Read. Disciplines Pray. Key Verse:

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1 Disciplines Pray Disciplines: In this series, we will look at the core disciplines that every follower of Jesus should practice regularly in order to grow in faith. In This Lesson: Read Matthew 6:5-15 and discover the value of daily prayer. Equip Think about the purpose and elements of daily prayer. Accountability Discuss your thoughts with your group and encourage each other to apply God s Word to your lives. Pray Pray together with your group because everything begins with, ends with and depends on God. Scorecard How are you doing with the mission that Christ has given you? Key Verse: And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. A man reaps what he sows ~Galatians 6:7-8 (NIV)

2 Read As followers of Jesus, one of the most important things we can do is pray. This is the establishment and upkeep of our relationship with God. As it is with any relationship, communication is the key, so we talk to our God. For people of other religions, this sounds foolish; How can a man talk directly to God? Thankfully, Jesus has bought that right for us! We don t need to go through anyone else, go to a special place, or wait for a special time. We are blessed to talk directly to the One True and Living God at any time or place; we are to pray without ceasing. (1Thessalonians 5:17, ESV) Prayer has much to do with the condition of our hearts, and helps us bring ourselves in line with God s will. Your personal prayer life is critical to your spiritual walk, and it is a discipline. As a discipline, it must be practiced until it is a part of your life and you have developed a lifestyle of prayer. This should be your first option (not a last ditch effort) when confronted with difficulties in life, as well as your first choice when there is something to be celebrated. As with any discipline, it takes practice, patience, persistence, and perseverance to establish it in your life, and once established, it requires constant maintenance. Prayer has many benefits for the individual praying but we must constantly remind ourselves that prayer really isn t about us. Prayer is all about God, about recognizing His position as creator and sustainer of all things and our position as the creation who is completely reliant on God. At the same time, we must grasp that prayer is a gift given to us by God. We are given instant access, like a hotline, directly to the God of the Universe. He always answers, is never too busy, always hears us and always wants to hear from us. Read Matthew 6:5-15

3 Read There are many types of prayers and many reasons that we pray. Among these types are: faith/supplication, thanksgiving, worship/praise, intercession, & corporate. We pray in faith, in thanksgiving, in intercession, and most importantly in worship and praise of who God is and what He has done. Though the focus is different for each kind of prayer, the focus stays on God and the power He has to change lives. These different kinds of prayers can be either done alone or in agreement with others, which is known as corporate prayer. Charles Finney, a leader in the Second Great Awakening, said, Nothing tends more to cement the hearts of Christians than praying together. Never do they love one another so well as when they witness the outpouring of each other s hearts in prayer. Corporate prayer is an important part of the discipline of prayer for many reasons. One great example is given in Acts 12: So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him. (v. 5, NIV) We, as the body of Christ, are told to come together in fervent prayer and are given examples from both the Old and New Testaments (e.g. Nehemiah 9, Acts 1:14). In all these accounts what we see are followers of Jesus coming together in prayer for the needs of the Church (both local and universal). Great things occur in corporate prayer, but there is a mighty work done in each of us as we commit to the discipline of daily prayer in our lives. We must, with regularity, spend time in God s presence, seeking His will and way, in order to grow closer to the likeness of Jesus. All too often, our prayer lives consist of us laying out lists of wants and needs (mostly wants) before God and asking Him to bless our plans for our lives. This is vastly different from the prayer life we are supposed to emulate: the prayer life of Jesus. Although it s alright, even encouraged, to make our requests known to God (Philippians 4:6), this is not the ultimate purpose of prayer. Prayer is all

4 Read about God as the giver and sustainer of life, healer, miracle worker, provider, Father, and holy and righteous sovereign ruler of the universe, and our acknowledgement of who He is, who we are, and our great dependence on Him. Jesus was our best example of what our personal prayer life should be like. In the Gospels, we get several glimpses into His prayer life. One example is found in Mark 1:35: And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. This shows Him having solitary quiet time in prayer. We see that this is not random, but is a habit (a lifestyle) of prayer. Luke 22 says, And he came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives and he withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed. (v ) Jesus intercedes for others, forgives, and above all else, glorifies the Father in prayer. There was great travailing in His prayer. He would spend the night praying (Luke 6:12), sometimes in anguish, and as Hebrews 5:7 says, During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. We are given instruction about the dos and don ts of prayer, such as, And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that

5 Read they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. (Matthew 6:5-8, ESV) There are some great prayers in the Bible that can be used as examples or used for our own prayers. A short list includes the prayers of Jabez (1 Chronicles 4:10), Mary (Luke 1:46 49), Nehemiah (Nehemiah 1:4-11), Jonah (Jonah 2:1-9), Asa (2 Chronicles 14:11), and Daniel (Daniel 9:4-19). There are some things we should keep in mind about how we should pray. We should pray in humility, in faith, in accordance with God s word and will, and always in the name and power of Jesus. Prayer is a way we exercise our faith and continue to develop spiritual discipline. It is a way for us to connect with our God everyday. For additional reading: Psalms (Yes, any of them) Luke 18:1-8

6 Equip As you read through the Scriptures, perhaps there were some things you didn t understand or needed to study further. Take some time to think and respond to the following questions: 1. What is the purpose of prayer? 2. What are some of the elements (focuses) of prayer? 3. If God knows everything we need before we ask, why bother to pray?

7 Accountability Before your next D group meeting, think about the questions below. You will discuss these with your group. These questions will help you to examine your life in light of the truth you explored this week. They also give other group members an opportunity to encourage you to be a fully devoted follower of Jesus Christ. 1. How would I describe my prayer life? 2. What actions am I going to take to improve my prayer life?

8 Pray We believe that we must pray because everything begins with, ends with, and depends on God. Use the following example that Jesus gave to teach His disciples to pray. Pray to the Heavenly Father Matthew 6:9-15(NASB) Pray, then, in this way: Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. 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 Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. 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.

9 Pray My prayer request regarding the topic this week is: My prayer request regarding a situation in my life is: My prayer request for others is: (fill this out at D Group)

10 Scorecard What is Jesus mission? It is to make His gospel known to all people through word (sharing the gospel) and deed (demonstrating the gospel). This is the mission that every generation of His followers must take up as well. But, don t confuse becoming missional with becoming a foreign missionary. A missionary may devote his or her life to making the gospel known beyond a border or across an ocean. But, Christ calls all of His followers to make the gospel known through word and deeds wherever they live, work or play, as well as in their surrounding communities. Who am I praying for an opportunity to share the truth of Jesus with right now? Who am I intentionally witnessing to about Jesus right now? Who am I discipling right now?