Current Series: Imitate
Title: “Pray like Jesus"
The Word: Matthew 6:5-13, 1 Thessalonians 5:17, Mark 6:45-46
Main Thought: Prayer is acknowledging God’s greatness and aligning our heart to be dependent upon Him.
Message Explanation: Have you ever had a conversation with someone that was one-sided? Remember what that might feel like? It can seem as if we don’t truly have a relationship does it? The same is true when it comes to a relationship with God. Prayer should be more meaningful than just before we eat. Is prayer more than a few canned prayers we teach children to repeat? Some of us know how to pray but many of us are afraid of prayer. Especially the public kind! As you think about how to IMITATE Jesus, our first week will be about prayer.
Jeremiah 29:12-14a: “In those days when you pray, I will listen. 13 If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. 14 I will be found by you,” says the Lord.
One of the most misunderstood passages of the Bible is the “Lord’s prayer.” With the culture around Jesus not understanding prayer… The disciples asked Jesus, “Teach us how to pray.”
“When you pray, don’t be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly on street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them. I tell you the truth, that is all the reward they will ever get. 6 But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you. 7 “When you pray, don’t babble on and on as people of other religions do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again. 8 Don’t be like them, for your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!
People in Jesus’ day would strategically pray at times during the day to be noticed. It was praying with pride! Be humble and find a place to pray secretly.
1. Pray SIMPLY(v. 5-8)
The Lord doesn’t care to be amazed with brilliantly crafted language. He wants us to keep it simple. To be real and authentic with how we communicate with God.
1 Thessalonians 5:17: “Never stop praying.”
Matthew 6:9-13: Jesus said, “Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy.10 May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.11 Give us today the food we need, 12 and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. 13 And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one.”
2. Pray SPECIFICALLY (9-13)
What we know as “The Lord’s Prayer” is a model of the kind of brief but specific prayers we may offer anytime, anywhere. Jesus never intended it to be the only prayer some people pray. It is not a LITURGY but a MODEL.
Hebrews 4:15-16: “This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. 16 So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.”
Prayer is a relationship of aligning my heart with God’s heart. Prayer should be like breathing for a Christ follower! When we are not breathing in and out by communicating with God, we lose our strength. WE need to PLUG INTO the power of God and only then will we be able to do all that He wants through our lives.
Philippians 4:6-7: “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”
When you align your heart to the heart of God, life becomes clear. Acknowledging God for WHO He is and trusting Him for our daily needs builds our lives.
What changes need to happen in your prayer life?
Do you talk to God out of feeling guilty or for your love for Him?
Element of Fun: The middle school students played a game called, "Make it or Break it." It is a video driven game that each grade competes each week for this series!
Music: Go, Awaken Me, One Thing Remains, Set a Fire.
Favorite Moment: Celebrating all that God did on the Costa Rica mission trip this past week!
What’s Next: We will continue the series, "Imitate" as we talk about how to have a "T.A.G. (Time alone with God) daily.
To watch any of the series messages, check out the vimeo page.
We all like to hear stories about other people. It is in the makeup of our flesh as human beings. It is an insatiable desire to be in the know and to feel better than others.
You might hear some say to you, “Did you hear?”
Or my all-time favorite, “I have a prayer request about a person…Okay! I’ll let you know what is going on so we can “pray” for them.”
What does it mean to assassinate a person’s character?
The Bible talks about it. It is the word, "slander." To slander someone, this means literally, "to whisper."
It is a simple but deadly approach that people take towards others. Sometimes people assassinate others because they feel hurt by another person. Sometimes they are feeling inadequate and want to put others down to make themselves feel elevated.
"Having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame." 1 Peter 3:16
Whoever goes about slandering reveals secrets; therefore do not associate with a simple babbler. Proverbs 20:19.
In every conversation we have an opportunity. Do we continue to assassinate someone's character or refuse to join in it. Many times I have failed and listened and even shared my thoughts about others. Learning to love people and applying Matthew 18 should be the goal of every Christ follower.
How do I learn to use words of healing instead of assassination?
Ask these questions:
Is it True? Remember this rule about gossip: The more interesting it is, the more likely it is to be false.
Is it Helpful? Will your words help bring about a solution to a problem?
Is it Inspiring? Will your words build up someone?
Is it Necessary? Do we have to say anything at all?
Is it Kind? Are your words based on a desire to help?
Overall, instead of assassination of character, we should seek to speak life into others.
Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. Hebrews 12:14-15.
What happens when 31 people with the same heart and same vision converge on a short-term mission trip?
Life change!
We spent the week serving all around San Ramon, Costa Rica and sharing the love of Christ. One of the most rewarding parts of student ministry is watching students serving others. I loved watching students share their faith, testimonies, songs, scripture and more. I believe that this generation is the church now and not later.
We created three vbs teams and each team went to two spots per day. We gave out almost 50 bibles to new disciples and those who did not have one. One of the most heartbreaking moments was running out of bibles and children and youth asking for one. I am not used to people so hungry for the bible! I was able to see in that moment that being on mission is being the hands, feet and voice of Christ. We need to show it by our actions and take the next step to verbalize the gospel. God showed up at each location through the simple extension of people who love children. See how Jesus responded to children!
Luke 18:15-16, "One day some parents brought their little children to Jesus so he could touch and bless them. But when the disciples saw this, they scolded the parents for bothering him. Then Jesus called for the children and said to the disciples, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. 17 I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.”
One of the greatest ways to understand the gospel is through the eyes of a child.
We spent the last day and a half on a side trip to relax as a group. We went to the arenal volcano where we spent Friday afternoon and evening at the hot springs. We went zip lining through the rain forest canopy of the volcano on Saturday morning. Our guide Tyler (who was also the worship leader at pura vida mission) took some of us to a waterfall with a rope swing. It was a great ending to a fun and life changing mission trip.
Pura vida missions is the best in leading groups to serve. They take care of all the logistics of transportation, food and translators once you land in San José, Costa Rica. Not only are you given a great opportunity to serve but they serve you! Each evening there is a worship service geared to your group with worship and teaching. After a full week at pura vida, your heart will leave full of encouragement, group unity and the love of Christ!
If you are looking into a mission organization for your student ministry, I hope you will check them out! www.puravidamissions.com
Current Series: Imitate
Title: “Pray like Jesus"
The Word: Matthew 6:5-13, 1 Thessalonians 5:17, Mark 6:45-46
Main Thought: Prayer is acknowledging God’s greatness and aligning our heart to be dependent upon Him.
