Week 4: Prayer
January 15 & 18
Prayer doesn’t start with behavior… it starts with identity
Prayer is speaking to a Father who exists in a reality interwoven with ours
Prayer reorients my heart’s alignment
If you see your Heavenly Father as simply a means to happiness, He will never become your joy
When we pray, we are participating in the will of God breaking into the world
Your desire for comfort cannot replace your desire for dependence
When we pray, we are doing battle with the enemy and praying for rescue from him
Prayer is about persistence… not perfection
The greatest gift of prayer is the presence of the Holy Spirit
[d]Group Questions Group Prayer:
Read Luke 11:1-13 together as a group.
Orientation Before Requests: When you think about prayer, do you naturally start with needs or with relationship — and how might beginning with “Father” instead of “fix this” change the way you pray this week?
Distraction & Stillness: What are the biggest distractions that keep you from enjoying your Father’s presence, and what is one practical way you could create more stillness in your prayer life?
Alignment of the Heart: Jesus teaches us to pray, “May your name be kept holy.” What are some areas of your life right now where your heart’s priorities might need realignment with God’s desires?
Persistence in Prayer: Is there something you’ve stopped praying about because you got tired, discouraged, or distracted? What would it look like to start asking, seeking, and knocking again with persistence?
Group Prayer:
Father, help us stop using prayer to get things from You and instead learn to enjoy Your presence, trust You for today’s grace, and persist in prayer without giving up.Prayer Suggestion: Pray that God would heal any grief or mistrust in our hearts, and teach us to trust Him as our true Provider. Ask Him to give us courage for deeper obedience and a renewed hunger for the presence of Jesus in our daily lives.?