Luke 11:1-10

Living Bible

11 Once when Jesus had been out praying, one of his disciples came to him as he finished and said, “Lord, teach us a prayer to recite^[a] just as John taught one to his disciples.”

² And this is the prayer he taught them: “Father, may your name be honored for its holiness; send your Kingdom soon. ³ Give us our food day by day. ⁴ And forgive our sins—for we have forgiven those who sinned against us. And don’t allow us to be tempted.”

^5-6 Then, teaching them more about prayer,^[b] he used this illustration: “Suppose you went to a friend’s house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You would shout up to him, ‘A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit and I’ve nothing to give him to eat.’ ⁷ He would call down from his bedroom, ‘Please don’t ask me to get up. The door is locked for the night and we are all in bed. I just can’t help you this time.’

⁸ “But I’ll tell you this—though he won’t do it as a friend, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you everything you want—just because of your persistence. ⁹ And so it is with prayer—keep on asking and you will keep on getting; keep on looking and you will keep on finding; knock and the door will be opened. ¹⁰ Everyone who asks, receives; all who seek, find; and the door is opened to everyone who knocks.