Reflections on SummitLife leader training, part two – Prayer. By the way, this isn’t my original material. The SummitLife Pastor gives these sessions. I’m just chewing on it for the sake of my own understanding, and hopefully others’ as well. Without further delay, here’s what we learned about Prayer.
Prayer is basically talking with God. But let’s see if we can fill that idea out a little more. As I mentioned last week, the Bible should be paramount in our small groups. So, the natural first step would be to look at what God says about prayer in the Bible.
“do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 4:6-7
We ought to pray in all situations, and God will give us peace.
“I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors, with a clear conscience, as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day.” – 2 Timothy 1:3
Paul, who wrote the biggest chunk of the New Testament, prayed constantly. So should we.
“if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this place.” – 2 Chronicles 7:14-15
God’s people are to be a people of prayer. God hears prayer. God answers prayer.
“Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.” – Colossians 4:2
Key word to notice here: steadfastly. Pray your tail off.
“Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” – Hebrews 4:16.
Boo-yow! God, in his own Word, instructs us to pray with confidence! We are loved by the Father, and he hears our pleas. Pray then with confidence, and not in fear or doubt.
So, why pray in small groups?
1. Prayer Keeps our Small Group meetings God centered.
- Prayer is participating in the purposes of God. It corrects our tendency to focus horizontally (that is, on each other) and puts our focus on God (aka, vertically). Graeme Goldsworthy puts it well – “God graciously allows us to be involved in the carrying out of his will. He gives us the privilege of identifying with his will by asking him to do what he has already determined to do.” It’s not trying talk God into doing something he normally wouldn’t – it’s a way of getting after what he already wants to do. God knows the plans he has for us, and boy are they good (Jeremiah 29:11-13).
- Prayer allows us to participate in what the Holy Spirit is doing. In Jude 20, we get this idea that are supposed to pray in the Holy Spirit. John Piper explains it this way – “When you pray in the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God is ‘moving’ you to pray. That is, his power motivates, enables, and energizes your prayer. And when you pray in the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God is ‘guiding’ how you pray and what you pray for. So to pray in the Holy Spirit is to be moved and guided by the Holy Spirit. We pray by his power and according to his direction.” I pray that I would pray like that.
- Prayer expresses our trust in God and not our own ability. Piper says “It is wonderfully suited to express our inadequacy and God’s all-sufficiency.” We pray to God because we need God.
2. Prayer Deepens our Biblical fellowship
- by expressing care. Paul models this in Romans 15:13 – “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” I’ve found that in the time I spend praying with the men in my small group that when we pray for what God wants to do in a person’s life, the love of Christ is shown in a tangible way.
- by deepening our relationships. When we pray in this way, it serves as a reminder that as Christians, we have a common bond. Our interests in at least this way are permanently and gloriously aligned. Focusing on that solidifies the group on a spiritual level.
Application
So, how do you pray in your small group? Remember first of all that prayer is learned. Don Whitney in his book “Spiritual Disciplines of the Christian Life” says “There is a sense in which prayer needs to be taught to a child of God no more than a baby needs to be taught how to cry. But crying for basic needs is minimal communication, and we must soon grow beyond that infancy.” In other words, prayer does come naturally to a degree, but mature, passionate, Spirit-led prayer is learned. Three ways to do that are
1. Pray the “A.C.T.S.” model
- Adoration: Praise God for who He is
- Confession: Admit that you are a sinner
- Thanksgivig: Thank God for grace and mercy and all He gives us
- Supplication: Then, bring your requests (in confidence!)
2. Meditate on the Scripture
- Spend some time camped out on one passage
- Pray God’s word back to him
3. Pray with others in your group
- There is a lot that can be learned from praying with others
4. Prayer-time Hacks
- Use note cards to record prayer requests. This encourages folks to be succinct in making the request, and gives you more time to pray
- Pray between requests – not after they’ve all been given, but after each one. That way you can focus on each request and not on remembering who you’re praying for and how.
- Break up into smaller groups. My young-marrieds’ group breaks up into guys and girls. It’s a huge difference.
- Pray first, then study the word. This does two things – you don’t run out of time and rush through praying, and it’s a natural setup for praying to God that he would prepare you for studying his Word before you begin that part of your time together.
- Pray throughout the week for the folks in your group – and let them know you are!
- Acknowledge answered prayers, so the folks in your group can rejoice with you!
As always, comments are open.
