MEET WITH GOD STUDIES FOR GROUPS, FAMILIES AND INDIVIDUALS. Practicing. the Privilege of. Prayer WOODROW KROLL

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1 B A C K T O T H E B I B L E MEET WITH GOD STUDIES FOR GROUPS, FAMILIES AND INDIVIDUALS Practicing Prayer the Privilege of WOODROW KROLL

2 Check out this resource to learn more about this issue s topic! Word of Light Scripture Card Holder Don t miss your opportunity to enjoy the Word of Light Scripture Card Holder. This beautiful resin holder includes 30 Scripture cards with flower pictures selected from Dr. Woodrow Kroll s personal collection of photos from around the world. The back of each card has a Scripture passage to read and an uplifting devotional based on that day s passage. Use the Word of Light Scripture Card Holder for your daily devotions, to hold your business cards, or to simply enjoy the beautiful pictures and inspiring Scripture. # *Suggested donation $12.00 Canadian price $15.00 To order, call or visit In Canada: Call or visit *Suggested donation: The Internal Revenue Code permits you to deduct the amount you give to Back to the Bible that goes beyond the fair market value of materials we send you. To help determine the tax-deductible portion of your gift, we ll show on your receipt the fair market value of materials and the tax-deductible portion, along with the total gift amount. Meet With God an official publication of Back to the Bible 2006 The Good News Broadcasting Association, Inc. All rights reserved. International copyright secured. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Staff: Editorial Assistance: Allen Bean, Mindy Kroesche, Marlene Lehl, Matthew Work, Ben Zuehlke Design: KMA Direct Communications Layout: Cameron O Keefe Produced with the assistance of The Livingstone Corporation ( Project staff: Neil Wilson Cover Photo: Shutterstock.com Meet With God is produced 12 times per year and sent with no obligation. BACK TO THE BIBLE P.O. Box Lincoln, NE From the Author Ihave mixed feelings about springcleaning. Oh, I like the idea of opening up winter-welded windows and letting the warm breezes into the house. The smell of spring is invigorating. I enjoy carting out the useless stuff that seems to accumulate during the cold months newspapers, junk mail and recyclables. Closets get cleaned out and clothes that have hung for a while are finally relieved of duty and boxed for Goodwill. All of this is good and necessary, but it can be hard to make decisions about what is kept and what is given or thrown away. Ecclesiastes 3:6 tells us there s a time to throw away, but many of us tend to live as if most of the time it s a time to keep. So, what do spring-cleaning woes have to do with this month s topic prayer? Imagine for a moment that prayer in its different forms is like various articles of clothing. How often would you say you wear prayer? Is it something you put on everyday or an optional topcoat you wear on special occasions? If our prayer life is like garments, how much of it might end up in a box for Goodwill during spring-cleaning? God doesn t have to give us the time of day, but He does. He doesn t have to listen, but He does. He doesn t have to grant our requests, but He allows us to make them. That s why prayer is a privilege. It s a gift; an opportunity we don t deserve and often don t value as we ought. Let s think together this month about the amazing privilege we have to access God. 3

3 WEEK WEEK 1 Practicing the Privilege of Prayer REFLECTION REFLECTION Just outside the gates of Jerusalem the roar THIS WEEK, DELIBERATELY SPREAD OUT BEFORE THE LORD A PROBLEM IN YOUR LIFE. of a mighty army could be heard. The stomping of feet and clashing of weapons must have As you read 2 made the approach of Sennacherib s army Kings 19:1 37, deafening. Yet those were just the sound reflect on the following effects; the real threat came in a letter the questions: Access to Power Assyrian king had delivered to Hezekiah. 1. What Apparently the Assyrian liked to trash talk in resources did his letters so he could intimidate his enemies Hezekiah before crushing them. have that Key Passage: Read 2 Kings 19:1 37 Sennacherib made a significant tactical prompted his error. Instead of mocking Hezekiah, he actions? And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand mocked the God of Israel. Hezekiah had 2. How did of the messengers, and read it; and Hezekiah already been warned to expect this (2 Kings Hezekiah went up to the house of the LORD, and spread it 19:5 7). But it must have been a shock to see express his before the LORD (2 Kings 19:14). it in black and white. Yet, as obvious and overwhelming as the threat was, Hezekiah went to God s power confidence in the temple and spread the letter before the and character? When fear infects leadership, the LORD in prayer (v. 14). effects are devastating. Everyone The false evidence that appeared real was gets scared. Fortunately a dose of 3. What are an invincible army knocking on the door. The some of the courage often turns out to be courage wasn t in fighting, but in trusting God overwhelming issues equally contagious. Courage doesn t mean fear despite the odds. It turned out that trusting isn t present. Courage just means someone God was the right thing to do. Sennacherib s that keep decided not to let fear have the last word. mighty army was killed by God s angel in their invading your Fear can be defined by the acronym life? sleep. F.E.A.R. False Evidence Appearing Real. The Like Sennacherib, God announced beforehand what He was going to do. In God s case, degree have scarier something looks, the more frightened we 4. To what tend to become. But the huge menacing shadow however, the One making the promises actually had the power to carry them out. God with you entrusted on the wall may just be a little dog standing in front of the light. Hezekiah s helpless prayer cleared the way for those issues? Fear is an instinctive response, even for believers. The issue isn t, do we fear, but rather, what do we spread our problems before the Lord and God to exercise His unlimited power. When we do when we fear. King David put it very well admit our helplessness, we gain access to that when he wrote, Whenever I am afraid, I will trust same power. in You (Ps. 56:3). David s descendant Hezekiah 4 4 put this brief prayer into bold action. 5

