Prayer is one of those things that we kind of do without thinking about why we do them. We know the Our Father and have other prayers memorized, but what’s the point? We probably all would say that prayer is important in the life and faith of a Christian, but you’ve probably prayed before and felt like God never answered. Did He not hear you? Was He too busy? Or did He just not care to answer your prayer? In today’s teaching, Pastor Sean talks about why we are supposed to pray and what difference does it really make.

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MESSAGE NOTES

In our new series, we are looking at why we pray and what the point it.

For many of us, we are missing the most dynamic part of our faith. Martin Luther said “To be a Christian without prayer is to be alive without breathing.”

 

Acts 4:23-26 They acknowledge that the Bible says fe is hard and people can be cruel.

Acts 4:27-28 They tell God what is happening in their lives right now.

  • You know what’s happening, what we’re going through and you’ve got it all under control.

Prayer doesn’t change God, it changes us.

  • We don’t pray like this. We pray as though He’s lost His mind
  • We tell god how dry the grass is on our side of the fence.
  • Prayer is the spigot from which God begins to water the grass on my side of the fence.
  • Prayer says, “Hod, you’re over all the grass in the fields. You see my grass, you know how dry it is and you’re ok with it.” It is in that moment our own grass becomes greener to us.

We see our lives through the lens of what is happening in our hearts.

  • Disciples told they’re in danger. Their prayer is, “You got this.”
  • I lost my job. God you got this.
  • My marriage is bad but Lord, you’ve got this.
  • I’m alone and I don’t feel like I have friends, I don’t like who I am but God you’ve got this.

 

What do they pray next? Acts 4:29

  • What would YOU have prayed next? Them? Boldness
  • “Let me rock this” If this is in my yard, I’ll mow the heck out of it!
  • Does it take more faith to ask God to take it away or take me through it? Which prayer do you think honors God more?

Paul tried it the other way, he asked God to change it.

  • 2 Corinthians 12:7-9 What did God tell him?

 

Stop praying for God to change things and ask him to change you in these things. 

  • God hasn’t lost track. He sees you.
  • God’s goal isn’t to make you happier, but to make you holier.

 

Prayer helps you see your life from God’s perspective.

 

APPLICATION:

Where do you need God’s perspective?

How often do you call a timeout to ask God’s help in going through?

 

Imagine if you took every struggle to God and asked Him to show you how He wanted you to respond in it. How would your heart begin to change if you saw every struggle as an opportunity that God could use?