Kick-offWorkshop

Feb. 12 & 15

A Praying Life: Connecting with God in a Distracting WorldBy Paul E. Miller

Taught By Bob Allums

Sunday, February 12, 2017• FPC Lesson One: Why Prayer Is So Hard• FPC Lesson Two: Becoming a Child of Your Father

Wednesday, February 15, 2017• FPC Lesson Three: Helplessness: The Key to Effective

Praying• FPC Lesson Four: Entering Your Father’s Story Through Prayer• FPC Lesson Five: Put the Word to Work: Capturing Prayer

Stories

Lesson One: Why Prayer is so HardI. Group ExerciseQ. What was hard for you about that exercise?

Q. What is hard for you (or others you may have talked to) about prayer in general, or having a prayer life, or any aspect of prayer?

II. Our Experience of our AdoptionRespond to this passage of Scripture. How does it strike you?

“I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:18)

You visit a “___________________________” to help you with your relationship with God. They ask you,

Q. Tell me about your relationship with your ______________________?Q. But what is it like on a day-to-day basis?Q. What would you think of someone who talked in glowing terms about his or her father but said these kinds of things characterized the relationship?

III. Five Things that Define Good Prayer1. Prayer is like a ____________________________. (cf. Rev. 3:20)2. Prayer as ____________________.3. Prayer is _____________________with every other part

of____________.4. Prayer is a ___________________.5. Prayer is an _________________________.

Lesson Two: Becoming a Child of Your Father

I. IntroductionBecoming like a child is a ____________ _________________ in Jesus’ teaching and life.

II. What are Little Children Like?1. Children are not afraid to _______________________ their feelings,

their problems, their lives.2. Children learn a great deal by _____________________.3. Begin by ______________________________.4. _________________ like a Child.

• Use ____________________________.• The language of prayer in the Bible is just _______________

speech.

~ Jesus teaching the Lord’s Prayer: Matt 6:9-14.~ Paul’s Ephesians prayer.

Ephesians 1:15-20 (hard to tell where prayer ends)Ephesians 3:1 (starts, then interrupts himself)Ephesians 3:14-20 (finally finishes his prayer)

Prayer Assignment: Take five minutes now to be a little child with your Father: Begin with yourself. Where are you? What are you thinking about? What is important to you now? (It might be wrong, but talk to God about it before you make a moral judgment.)

Q. What was it like to pray like a child?

Lesson Three: Helplessness: The Key to Effective Praying

I. In our minds, we construct a “___________________.” (see below)

Step 1:

Step 2:

Step 3:

Step 4:

A. Realize You Need Help - Matthew 11:28

B. What Jesus Does Not Say

II. Our Helplessness Points Us to the GospelIII. Go to God as You AreIV. Our Weaknesses Are Always a Surprise to UsV. The Book of John: a Study in HelplessnessVI. The Heart of All Good Prayer: I Need Jesus

John 5:19 –

Q. In what areas in your life are you helpless or, at least, in over your head?

Lesson Four: Entering Your Father’s Story Through Prayer

I. The Story of Israel

II. Hope/Reality Chart

Hope

Time

Hope

Time

Hope

Time

III. Permanent Weakness: Suffering in PrayerIV. Why Does God Wait?V. Israel: So What Was God Doing?

Q. What is the difference between “no story” and “story”?

Lesson Five: Put the Word to Work

I. The Value of a Written SystemII. Prayer Assumes an Unseen Connectedness in LifeIII. Why a Written System?

• We are all ___________________ when it comes to prayer. • Benefits to writing:

(One of my children)

• With ________ - “Accept one another, then just as Christ accepted you in order to bring praise to God.”

• How do I disciple him or her?• Math, Reading, Science, Social Studies, and Bible• Honesty - ‘put away all deceit’• Basketball, track• Friends, good friends that love Jesus• Psalm 51 “You desire truth in the inward parts”• Know and walk with Jesus

Kimberly“And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” 1 Peter 5:11

“... be patient...” Ephesians 4:2

“Dear friend, I pray that you will enjoy good health and all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well. 3 John 3

c computer mouse c public mannersc Liberator better c horsec clean up c get breakfast c software

Job: announcer, library, data entry

Weekly Prayer Paths

Dates Prayer Focus

Feb.12-18 Foundations:Grace&Faith Feb.19-25 WisdomforthePath Feb.26-March4 DependingonGod March5-11 PrayingourAstonishment March12-18 ConfessionandTransformingGrace March19-25 SeekingWisdomandGuidance March26-April1 Jesus’TeachingonPrayer April2-8 TheLord’sPrayer April9-15 TheFinalWeek:Jesus’Prayers April16-22 EarlyChurchPrayers April23-29 PrayingwithOthers April30-May6 PrayingforOthers May7-13 PrayerHabitsforLife

Prayer Experiences

March16(6:30p.m.) PrayerGathering April1 (9-11:30a.m.) PrayerRetreat April23(3-5p.m.) PrayerWalk May4(6:30p.m.) PrayerGathering

*Moredetailswillbeprovidedclosertothedatesofthe PrayerExperiences.