Hanging out with God

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Introduction

I want to start off with a question.

Who is your favorite athlete? Why?

My favorite is probably Michael Jordan. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and for a lot of people that would have been enough to make him quit. However this just fueled him to put more effort and practice into the game that he loved.

After many years of practice he finally became the person that we all know as Michael Jordan, the greatest basketball player to ever play the game, however this did not just happen by chance it took a lot of hard work.

For the next few weeks we are going to look at some of the hard work it takes to grow our spiritual life.

1 Corinthians 9:24–27 NIV

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

Heres the thing Paul is comparing our spiritual life to a race, and he mentions that just like in a race everyone competes but not everyone always wins. Life is no different. Think about all the basketball players that work hard every single day. Not all of them will make it to play in college, but that doesnt make their efforts useless.

We must put effort into our spiritual lives so that we train ourselves to do what is right.

Hanging out with God

Today we will be discussing our time hanging out with God. Now heres the thing this can look a lot of different ways, just like when you hang out with friends there are multiple aspects of that time together, but the one thing that it must have is time.

If you are wanting to build a deeper relationship with God it is going to take time. More time than just an hour and a half every Wednesday.

This time can be utilized multiple ways. Things like listening to God honoring music, reading the Bible, prayer, or even talking about God with our friends.

All of these things are ways that we can Hang out with God and draw closer to Him, but one thing is certain, that it will take time and effort to do.

Tonight though we are going to focus on prayer.

How to Pray

You may be thinking I already know how to pray, and thats awesome, but there may be some in the room that are thinking the complete opposite.

Heres the deal, if you dont know how to pray, you are in good company.

Luke 11:1 NIV

One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”

Here we see that the disciples didnt really feel comfortable praying, and they were walking side by side with Jesus.

Luke 11:2–4 NIV

He said to them, “When you pray, say: “ ‘Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.’ ”

So Jesus replied with the most famous prayer that has ever been prayed. The Lords Prayer. However I dont think this was necessarily a prayer that was just supposed to be repeated over and over again.

But lets take a look at how Jesus Prays, and what He says in this prayer.

Luke 5:16 NIV

But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.

Prayer is a pattern

Through this verse we can see that prayer was not just something Jesus did occasionally but it was a part of his regular pattern. I dont know how often Jesus went off on his own to pray, but by Luke using the word often it was frequent enough to be considered a regular occurance and a habit that Jesus did regularly.

This is not just true in Jesus’ life, but there have been studies that have shown that people who have a faith that lasts throughout their life, one of the keys to this was a regular prayer life.

Prayer is Praise

Not only is prayer a pattern, but it is also a time to praise God.

Luke 11:2 NIV

He said to them, “When you pray, say: “ ‘Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come.

Jesus opened his prayer by praising God, because it reminds of us of who God is, and that He is more powerful than we are.

Prayer is Repentance

Next we see Repentance.

Luke 11:4 NIV

Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.’ ”

Jesus showed us that repentance should be a part of our regular prayer life. Asking God to forgive us, as well as the reminder that we should forgive others. Now that doesnt mean that we put ourselves back into dangerous or unhealthy situations just because we have forgiven someone, but it means allowing God to take care of the situation, and no longer holding onto the desire for resentment toward that person.

Prayer is asking

Finally we see Jesus ask requests to God.

Luke 11:3–4 NIV

Give us each day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.’ ”

This prayer again is a model, and Jesus is asking God to provide us for what we need, this could include physical, and mental needs as well. Whether it is food, or friends, there is no request too small for God.

Next we see Jesus asking God to help Him to avoid temptation, to allow us to live a life that is honoring to God and Follows Jesus.

Prayer should be a priority

As we wrap up, we have to make sure to try to make prayer an importance in our lives. And Ill be honest many times I go through out my day and realize I completely forgot to pray at all. We get busy and other things fill our time.

So a couple of ways to help remind us.

1. Finding a consistent time and place.

maybe thats right after school or right when you wake up, but having a consistent time and place will help you remember to pray.

2. Set a reminder.

Setting an alarm on your phone can be a great reminder to pray.

3. Writing down our prayers in a journal

This can help us to keep our focus on God, but it can also help us to remember the things we have prayed for and God answered.

I want to challenge you this week, to spend time in prayer at least 5 days out of the next week.