior, Lord, and King of my life, so I could get Your training, healing, and power.

Jesus, why should I be asking for forgiveness, if God has already forgiven me of all my past, present, and future sins through salvation. Why am I back here praying this part of the Lord’s Prayer? Make it clear to me that this is because salvation gave me a perfect record so I could have direct access to my heavenly Father. Show me that this was a general forgiveness in an overall way.

Jesus, let this prayer help me look through eyes of love at a moment when I sinned, made mistakes, and failed at something that specifically hurt me, other people, and God’s plan. I thank You that He is making me feel guilty about it so I will identify with others. Show me that He not only wants me to have a clean record with Him, He wants me to start having a clean record with other people.

Make it clear to me that these sins against me, other people, and God’s plan won’t separate me from God. Also make it clear to me that as long as I hate them and am looking to Him for forgiveness, He will see my DESIRE and honor it by KEEPING my record perfect with Him. Additionally make it clear to me that, if I get to the place where I no longer care that I am hurting myself, other people, and His plan, He will remove the perfection from my record.

Jesus, teach me that salvation-forgiveness made my record clean and perfect through the grace and mercy of God. Show me that if I didn’t have salvation-forgiveness, I would not be allowed to enter into God’s presence as His child and as a citizen of His Kingdom. I wouldn’t have any of the rights and privileges of His child or one of His citizens. I wouldn’t be able to expect to come to God and get my relational behavior changed through sanctification-forgiveness.

Jesus, I am still sinning, making mistakes, and having failures that hurt me, others around me, and God. Help me see that what I am still doing is wrong but is forgiven through salvation-forgiveness; but, my record with myself and others is far from perfect. Show me that my relational behavior needs changing through sanctification-forgiveness. Teach me that it is a process where I make mistakes, sin, and fail in my relationship with myself, others, and God and then “do what it takes” to make it right.

Jesus, I did not receive a spirit that makes me a slave again to fear, but I have received the Spirit of sonship. And by Him I cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit Himself testifies with my spirit that I am God’s child (Rom 8:15-16). Teach me that this is because of salvation-forgiveness; and teach me why I need this relationship with my heavenly Father. Teach me why He allows me to be His child and a citizen of His Kingdom when I am still hurting myself, other people, and His plan. Show me that this is because this relationship with Him is THE ONLY WAY I am going to STOP hurting myself, other people, and His plan.

Jesus, now that I am a child, then I am an HEIR--heir of God and a co-heir with Christ, if indeed I share in His sufferings in order that I may also share in His glory (Rom 8:17).

Jesus, empower me to stop immorality, lying, cheating, misleading, gossiping, pride, selfishness, and other sins. Help me be willing to lose some business opportunities, friendships, relationships, and financial benefits by going Your way. Even though this will cause me a certain amount of suffering, help me be willing to allow my heavenly Father to help me, train me, and empower me. Help me realize that I will get MUCH better business opportunities, friendships, relationships, and financial benefits through Him. Empower me to allow God to do this to me so my repentance will be real. Let this keep me from sinning, repenting, sinning, and repenting again and again.

Jesus, let me see from this Scripture in Romans 8:17 that I INHERIT special rights and privileges from my relationship with my Father. But, help me also see that there is something about sharing in Jesus’ sufferings. Show me that this guilt I am experiencing through the Holy Spirit is causing me to suffer when I do something wrong. Teach me that this suffering won’t change my behavior; but, it will bring me to this prayer; and, the prayer WILL change it.

Teach me that a lot of the reasons I sin is because I don’t want to suffer. I take what I think is the “easy” way out and lie to keep from getting into trouble. I cheat or mislead so I won’t lose a job, miss a deal, or fail to get my needs met. I gossip so I won’t feel inferior to someone else. I argue and fight so I won’t be cheated or misunderstood. Rather than suffering while putting my trust in God, I take matters into my own hands. Rather than allowing You to protect me, I make sure I don’t suffer by protecting myself; heal me of this unwillingness to suffer for Your ways.

Jesus, since the Holy Spirit has come, He will convict me of GUILT in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment (John 16:8). When God’s Holy Spirit speaks to MY conscience about something I did wrong, I feel guilty about it. Help me not attempt to get rid of that guilt by trying to forgive myself, trying to explain why I did it, trying to convince myself that it wasn’t my fault, or trying to see if I can get my friends to help me feel better about what I did. Help me allow God to show me how wrong, bad, or evil it was.

Jesus, help me be willing to come to God and start praying this prayer. Help me be willing to allow Him to lead me into the painful aspects of how what I did hurt other people. Help me not shrink away from that process. Empower me allow Him to help me love and care for others. And even though it can involve me going back to a person I have hurt and making things right, help me do it.

Jesus, there are several things I can try to do, rather than going and making things right with a person I have hurt. Set me free from things like me promising God I will never to it again, if He won’t require that I go back and make it right. Set me free from trying to do some good things to the person I hurt or doing some things I think will impress God. Help me not try to ignore what I did and just try to pick back up with God, as if I didn’t do anything wrong. Help me not try to use my good deeds to balance out my bad deeds. Help me not ask God to make it right for me so I don’t have to do it. Teach me that the only thing that will please God, is for me to go to those I hurt and MAKE IT RIGHT. Then I can come back to God and ask Him to forgive me for what I did.

Jesus, teach me that if I don’t go make it right, I won’t see how much I hurt others, I will minimize every wrong, bad, or evil thing I do. Help me allow others to show me the wounds I have caused. Help me WANT to stop hurting people the way I do. Help me feel their pain so I can see that they are just like me. Teach me that love is only possible, if I SEE things from other people’s perspective.

Jesus, teach me that when I go to make something right, I am not just going there to apologize. If I only go to apologize or make things right, then I am only taking care of my spiritual needs. Instead, empower me to go to see how they are, what they are going through, how what I did affected them, and how I can better serve them. Help me want to walk away from that situation with a better understanding of the person. Help me establish a healed relationship, if at all possible. Help me open the doors for future times together, if I can. Let me see what I need to pray about that will help me and them in that relationship; show me that this is an opportunity to be a blessing to them.

Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free (John 8:32). Jesus, make it clear to me that the reason I am sinning, making mistakes, and failing at some of these things is because of missing truths in my life. 2 Tim 2:15 (AKJV) tells me to study to show myself approved to God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. I have been doing these studies and not only learning a lot of truths from the Bible, I have been praying and God has been setting me free through them. As I ask my heavenly Father to forgive me for this current situation, help me understand that I have to forgive the one I hurt BECAUSE THEY FIRST HURT ME. Show me the Biblical truth that forgiving them will give me the power to be forgiven.

Jesus, empower me to forgive so I can be forgiven as I also HAVE forgiven my debtors. Let this part of this prayer be true of me; it is assuming that I have already asked my heavenly Father for His power to forgive those I am holding a grudge against. If that is ever not true of me, then help me remember to ask for and receive the ability to forgive all who have sinned, hurt, damaged, and frustrated me. Show me that once that is accomplished, I am ready to pray this part of this prayer.

Jesus, I want forgiveness for myself; I have forgiven ALL others, and now say these words: “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.”