Pray – “Awakening Prayer”

Prayer is rooted in desire. Simply put, we want things. ‘Wanting’ gets a bad wrap, but in prayer, it’s invited: it’s the cry of couples, parents, the hurting, the addicted, and the anxious. It’s the cry that declares: “We need something more.” And it turns out that ‘wanting’ prayers are the way of Jesus. This week we look at a famous prayer–taught by Jesus–that invites real awakening in our lives.

1. What does awakening prayer look like?  (Luke 11:1-4)
   

• Most of us want transformation in our lives or world: we might call this awakening, revival, or renewal. But after Jesus asks for outward revival, he moves to a prayer for inner revival (v 4). Jesus shows us that awakening starts in us, before it ever happens around us. Often, God is waiting on us.
• In Luke 11:1-4, Jesus gives his disciples a model for prayer. It has a clear desire and request for change: May your kingdom come soon (v 2b).  In other words: “We’re not happy with everything going on down here on earth; send us a little heaven."
• How does personal awakening start? Jesus teaches us to pray for it:
  
  1. ‍ I confess the sin I was hiding. Forgive us our sins… (Luke 11:4a) Personal awakening starts with confession, because “God can’t transform the person you’re pretending to be.” Confession isn’t meant to be a burden: it frees us to be transformed.
  2. I forgive the people who hurt me. …as we forgive those who sin against us… (Luke 11:4b) On the flip side, some of us are being held back by bitterness: God can’t do a new thing in our lives, because we’re holding on to grudges from the past. Forgiveness frees us too.‍
  3. I surrender the way I wanted. …And don’t let us yield to temptation. (Luke 11:4c). But the way of Jesus is counter-cultural. There will be voices in us and in culture that want us to hate those who hurt us. But Jesus calls us to love our ‘enemies.’ If we want to follow Jesus, we will have to reject those voices; resist the temptation to hate; and commit to forgive.

2. God comes where he is wanted. (Acts 4:23-24, 29-31)

•  In Acts 4, we see a powerful movement of God: the church community is emboldened to preach, despite opposition. But the key to this moment is what comes before: all of this happened “After this prayer…” (v 31). 
• Throughout Scripture and history, we see that “God comes where he’s wanted.” God goes where people are hungry for transformation, and when they call out to him. If we want to see revival in our lives and world, we will need to invite God to work in prayer.

ADDITIONAL SCRIPTURE

These passages may provide additional insights related to the subject of this week’s message. All verses are NLT unless otherwise noted.

Matthew 6:9-14; Matthew 5:43-48; Acts 1:12-14 & 2:1-4; Psalm 91; Exodus 2:23-25; Matthew 5:3-6; Mark 6:1-7:6

Video of the Week: The Beatitudes by the Bible Project

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QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION AND DISCUSSION

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1. Have you ever felt like it was wrong to ‘want’ or ask God for things in prayer? Why or why not? How might our requests lead to the transformation?

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2. Read Luke 11:1-4. Jesus encourages us to pray for revival in the world, but reminds us that awakening starts with us. Looking at these verses, how might this change the way you pray? Is there something that needs attention in your own life?

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3. Pastor Ben talked about the freeing nature of confessional prayer (Luke 11:4). Is this how you were taught to think about confession? What about in your own experience? Did confession ever leave you feeling lighter, or lead to a breakthrough? Share a story if you’re comfortable.

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4. Pastor Ben shared two modern examples of radical forgiveness: widow Erika Kirk forgiving her husband’s killer, and missionary Loveday Leonard praying for mercy on church persecutors in Nigeria. Share a story of someone in your life who “forgave those who hurt them;” what about it was inspiring, or challenging to you?

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5. “God comes where he’s wanted” (Jon Tyson). Where else in Scripture do you see examples of this? What about in your own life? At Cape Cod Church? Hint: check out the ‘Additional Scripture’ section.

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6. Pastor Ben finished his message with a story about awakening in New England, and an invitation to pray for revival on Cape Cod. Have you ever prayed for revival, renewal, or awakening in our region? What emotions does it stir in you–excitement, hesitation? What might that prayer look like for you now? Finish by taking prayer requests and praying for awakening as a group–both personal and regional.