Series: Devoted, DEVOTED TO PRAYER

DEVOTED TO PRAYER

Main Scripture - Acts 2:42, John 17:1, Matthew 6:5-6, Mark 1:35

Prayer is one of the 4 practices we see the early church devoted to. And in the life of Jesus we see at least 3 examples of how to pray; Individually, Communally, and Powerfully.

Acts 2:42  And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.  

John 17:1  These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee:  

Matthew 6:5 And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 6  But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.  

Mark 1:35  And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.  

Prayer - “Lord, thank you for making a way that we can talk with and commune with you. Help us all to have a deeper commitment and passion for prayer in our lives.” In Jesus name we pray.

Introduction

Today is the final week in our Devoted series…and I’m very excited about our topic today as it’s something many of us engage in, think about, and at different times in our lives, struggle with.

DEVOTED TO PRAYER

Pastor - Share here a bit about your personal experience with prayer. How do you pray? When do you pray? Have there been times in your life when you have struggled with prayer?

It has been said that, “The greatest and best talent that God gives to any man or woman in the world is the talent of prayer.”

Simply put, prayer is an exchange where we make our requests known and God receives them. We could do an entire series on prayer alone, but today I’m going to be focused on three examples of prayer we see in the life of Jesus: Individual Prayer, Communal Prayer, and Powerful Prayer.

I believe that these three types of prayer are accessible to anyone at any time. No matter how long you’ve been walking with Jesus, or even if you’re still trying to figure out what this whole Christianity thing is all about… anyone can participate in prayer.

Individual Prayer

Throughout the life of Christ, as revealed to us in the gospels, we see several types of prayer. The first, and possibly the most well recognized is the practice of individual prayer. This is when Jesus goes off alone to pray or maybe stops for a moment to pray out loud so others can hear what He’s saying.

For many of us, this will be the type of prayer we also practice the most. And the good news is, Jesus was absolutely committed to His prayer time as well.

Mark 1:35 (KJV 1900) And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.

In this scene, we learn a couple of things about the prayer life of Jesus. First of all, He got up early in the morning to go pray. From a strategic standpoint, this is important because the beginning of the day is often quiet and normally peaceful. There aren’t a ton of distractions to compete with as you enter into a time of prayer. I also like the morning prayer because it helps to set the tone for the day. I’ve heard some people say it helps them feel “grounded” and “centered.”

Secondly, we see Jesus go off to a solitary place to pray. Again, this is a place where the distractions and interruptions are minimized and He can focus on prayer. For Jesus, and for many of us, we need to have those places in our lives where we can go to be alone. Our world is an increasingly busy space and we need to make time not only for ourselves but also for our relationship with God.

In the gospels, Jesus would often go off to a solitary place. Even He seemed to understand that there was only so much He could do in a day's time before He needed to recharge. How many of us here today take time to recharge? How many of us, neglect our relationship with God because we have so many other pressing issues to deal with on a day to day basis?

As we seek to follow the example of Christ throughout our lives, may we be devoted to the practice of individual prayer. Life can be a very difficult and a complicated place and God wants us to come to Him and make our requests, burdens, hopes, and dreams known to Him.

Philippians 4:6 (KJV 1900) Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

Present your requests to God… both individually and communally.

Communal Prayer

It’s a gift to pray with others in a community.

There is power when we pray together--when we make our requests known together. When we gather together in unity and pray, He hears, and He responds.

In fact, when asked for advice on prayer, listen to what Jesus says: Matthew 6:9 - 13

After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

I imagine many of you are familiar with this passage from Matthew chapter 6, it’s called the Lord’s prayer. I beleive many of you have it memorized or at least have heard it enough times that you generally remember how it goes.

But, how many of you have ever thought about the communal nature of the prayer? Did you notice Jesus doesn’t instruct us to pray using personal pronouns like “my” and “me” but instead uses plural pronouns like “our” and “us?”

