Our Father:

The Lord’s Prayer as a School of Desire

Paperback – Kindle eBook – Audible – Google Play – Apple Books – and more!

In the depths of every human heart lies a longing for something more—a desire that only God can fulfill. Yet our desires are often disordered, leading us away from rather than toward our Creator. How do we align our deepest yearnings with God’s perfect will?

In this profound spiritual work, you will discover the Lord’s Prayer as more than a formula of words—it is a divine pathway of transformation, a school that reshapes our desires according to the heart of God. Drawing from the rich insights of Saints Augustine and Thomas Aquinas, this meditation guides readers through each petition of the prayer Jesus taught, uncovering its power to reorder our souls toward their ultimate purpose: eternal communion with God.

Our Father: The Lord’s Prayer as a School of Desire invites you to:

• Discover why the Lord’s Prayer contains everything we should rightfully desire and in the perfect order
• Understand how each petition aligns with a Gift of the Holy Spirit and one of the Beatitudes
• Learn to make this prayer truly your own, allowing it to sanctify your mind, will, and desires
• Experience the freedom that comes when our prayers reflect God’s desires for us rather than our own limited vision

Whether you’ve recited these sacred words countless times or are encountering their depth anew, this book will transform your understanding of prayer itself—not as a means of changing God’s will, but as the path by which God changes us.

Begin the journey of allowing the prayer Christ taught to form you into the person God created you to be, where every desire of your heart glorifies Him and leads you to perfect beatitude.

Read online for free below.

Table of Contents

The Preface and Introduction are available to read from the links below online. Chapters are coming soon.

Paperback – Kindle eBook – Audible – Google Play – Apple Books – and more!

Book Details & Copyright

Copyright © 2025 by My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved.  www.mycatholic.life

Excerpts from the Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States of America, second typical edition © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC. Used with permission. All rights reserved. No portion of this text may be reproduced by any means without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Portions of the biographical accounts of Saint Augustine and Saint Thomas Aquinas are adapted from Saints and Feasts of the Liturgical Year (mycatholic.life).

Grammatical note: When quoting Scripture in this book, the capitalization and structure will follow the New American Bible or the RSV-CE. For the rest of the text, words that refer to God or point to the sacred are capitalized. The first letter of words referring to “satan,” such as the “evil one” or “the devil,” is lowercase as a symbolic reminder that Jesus has defeated him and that you can conquer his activity and temptations in your own life.

Cover Image: Painted divine figure church of San Sebastiano Rome, by robodread, Adobe Stock

By

John Paul Thomas

“John Paul Thomas” is the pen name this priest has chosen in honor of the Apostles Saints John and Thomas and the great evangelist Saint Paul. This name also evokes the memory of the great Pope Saint John Paul II.

John is the beloved Apostle who sought out a deeply personal and intimate relationship with his Savior. Hopefully, the writings in this book point us all to a deeply personal and intimate relationship with our God. May John be a model of this intimacy and love.

Thomas is also a beloved Apostle and close friend of Jesus but is well known for his lack of faith in Jesus’ Resurrection. Though he ultimately entered into a profound faith, crying out “my Lord and my God,” he is given to us as a model of our own weakness of faith. Thomas should inspire us to always return to faith when we realize we have doubted.

As a Pharisee, Paul severely persecuted the early Christian Church. However, after going through a powerful conversion, he went on to become the great evangelist to the Gentiles, founding many new communities of believers and writing many letters contained in Sacred Scripture. His letters are deeply personal and reveal a shepherd’s heart. Paul is a model for all as we seek to embrace our calling to spread the Gospel. 

Dedication

To our Blessed Mother,
who learned to pray from the Eternal Son of the Father—
the same Son who became her own,
Incarnate by the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit.

From the moment of her Immaculate Conception,
when the grace of her Son’s future Redemption sanctified her in the womb,
she was filled with the fullness of grace.

She lived each moment of her earthly life in perfect communion with God
and now radiates that grace in glory for all eternity.