4 APPLY IT The statement, The only thing we we have to fear is fear itself, may not say it all, but it points us in the right direction. The twinges of fear can immobilize and terrorize us or they can galvanize us into action even if that action is simply acknowledging our trust in God. That s what David said in Psalm 56:3. But rather than trusting God when you fear, the prophet Isaiah had an even better idea. He said: I will trust and not be afraid (Isa. 12:2). EXPRESS IT Identify two or three fear buttons in your life, like news reports, financial instability, family challenges, illnesses, etc. For each of them, expand David s prayer using the format, When I am afraid of, I will trust in You. Insert each of your fear buttons in that gap, and express your trust in the One who is greater than any fear. Once you ve done this, try Isaiah s idea the next time. REMEMBER IT 1. The Assyrians had destroyed many cities before attacking Jerusalem. 2. Sennacherib was king of. 3. The prophet Isaiah gave God s answer to Hezekiah. 4. God would defend Jerusalem for His own sake and the sake of His servant. 5. Sennacherib was killed by a. his sons. b. Hezekiah. c. the angel of the LORD. d. an accident. Answers: 1. True (2 Kings 19:8 13); 2. Assyria (2 Kings 19:20); 3. True (2 Kings 19:20); 4. David (2 Kings 19:34); 5. a (2 Kings 19:37) 6 7

5 WEEK 2 Practicing the Privilege of Prayer THIS WEEK, CONSIDER CAREFULLY THE CONCLUSIONS YOU REACH ABOUT OTHER PEOPLE. Before the Throne Key Passage: Read Luke 18:9 14 Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others (Luke 18:9). Access affects attitude. Our theme this month focuses on the amazing privilege we have to access God s throne room because Jesus has opened the door. As the writer of Hebrews put it, Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need (Heb. 4:16). But the boldness to approach should never cause us to be more than humble in God s presence. Though we have the privilege to be in God s presence, we can t forget who we are. Jesus illustrated this principle with His parable of the two men who prayed in the temple. Two men prayed. God heard both their prayers. But the first man s prayer turned out to be nothing more than a conversation with himself (Luke 18:11). What started with thanksgiving instantly turned into demeaning comparisons and selfjustification. He assumed his fasting and tithing automatically made him better in God s sight than other men extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector (v. 11). His attitude revealed that he didn t know who he was in God s sight. He was so busy justifying himself that he never gave God a chance to be merciful. In Jesus words, he exalted himself and therefore did not go home justified. The other man approached God with the boldness of humility. He admitted his own unworthiness and asked God for mercy. He put his fate and justification entirely in God s hands, and therefore went home justified. Because he didn t try to present himself, God gladly gave him mercy. As Luke points out in our key verse, Jesus aimed His story at those who trusted in themselves, judged themselves righteous and looked down on others. He affirmed those who practiced humility. We are just as prone as the people in Jesus day to boil attributes down to feelings. Love, mercy, generosity and humility are all characteristics we want to have. But the fact is that none of these traits comes with any particular feelings and, in practice, may not involve much feeling at all. But humbling ourselves before God, acknowledging truthfully our unworthiness, is supremely good for us no matter how it feels! REFLECTION As you read Luke 18:9 14, reflect on the following questions: 1. In what ways is authentic prayer a great equalizer? 2. Describe the Pharisee s attitude toward others. How did it affect him? 3. How did the tax collector practice humility? 4. How could you incorporate his practice into your prayer life? 8 9