The most famous prayer of all time is a communal one. If not meant to be spoken aloud in the midst of fellowship with others it is certainly meant to be spoken with the fellowship in mind. As believers, we must remember we are part of a larger community, a huge family. For many of us, we think in terms of our western individualistic mindset, but Jesus instructs us to come out from under that and embrace a larger kingdom mindset.

Communal prayer is an opportunity to take our eyes off ourselves and listen to the requests of others. It’s a time we get to share in the suffering and the joy of our church community. Whether it be in small groups, in coffee shops, on street corners, or gathered together on Sunday…there is power when we pray with one another.

Jesus even says in Matthew 18:20 (KJV 1900) For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

And I’m sure you’ve heard these powerful words from 2 Chronicles 7:14: “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”

Church, our prayers matter. And God hears us when we pray.

Powerful Prayer

Finally church, we see in the life of Jesus a willingness to go to God with big prayers, powerful prayers, and miraculous requests. Jesus prays at the tomb of Lazarus and then calls him out of the tomb. And he, a dead man, walks out of the tomb alive.

One Bible scholar said, “Change can be accomplished most of all through the power of prayer, because with God all things are possible.” Prayer is powerful because God is the most powerful being in all of creation. He alone is the one who can answer our requests. Whether we pray individually or communally, we’ve got to remember who we’re praying to. And I think Jesus models this most beautifully in John chapter 17.

John 17:1 These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee:   

This longer prayer is broken up into three sections where Jesus prays for himself, for His disciples, and lastly for all believers. As you read the words Jesus prayed, you feel a confidence and a reverence in Him. You also feel the confidence of one who knows exactly who He’s praying to.

Do we pray with this same confidence? Or, are we going through the motions and doing the thing we know we’re supposed to do because that’s how we’ve always done it? What would happen if we prayed bigger, bolder prayers? What would happen if we prayed with just a little more faith?

Yes, you might be disappointed because you won’t get the answer you want. And yes, it might take too long or be too difficult… But on the other hand, what would happen if even one of your big, bold, audacious prayers were answered? What if the Creator of the entire cosmos heard and responded specifically to your prayers?

“Change can be accomplished most of all through the power of prayer, because with God all things are possible.”

Hebrews 11:6  But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. 

Conclusion

It’s well known that the early church, the one we read about in Acts, experienced unprecedented growth, success, and transformation as a result of their devotion to the cause. I have to believe that prayer was a huge part of all that was accomplished. And I believe prayer is as imperative today as it was then.

Many of us are devoted to all kinds of things that don’t really matter in the end. Our social media accounts, our favorite shows, hobbies, etc… And these things aren’t all bad, but it is a problem when we trade these things for times of individual, communal, and powerful prayer.

What if you simply exchanged 10-15mins a day this coming week for prayer. What if you connected with some others who wanted to pray, together, once a month or once a week?

As with all of the practices we’ve looked at through this series, if we want to experience deeper relationships and greater transformation, we have to be intentional with our time and energy.

Individual Prayer, Communal Prayer and Powerful Prayer

I pray you’ve been challenged, and encouraged through the Devoted series. And most of all, I pray you take a small step of faith, that you be intentional, and that you become just a little more devoted to the faith.

● Teaching, * Fellowship, ● Breaking of Bread (Communion),● Prayer

Are You Prayed Up?

Ever wonder why we are so easily led to sin? It seems as though we have a tough time rejecting what we know is not good for us. While Satan “walks about, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8), we seem to be going to and fro, seeking what we can get away with. Satan’s pull is always right in front of us, in full view, coaxing and enticing with false promises of temporary pleasure.

But we have a weapon. It’s called prayer. John Bunyan said, “Prayer will make a man cease from sin, or sin will entice a man to cease from prayer”.

Are you prayed up? Bishop Hopkins says “prayer is a golden key, which should open the morning and lock up the evening.” The Apostle Paul took prayer a step further. He said, “Pray without ceasing!” (1 Thessalonians 5:17).