In the very beginning of Christianity, Christians were not called Christians. They were referred to as followers of "The Way". In John 14:6, Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me." The apostle Paul called Christians "The Way" (Acts 9:2). Jews, who had not trusted Christ, referred to Christians as "The Way", (Acts 19:9, 19:23). Felix the Governor knew them as "The Way". Even when Paul was arrested in Jerusalem, after the completion of his three missionary journeys, he still referred to himself as being part of "The Way" (Acts 24:14). The last prayer in this acrostic comes from Psalm 23. But the other five prayers come from the chapters on the Endorsed Prayers. It is called "THE WAY".
Prayers in the Acrostic T.H.E. W.A.Y.
T: Lead me not into Temptation!
H: Hallelujah (Praise Yahweh!)
E: I entrust Everything to you!
W: Give me Wisdom!
A: Draw All men to yourself!
Y: Yahweh is my shepherd! (Psalm 23)
You may have noticed that the prayer for H, hallelujah, is "Praise Yahweh". That's because Hallelujah means praise Yahweh.
The last prayer in THE WAY requires an explanation as well. The prayer for Y is "Yahweh is my shepherd!" Your English Bible may have rendered this passage as "The LORD is my shepherd" instead of "Yahweh is my shepherd." If your version reads LORD instead of Yahweh, the translators have chosen to replace God's personal name with the title LORD. This is probably explained in your Bible's introduction, preface or principles of translation. To learn more about this practice, see subchapter A4, titled "Yahweh", in the appendix to this book. In that subchapter you will learn of translations which honor God by rendering His personal name as He commanded... as Yahweh.
The scriptures for each prayer in T.H.E. W.A.Y. are provided below. Click the prayer in gold text to open a commentary on that prayer:
Prayers in the Acrostic T.H.E. W.A.Y.
T: Lead me not into Temptation!
- "Bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one" (Luke 11:4).
H: Hallelujah (Praise Yahweh!)
- "Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns!" (Revelation 19:6).
- "Praise Yah! Praise Yahweh, my soul. While I live, I will praise Yahweh. I will sing praises to my God as long as I exist" (Psalm 146:1-2).
E: I entrust Everything to you!
- In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:6-7).
- "But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, without any doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, driven by the wind and tossed. For that man shouldn't think that he will receive anything from the Lord" (James 1:5-7).
- "I exhort therefore, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and givings of thanks be made for all men: 2 for kings and all who are in high places, that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and reverence. 3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all people to be saved and come to full knowledge of the truth" (1 Timothy 2:1-4).
Y: Yahweh is my shepherd! (Psalm 23)
- "Yahweh is my shepherd. I shall lack nothing. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. 3 He restores my soul. He guides me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. 4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil. My cup runs over. 6 Surely goodness and loving kindness shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in Yahweh's house forever" (Psalm 23).
To see nine different prayer acronyms, click here.