Give secretly1"When you do what is right, make sure that you do not show off before others. If you simply want applause from men, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.2So when you give to those in need, do not trumpet what you are doing. Only hypocrites do that kind of thing because, whether they give in a meeting or on the streets, they want to be honoured by others. I tell you the truth, such people have already received the only reward they will get!3"No, when you give to those in need, it should be as if your left hand doesn't know what your right hand is doing.4In other words, you will give secretly, without any flourish. Then your Father who sees what you do secretly will reward you.Teaching on prayer5"And do not imitate the hypocrites when you pray. Again, they want to be seen and applauded by others, whether they stand in the meeting or on street corners in public. I tell you most emphatically, they also have already received the only reward they will ever get!6Rather, when you pray, go in your private room, shut the door and pray unseen by others to your Father, who is also unseen. Your Father sees and rewards what you do secretly.7"And when you pray, do not keep babbling on like the pagans do, thinking that the more words they use, the more effective their prayers will be.8No, do not be like them, for your Father is well aware of what you need even before you ask Him. This is the kind of outline you should use when praying:9"Our heavenly Father, let Your holy name be praised.10May Your Kingdom come and Your will be done on earth as is already the case in heaven.11Give us today everything we need.12Forgive us when we sin against You, just as we forgive those who sin against us.13And do not lead us into temptation but deliver us from all the power and influence of the evil one.14"You can be sure that your heavenly Father will forgive you if you forgive others when they sin against you.15But if you do not forgive others their sins, there is no point in expecting your Father to forgive your sins!Fasting16"Do not act like the hypocrites when you fast. They make it clear to everyone that they are fasting. I tell you the truth, the praise they seek from others is the only reward they will ever receive.17-18No, when you fast, do not look drab and dreary, but do your hair nicely and wash your face so that it will not be obvious to anyone that you are fasting; only your heavenly Father will know. Although you cannot see Him, He sees you and knows what you do secretly, and will reward you accordingly.Store up heavenly riches19"There is no point in storing up for yourselves money and earthly possessions. Here moths and rust destroy things and thieves can break in and steal what you have.20It is far better to store up heavenly riches, for such riches cannot be destroyed by either moths or rust; and in heaven there are no thieves to break in and steal what is yours.21"Here is the spiritual principle: wherever you put your money shows where your heart is also.22"Your eye gives light to your body. So if your eyes are good, your whole body will be filled with light.23But if your eyes are bad, your entire body will be filled with darkness. If instead of light you are filled with darkness, how deep that darkness will be!24"It is not possible for anyone to serve two different masters. For he will hate one and love the other, or he will be truly devoted to one and treat the other with contempt. You cannot serve both God and money!Do not worry25"So I tell you clearly, do not worry about any aspect of your life, what you should eat or drink or what you should wear on your body. There are far more important things in life than food and there are many more important things about you than what clothes you wear!26"Think of the birds you see flying around. They neither sow nor reap, nor do they store food away in barns; and yet your heavenly Father supplies food for them. Do you not consider yourself more valuable than the birds?27And who can add anything positive to his life through worrying?28"So why worry about your clothes? Look how beautiful the lilies in the field are! They neither work nor weave to make themselves appear so good.29And yet I tell you clearly that even Solomon in his most glorious apparel could not match these lilies for beauty.30So if this is the way in which God dresses what grows naturally in the fields, things that are here today and tomorrow are thrown away and burned, will He not make sure that you are well clothed? How weak your faith is!31"Therefore, do not worry by saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What have we to drink?' or 'What can we wear?'32The pagans are concerned about such things, but your heavenly Father is well aware of everything you need.33Let the Kingdom of heaven and living in a right relationship with God be your priorities; then everything else you need will be given to you as well.34So do not worry about what will happen tomorrow. Let tomorrow worry about itself! You have enough to think about today, and that is true for every day!
Scripture quoted by permission. The passage above is taken from THE TRUTH VERSION. Copyright © 2009 by Colin Urquhart. All rights reserved worldwide. (The Truth New Testament)