6 APPLY IT Those who approach God in human boldness tend to justify why God should hear them. They end up more distant from God than when they started. Those who approach God with bold humility discover that they begin standing far off, but God s mercy draws them into His intimate presence. EXPRESS IT Before you pray, think about the tax collector s prayer: God, be merciful to me a sinner! (Luke 18:13). How often do you sit, kneel, stand or lie prostrate in God s presence, overwhelmed by the privilege of seeking God s mercy? How convinced are you that God is being merciful to you when He allows you to pray? Speak to Him about these things. 10 REMEMBER IT 1. The two men in the parable were a Pharisee and a fisherman. 2. The two men went to the to pray. 3. The Pharisee did what twice a week? a. prayed b. helped the poor c. washed his robes d. fasted 4. The tax collector asked God be merciful to him, a. 5. Jesus said the one who is humble will be lifted up. Answers: 1. False (Luke 18:10); 2. temple (Luke 18:10); 3. d (Luke 18:12); 4. sinner (Luke 18:13); 5. True (Luke 18:14) 11

7 WEEK 3 12 Practicing the Privilege of Prayer THIS WEEK, TAKE A HARD LOOK AT THE TWO OR THREE THINGS YOU PRAY ABOUT MOST OFTEN. Answers to Unanswered Prayer Key Passage: Read James 4:1 6 You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask (James 4:2). Does God always answer prayer? Be careful how you answer. Most of us have been taught that God always answers prayer sometimes He says yes, sometimes no, sometimes not yet. But the Bible teaches otherwise. In fact, often the Bible says that there are good reasons why God will not answer prayer. (See Ezek. 8:18; Micah 3:4; Zech. 7:13; Jer. 7:16; 11:14; 14:12.) There is no free pass here. We have to be ready to pray and have the right attitudes of heart if we want God to hear us. (See Prov. 21:13; 1 Pet. 3:7; Prov. 28:9; etc.) In the passage for this lesson, however, James reminds us that the most frequently unanswered prayer is a request that hasn t been made yet. God doesn t answer prayer when we haven t prayed. Why haven t we prayed yet? We may think we know how God is going to answer, or we may assume that God should know what we need and we shouldn t have to ask. Part of the privilege of access means that we can pray about anything and everything. But along with our freedom to pray comes a responsibility to have legitimate expectations. We can ask God to break His Word, but that will be a waste of time because He won t do it. We can insist that we are in a situation where a certain command doesn t apply, but it does. We all experience the temptation to justify wrongdoing like coveting, immorality, theft and unforgiveness (to mention just a few) by saying, I prayed about it. But if what we want to do is condemned in His Word, God will never answer us as we want even if we have prayed about it. God cannot deny His Word. One of the reasons we often feel like God isn t answering comes from our tendency to reduce prayer to just submitting requests. We don t spend time with God in prayer; we simply stop by to hand over our shopping list of things we want for ourselves and others. When we spend intimate and worshipful time with God in prayer, we find our prayers changing. Drawing near to God makes things that seem very significant on earth lose much of their importance. And when we spend time in prayer, the answers usually get clearer too. REFLECTION As you read James 4:1 6, reflect on the following questions: 1. What do intense conflicts have to do with prayer? 2. According to this passage, what kinds of prayer would be a waste of the privilege? 3. Can you think of instances when you have substituted wanting and scheming for genuine prayer? 4. What might hesitance to pray about a desire tell us about that desire? 13

8 APPLY IT EXPRESS IT Prayer is often presented as a magic formula to Most of us develop a set way of beginning get anything we want. The descriptive language each prayer. Heavenly Father, Dear Lord or may be spiritual, but the results being pursued Jesus are widely used. Consider varying your are anything but. If we haven t gotten serious prayers with the specific purpose of expressing about seeking His kingdom and His righteous- your desires to seek God s kingdom and His ness, we won t be in a position to see and righteousness. Experiment with thoughtful ways appreciate all that God adds to us every day. to begin when you enter God s presence and (see Matt. 6:31 33) In what ways do you seek how to spend your time there. God s kingdom (a kingdom is where a king rules do you seek to let God rule in your life) and His righteousness (a right relationship with REMEMBER IT Him and others) as a regular part of your 1. James says the reason we have not is prayer life? because we haven t. 2. James tells us that we don t receive what we ask for from God when we ask a. for it over and over b. for something only once c. with wrong motives d. none of the above 3. Anyone who chooses to be a friend with the becomes an enemy of God. 4. God gives us more grace. 5. God opposes the humble, yet gives grace to the proud. 14 Answers: 1. asked (James 4:2); 2. c (James 4:3); 3. world (James 4:4); 4. True (James 4:6); 5. False (James 4:6) 15

