Today we are talking about prayer, a critical part of growing in our relationship with God, yet something that we do not talk nearly enough about. Simply put, prayer is communicating with God. It is the way we talk to God and share with Him what is on our minds. It is also how we listen to Him. The truth is, prayer is a lifeline. It is our first line of defense when life is wonderful and when life is hard. As I heard one pastor put it, we do not just pray; we pray first. So today, we will take a deep dive into prayer and how the early church turned to prayer in a very difficult time.
BREAK THE ICE
Who is one person that you always talk to first after New Year?
SMALL GROUP QUESTIONS
Bible Study Questions
1. How would you explain to someone what prayer is?
WATCH SERMON RECAP
2. Read Acts 12:1-8. Describe the situation that the early church was facing at this time.
Acts 12:1-8
"About that time King Herod Agrippa began to persecute some believers in the church. 2 He had the apostle James (John’s brother) killed with a sword. 3 When Herod saw how much this pleased the Jewish people, he also arrested Peter. (This took place during the Passover celebration.) 4 Then he imprisoned him, placing him under the guard of four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring Peter out for public trial after the Passover. 5 But while Peter was in prison, the church prayed very earnestly for him. 6 The night before Peter was to be placed on trial, he was asleep, fastened with two chains between two soldiers. Others stood guard at the prison gate. 7 Suddenly, there was a bright light in the cell, and an angel of the Lord stood before Peter. The angel struck him on the side to awaken him and said, “Quick! Get up!” And the chains fell off his wrists. 8 Then the angel told him, “Get dressed and put on your sandals.” And he did. “Now put on your coat and follow me,” the angel ordered."
"About that time King Herod Agrippa began to persecute some believers in the church. 2 He had the apostle James (John’s brother) killed with a sword. 3 When Herod saw how much this pleased the Jewish people, he also arrested Peter. (This took place during the Passover celebration.) 4 Then he imprisoned him, placing him under the guard of four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring Peter out for public trial after the Passover. 5 But while Peter was in prison, the church prayed very earnestly for him.
6 The night before Peter was to be placed on trial, he was asleep, fastened with two chains between two soldiers. Others stood guard at the prison gate. 7 Suddenly, there was a bright light in the cell, and an angel of the Lord stood before Peter. The angel struck him on the side to awaken him and said, “Quick! Get up!” And the chains fell off his wrists. 8 Then the angel told him, “Get dressed and put on your sandals.” And he did. “Now put on your coat and follow me,” the angel ordered."
3. Read Acts 12:9-17. What happened as a result of the prayers of the church?
Acts 12:9-17
"So Peter left the cell, following the angel. But all the time he thought it was a vision. He didn’t realize it was actually happening. 10 They passed the first and second guard posts and came to the iron gate leading to the city, and this opened for them all by itself. So they passed through and started walking down the street, and then the angel suddenly left him. 11 Peter finally came to his senses. “It’s really true!” he said. “The Lord has sent his angel and saved me from Herod and from what the Jewish leaders had planned to do to me!” 12 When he realized this, he went to the home of Mary, the mother of John Mark, where many were gathered for prayer. 13 He knocked at the door in the gate, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to open it. 14 When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed that, instead of opening the door, she ran back inside and told everyone, “Peter is standing at the door!” 15 “You’re out of your mind!” they said. When she insisted, they decided, “It must be his angel.” 16 Meanwhile, Peter continued knocking. When they finally opened the door and saw him, they were amazed. 17 He motioned for them to quiet down and told them how the Lord had led him out of prison. “Tell James and the other brothers what happened,” he said. And then he went to another place."
"So Peter left the cell, following the angel. But all the time he thought it was a vision. He didn’t realize it was actually happening. 10 They passed the first and second guard posts and came to the iron gate leading to the city, and this opened for them all by itself. So they passed through and started walking down the street, and then the angel suddenly left him.
11 Peter finally came to his senses. “It’s really true!” he said. “The Lord has sent his angel and saved me from Herod and from what the Jewish leaders had planned to do to me!”
12 When he realized this, he went to the home of Mary, the mother of John Mark, where many were gathered for prayer. 13 He knocked at the door in the gate, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to open it. 14 When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed that, instead of opening the door, she ran back inside and told everyone, “Peter is standing at the door!”
15 “You’re out of your mind!” they said. When she insisted, they decided, “It must be his angel.”
16 Meanwhile, Peter continued knocking. When they finally opened the door and saw him, they were amazed. 17 He motioned for them to quiet down and told them how the Lord had led him out of prison. “Tell James and the other brothers what happened,” he said. And then he went to another place."
4. Compare the reactions of Rhoda, the servant girl, and everyone else at the house of Mary, the mother of John Mark.
Application
1. When are the times that you pray the most? Why?
2. What is your own personal regular rhythm for prayer? What can you do better with this practice?
3. What is something you are currently praying for?
MOVING FORWARD
Hopefully, you have all shared something that you are currently praying for. Now, take a few minutes as a group to pray together for these things. Pray that God would work and move in each of the areas that each of you shared about. Remember, sometimes God’s answers to our prayers are different than we hope for, but we can be confident that they are always best.
GOING DEEPER
Prayer is our direct line of communication with God. Can you believe it? The God of the universe wants to hear from us and communicate with us! Unfortunately, the enemy knows this and does not want us to pray. If he can keep us from praying, he can keep us from growing and having a thriving relationship with God. Today we are going to look at three pitfalls that hold us back when we pray and be encouraged to let go of them so that we can thrive in our prayer lives.
Pride:
Pride can completely cloud our prayer lives. It creeps in and shifts the focus on us. Pride leads us to pray for only the things that matter to us. It causes us to be judgmental in our prayers. It also keeps us from seeing our need for God. Humility, on the other hand, leads to a growing, thriving prayer life.
Selfishness:
Selfishness has a profoundly negative impact on our prayer lives. We completely focus on ourselves and our needs when we pray selfishly. Selfishness causes us to forget to trust God’s plan and to think about others, too. There is a better way for us to pray, and that is to choose thoughtfulness.
Unbelief:
Scripture calls us to pray in faith, without doubting. This kind of prayer is anchored in deep truth that God hears us and responds to us when we prayer. When unbelief and doubt creep in, our prayer lives and relationships with God are impacted. Faith, however, strengthens our prayer lives and our relationships with God.
Reflect:
When you think about the three pitfalls, or hindrances, when it comes to our prayers, that we discussed, which do you find yourself struggling with the most? Share it with your group. Then, share one step you can take this week to grow in that area. When you are finished, pray together. Ask God to help each one of you as you seek to let go of pride, selfishness, and doubt.
MONTHLY MEMORY VERSE (Available for download on Sagebrush App)
And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. Romans 8:28
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