Episode 60 - Simple Prayer

01/17/24 • 44 min

Welcome back to another season of Looking Above. We desire each episode to encourage you to keep your eyes fixed on Jesus no matter what life throws at you. This season we are tackling the topic of prayer. What is it? How do we do it? Why should we pray? Each week we will talk about a different type of prayer.

In this episode, Brooklyn and Karen talk about some of their experiences with prayer and then discuss “simple prayer.” Many of us have never thought about or discussed different types of prayer. We just pray. Join us as we learn how we can deepen our prayer lives as we gain a greater understanding of prayer.

If you want to go deeper still, we encourage you to find a small group of friends and have a discussion after listening to this episode. Here are some questions to guide your discussion:

Can you remember the first time you prayed? (or the first time you prayed out loud?) Share that experience.
What is your history with prayer? What have you been taught about prayer?
Do you have any big prayers you have prayed that come to mind? Were they answered as you desired? Were they answered in the timeframe you desired?
How do you feel when God “doesn’t” answer a prayer, or doesn’t answer as you expected? What do you tell yourself about that experience (for example “Maybe I didn’t pray right.” )
Why don’t you pray (or don’t you pray more often)? What does that reason reveal?
When you do pray, what do you pray for?
Do you pray “simple” prayers? Are you authentic with God, or do you feel the need to tone down, filter, and sterilize your prayers?
In simple prayer “we” are the focus. We pray for ourselves and about ourselves. We bring our needs, wants, concerns, hurts, sorrows, joys, complaints, anger, raw emotion, and unfiltered words to God. What about that feels scary? What about that feels freeing?
Read Psalm chapter 6. We see the Psalmist being quite authentic with God in this Psalm. What feelings does he express? What does he ask God to do for him?
What do you need most from God right now?
Take turns praying for yourself. Pray a simple prayer. Don’t make it pretty. Just be honest. Tell God where you’re at and ask Him for what you need from Him.
Practice simple prayer this week. Have short conversations with God throughout your day. Tell him your feelings. Ask Him for what you need. Work to start building a habit of talking to God like you would your best friend.

If you want to go deeper still, we encourage you to find a small group of friends and have a discussion after listening to this episode. Here are some questions to guide your discussion:

Can you remember the first time you prayed? (or the first time you prayed out loud?) Share that experience.
What is your history with prayer? What have you been taught about prayer?
Do you have any big prayers you have prayed that come to mind? Were they answered as you desired? Were they answered in the timeframe you desired?
How do you feel when God “doesn’t” answer a prayer, or doesn’t answer as you expected? What do you tell yourself about that experience (for example “Maybe I didn’t pray right.” )
Why don’t you pray (or don’t you pray more often)? What does that reason reveal?
When you do pray, what do you pray for?
Do you pray “simple” prayers? Are you authentic with God, or do you feel the need to tone down, filter, and sterilize your prayers?
In simple prayer “we” are the focus. We pray for ourselves and about ourselves. We bring our needs, wants, concerns, hurts, sorrows, joys, complaints, anger, raw emotion, and unfiltered words to God. What about that feels scary? What about that feels freeing?
Read Psalm chapter 6. We see the Psalmist being quite authentic with God in this Psalm. What feelings does he express? What does he ask God to do for him?
What do you need most from God right now?
Take turns praying for yourself. Pray a simple prayer. Don’t make it pretty. Just be honest. Tell God where you’re at and ask Him for what you need from Him.
Practice simple prayer this week. Have short conversations with God throughout your day. Tell him your feelings. Ask Him for what you need. Work to start building a habit of talking to God like you would your best friend.

Previous Episode

Episode 59 - Unity in Community

We are wrapping up another season of Looking Above and finishing our discussion about building resilience by discussing how we create community. Karen and Brooklyn focus the discussion on Jesus’ prayer for us in John chapter 17. Jesus prays for unity among believers. Join us as we talk about what our disunity as a Church is speaking to the world and discuss some guidelines for growing and building a unified and God-honoring community.

After listening, find some time to gather with a friend or small group and discuss these questions:

Why does disunity come naturally?
Have you ever been around or a part of a group that was very unified? What was that like?
Read Matthew 22:37-38. What does it mean to love God? How can we pursue this? What are some steps we can take to better love God?
Read John 13:34. What are some examples of times that Jesus loved others? What can we learn from those?
Read John 13:14. How can we (the members of your group) serve each other better?
Read Philippians 2:2-4. What does it look like to actively pursue someone else’s best interest? What choices can we make to “die to self”?
Read Ephesians 4:4-6. There is no room for competition in the Kingdom. Why do you think there is such competition between churches, or ministries or individuals? How could we foster a better spirit of camaraderie?
Read Ephesians 4:32. Why does God call us to forgive each other in the same manner that He has forgiven us?
Take some time to pray for unity in your relationships.

Next Episode

Episode 61 - Covenant Prayer

We are back for the second week in our season on prayer. Today Brooklyn and Karen explore Covenant Prayer. Covenant prayer is a commitment to pray. When we make a covenant, we tell God we will regularly meet Him in prayer. While this commitment feels restrictive, it is actually freeing and brings greater connection to the Lord. As you listen consider making your own covenant to meet daily with the Lord in prayer.

We encourage you to listen and then discuss the podcast with a friend or small group.

Begin your time together with prayer. Invite the Holy Spirit to guide your conversation.
Do you thrive in routine and order (like Brooklyn) or resist them (like Karen)?
Do you fear committing to daily prayer?Why? Which of the fears about commitment do you most resonate with? (fear that boundaries take away freedom, fear that commitment will take away spontaneity and joy, fear of failure)
Have you ever made a covenant to pray?
How does knowing God is gracious and merciful help alleviate your hesitancy to commit?
Talk about the Covenant of Time. Think about your schedule, what might work for you as an established time for prayer? What would you need to do to make this commitment (how will you protect this time?)?
What might you need to eliminate from your schedule to make time for prayer? What distractions do you anticipate?
Talk about the Covenant of Place. Do you have an established place for prayer? If you do, tell the group about it. If you don’t, what might your ideal place be like?
Have you made a covenant to this group? Have you fully committed to meeting with this group, or do you go when it is convenient? Consider making a covenant with each other.
Talk about the Covenant of Heart Preparation. How might you better prepare yourself to meet with God each day? How can you cultivate a holy expectancy for your times of prayer?
Make a Covenant to Pray daily for the next week. Tell your group when and where you will pray. What are you committing to? Hold each other accountable to this commitment.