9 WEEK 4 16 Practicing the Privilege of Prayer THIS WEEK, CHOOSE A DIFFICULT PERSON TO PRAY FOR EVERY DAY. Praying for Difficult People Key Passage: Read Exodus 32:1 35 Then Moses pleaded with the LORD his God, and said: LORD, why does Your wrath burn hot against Your people whom You have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? (Ex. 32:11). Almost all of us know people for whom we would have a difficult time praying. Depending on our mood, we might confess that, Yes, I have prayed about him/her, and asked God to rain fire and brimstone down on their head! We instinctively know that prayer is a profound way to care for people, and there are just some people who simply challenge our ability to care. When we read about Moses life, it s difficult not to notice how much he was abused as a leader. The people God sent him to free from slavery demonstrated ungratefulness, meanness, disobedience and mockery. In his sandals, most of us would have walked away. Fortunately for Israel, God chose the right man for the job of leading His people through the wilder- ness. The 80 years of special training God put Moses through paid off handsomely. Once Moses accepted the responsibility, he held on to it for dear life. This chapter includes four tense episodes. In verses 1 14 God tells Moses what the people have done, and Moses pleads for their lives. Then, verses describe Moses arrival in the camp and his anger at seeing and hearing the blatant apostasy of the people. Moses was so distraught that he destroyed the calf idol and broke the stone tablets God had given him. Verses record the drastic measures Moses took when the people didn t respond to his anger but continued their debauchery. It took the deaths of 3,000 to get the people s attention. Then verses record Moses sorrow and prayer for the people, placing himself with them in the line of fire. God responded with a promise to make punishment personal rather than national. We will probably never face the same degree of difficult people to pray for that surrounded Moses. But our challenges are just as real. Ultimately, praying for difficult people has less to do with them and more to do with us and our relationship with God. When we refuse to pray for someone, we re taking matters into our hands rather than placing them in God s hands. When Jesus prayed for those who were killing Him, He wasn t complimenting their fine character; He was demonstrating His own. Praying for difficult people isn t fun, but it still needs to be done for our own sake (and for theirs). REFLECTION As you read Exodus 32:1 35, reflect on the following questions: 1. How did the people demonstrate their low regard for Moses in this chapter? 2. What did God find contemptible about the people s actions? 3. What approach did Moses take in praying for difficult people in these verses? 4. How does Moses approach compare to your own when confronted by difficult personalities? 17

10 18 APPLY IT One of the obstacles to praying for difficult people has to do with thinking that we have to like them or accept their behavior in order to pray for them. Moses didn t diminish the people s sin. He focused on God s character and promises. He had high hopes for what God could accomplish even through disappointing people like himself and his people. Praying for difficult people means bringing them to Someone who really can do something with them. EXPRESS IT As you pray for difficult people this week, remember that whether or not they intend to, their relationship with you may feel like persecution. Their attitudes and actions make it hard for you to obey God and love them. But remember Jesus command to, Pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you (Matt. 5:44). When in doubt, close your eyes and ask God to bless that person. You ll be a better person because you did. REMEMBER IT 1. The people asked to make an idol. a. Joshua b. Miriam c. Aaron d. Korah 2. God told Moses that the people had made an idol. 3. Moses asked God to remember His servants Abraham, and Israel. 4. The tribe of Judah joined Moses on the Lord s side. 5. Moses asked God to the sin of Israel. Answers: 1. c (Ex. 32:1); 2. True (Ex. 32:8); 3. Isaac (Ex. 32:13); 4. False (Ex. 32:26); 5. forgive (Ex. 32:32) 19

11 How s your prayer life? If prayer was a piece of clothing in your closet, what would it be? Would it be that nice broken in pair of jeans that you wear whenever you get the chance? Or is it like that elegant gown that is only pulled out for special occasions nice, but rarely used? Through prayer, we have an amazing privilege and access to the very throne of God. Unfortunately, prayer is often misunderstood at best and ignored at worst. In this month s study we ll look at how to bring our fears before God, pray for difficult people and approach God with the proper attitude. Back to the Bible is a worldwide ministry dedicated to leading people into a dynamic relationship with God. Using radio, the Internet and other media, we share the Gospel message and help Christians grow to spiritual maturity. With broadcasts in 25 languages and an Internet reach to millions, Back to the Bible teaches the Word and touches the world. Contact us for more information about Back to the Bible: P.O. Box 82808, Lincoln, NE In Canada: P.O. Box 10, Winnipeg MB R3C 2G

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