This prayer of forgiveness is about practicing the truth. Don’t hide sin in the dark. Don’t withhold forgiveness from others. We are talking about interceding in prayer for someone who needs to learn to pray and bring their sin into the light and forgive in the same way God forgives them.

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Matthew 6:12-15 "And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.”

They have a debt that is hidden in the dark. Each day Jesus wants them to ask Him to forgive them. He wants them to practice the truth. Every day they ask Jesus to forgive them, His answer will always be “Yes.” This daily prayer is about living in forgiveness, and bringing their mistakes into the light for God to see. The best verses for this are in John 3:20-21 where Jesus said, “For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.” They should bring their deeds into the light before God without fear, because they already know He will forgive them. Just so that there is clarity, this isn’t a prayer for salvation. The first time they gave their life to Jesus, He forgave all their sin and gave them God the Holy Spirit to live inside them forever. This prayer of forgiveness is about practicing the truth, and not hiding their sin in the dark.

Others have a debt owed to them too. We all have been sinned against by someone. Jesus wants them to forgive others in the same way Jesus forgives them. Always the answer should be “yes” for those who ask them to forgive them. Even if others never ask them to forgive them, Jesus is asking them to forgive others. Should they say “no” to Jesus? If they don’t forgive, then God will not forgive them either. That’s how important it is to forgive. If they don’t forgive, they are taking what Jesus did on the cross to forgive sin and throwing it away. They are denying someone the forgiveness that Jesus wants them to receive. If they throw forgiveness away for others, then they throw their own forgiveness away too.

“God don’t give them over to the other side. Set them free from evil.” I like the imagery of a fence. When they stand on the fence and they choose both sides, God will push them off the fence and give them over to the other side. He doesn’t want anyone to be deceived by half truths. They don’t get to choose both sides. Once they’re on the other side it’s dark and it will tempt them to stay in the dark. They will struggle to see. If they truly love Jesus, they will cry out for the side where they can see. This prayer is simply saying they shouldn’t want to experience being tempted by evil on the fence or be on the other side bound by evil. They should want to be free from evil.

Prayer coaching: “Jesus, forgive (them) today for what they have hidden in the dark. Forgive (their) sin and even the sin they can’t see. Help (them) choose to forgive others the same way You have forgiven them. Help (them) forgive those who owe them and those who have sinned against them.”

“Jesus, help (them) not to be stuck in the middle being tempted constantly by evil. Put in (them) the desire to not be bound by evil. Set (them) free from evil.”