Hey students, doesn't it seem like there should be more to prayer than just our typical, "Help me, bless me, protect me, give to me" prayers?
Prayer has to be more than just talking to God -- because He knows our thoughts, right? It has to be more than just us making our requests known to God -- because doesn't He already know everything that's going on in our lives? It's like there's some secret, some mystery we hope to unlock so we can "get through" to God.
If we could just say the right words, maybe we can break the code and get a "yes" to all our requests. But what if prayer was something much bigger than that? What if prayer went beyond us getting what we wanted, and became about how to grow closer to God's heart instead?
What if prayer wasn't just about changing our present situation, what if it was about changing ourselves?
We'll spend three weeks (January 15, 22 & 29) talking about prayer.
Come join us!
Sunday, January 15
Have you ever noticed how relationships seem to drift apart when we don't get to spend time together? There's just something significant that happens when we intentionally carve out time to connect with a friend or a family member. We get to hear what's on their minds and hearts. We get to see the person beyond just what he or she can do for us, and see who he or she really is. That's the heart of prayer -- it's out chance to connect with God in a way that goes beyond "Help me, bless me, protect me, give to me."
- SESSION ONE PARENT CUE: Do you have time every day or every week when you intentionally carve out time to spend with God? How do you guard that time? What are some challenges in keeping that time?
Sunday, January 22
If we spend time with God intentionally, if we make time for Him, then what do we say to Him when we get alone with Him? What are the things we talk about? After all, He knows everything about us, our lives and our world. It's not like we have any "news." It's not like we have to give Him and update on how things are going. So what do we talk about? In the Lord's Prayer, Jesus focuses on three things, and leads us through a process that will not only change our perspective about what is going on around us, but also our perception of God.
- SESSION TWO PARENT CUE: How does spending time with God put things going on in my life into perspective? How can we do a better job of honoring this time and making it a priority?
Sunday, January 29
Who We can't talk about prayer without addressing the obvious question -- what happens when God doesn't answer? Jesus has a surprising response to that -- you keep asking. Because if something is that important to you, if something has captured your heart that strongly, then it's something that you can't let go. It's something you can't simply walk away from. So keep asking. And Jesus says that maybe, just maybe, God will honor your persistence.
- SESSION THREE PARENT CUE: Is there anything on my heart, anything that I feel so strongly about, that I would keep asking God about...even if He doesn't answer for a long time?
