rmy one
’s IN PRAYER {leader manual }
IN PRAYER
your will be done
SUPPORTING RESOURCES Books: The Salvation Army Handbook of Doctrine. Samuel Logan Brengle: Heart for God. Holiness Unwrapped.
IN DISCUSSION Take time to discuss the following, remembering to include reference to the suggested Scripture and how it relates to the topic (see page 03 of the In Prayer book): 1. List and discuss ways in which Luke’s Gospel reveals the place of prayer in the life of Jesus. Luke 3:21-23; 10:21; 22:40; 23:46 2. Discuss the importance and value of having a regular time alone with God in prayer. Mark 1:35; Luke 5:16; Matthew 6:5, 6 3. In what ways can prayer help in our decision-making? Luke 6:12; Nehemiah 2:1-5; 4:9; James 1:5 4. How do the prayers of Jesus give us insight into his heart? Matthew 9:38; Luke 10:21; 23:34; John 17:20; John 11:41, 42 Activity Ideas •• Read the passage from The Salvation Army Handbook of Doctrine (see text on page 09). •• Read the extract from Holiness Unwrapped (see text on page 09). •• Read the passage from The Salvation Army Handbook of Doctrine (see text on page 09). •• Read the extract from Samuel Logan Brengle: Heart for God (see text on page 10). in prayer
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IN PRAYER
JESUS AND PRAYER
•• Discuss how easy or difficult members of the group find it to set aside a regular time for prayer. The aim should not be to make members feel guilty if 01 they struggle with this, but rather to encourage each other and share useful ideas. It might be possible for two or three members to agree to meet together regularly for prayer. IN PRAYER Rather than praying with spoken words, take some time to sit quietly in God’s presence and wait for him. If silence is uncomfortable, you could play some quiet background music. You could suggest that in the silence members bring a particular concern to God. Alternatively, they could read Psalm 27 and allow God to speak to them through the words. SESSION OUTCOMES •• Recognising that prayer was essential to Jesus in his life on earth. •• Understanding the different ways and circumstances in which Jesus prayed. •• Understanding that prayer is essential for every Christian. •• Recognising the importance of a regular time of prayer.
– jesus and prayer one
rmy leader’s manual
WHAT IS PRAYER? one rmy
one rmy
IN PRAYER
WHAT IS PRAYER? SUPPORTING RESOURCES Book: The Song Book of The Salvation Army.
IN DISCUSSION Take time to discuss the following (see page 02 05 of the In Prayer book): 1. ‘Our true prayer is always deep inside us. And God knows what it is.’ How well do we express in words what is in our heart? Psalm 139:1-4; Luke16:15; Romans 8:26, 27 2. Discuss how varied approaches to prayer – such as adoration, thanksgiving, repentance, petition and intercession – help us develop a healthy relationship with God. 1 Timothy 2:1-6; Hebrews 4:16; Philippians 4:6, 7 3. Share your thoughts on how prayer can be a conversation with God. Psalm 139:17, 18 and 23, 24; Genesis 18:22-33; 1 Kings 3:7-12; Psalm 25:4-7 4. What is prayer? What do we believe is happening when we pray? Ephesians 3:14-19; James 5:16; Matthew 6:7, 8; Luke 18:10-14 Activity Ideas •• Read Song 588 (from the 1986 edition of The Song Book of The Salvation Army, altered): I often say my prayers; But do I ever pray? in prayer
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And do the wishes of my heart Go with the words I say? I may as well kneel down And worship gods of stone, As offer to the living God A prayer of words alone. For words without the heart The Lord will never hear; Nor will he to those lips attend Whose prayers are not sincere. Lord, show me what I need, And teach me how to pray; Nor let me ask you for your grace, Not feeling what I say.
song book you have. Some songs are prayers in themselves whilst other songs are about prayer and how it can help us. Find some examples of each. IN PRAYER Almost always we ask for something in our prayers. Try to pray a prayer of adoration and thanksgiving only.
SESSION OUTCOMES •• Understanding that prayer is about relationship with God. •• Understanding that true prayer comes from the heart. •• Knowing the different kinds of prayer.
Dear Lord, we thank you that we can talk to you at any time. We thank you that you know the deepest thoughts of our hearts. We thank you that the Holy Spirit helps us when we pray. We praise you that when we pray, things happen. Hallelujah!
What is the main point the writer is making? •• It is easy to get into the habit of starting and finishing our prayers in the same way every time, without really thinking about it. Ask group members to write a letter to God, perhaps starting ‘Dear Father…’ and encourage them to write in the same way as if they were writing to a close friend. Invite group members to share their letters, but if some are very personal they need not do so. •• Look at the prayer section of whichever
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leader’s manual
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IN PRAYER
TEACH US TO PRAY SUPPORTING RESOURCES Book: Servants Together.
04 IN DISCUSSION Take time to discuss the following (see page 07 of the In Prayer book): 1. How well do we manage to be open, honest and at ease in God’s presence? How is our relationship with God helped by this? Psalm 51:1-17; Psalm42:1, 2; Psalm 46:10 2. How can sharing the Lord’s Prayer draw us closer to one another? Matthew 6:9-13 3. We are meant to ask for forgiveness, not to take it for granted. Why? Matthew 6:14, 15; Psalm130:3, 4; Ephesians 4:32; Luke 7:36-50 4. Discuss the concluding affirmation of the Lord’s Prayer (beginning from ‘Thine is the Kingdom…’) and its eternal significance. Philippians 2:9-11; Revelation 11:15; John 18:36; Matthew 28:18-20; Psalm 34:1-3, 8, 9 Activity Ideas •• Read the passage from Servants Together (see text on page 10). •• Share any experiences of how God has unexpectedly provided for a need. in prayer
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PRAYING FOR EACH OTHER SUPPORTING RESOURCES Books/magazines: Called to be God’s People. Servants Together. The Salvation Army Year Book. All the World. Other Salvation Army periodicals.
•• Invite members of the group to think about whether there is anyone they need to forgive. Is there a need to go to the person and tell them they are forgiven? Give opportunity for sharing if people wish to do so. IN PRAYER Pray together the Lord’s Prayer. SESSION OUTCOMES •• Understanding the structure of the Lord’s Prayer. •• Recognising the need to surrender our will to God’s will. •• Recognising the need to be open with God and trust him for daily provision. •• Recognising the need to ask God for forgiveness for ourselves, and offer forgiveness to others. •• Recognising that we need strength from God to resist temptation and that his power is unequalled.
rmy leader’s manual
IN DISCUSSION Take time to discuss the following (see page 09 of the In Prayer book): 1. Our Father God wants us to bring our personal needs to him. How well do we do this? Matthew 11:28-30; Matthew 6:6 2. Our Father God wants us to bring the needs of other to him. How well do we do this? Colossians 1:3-12; Romans 12:10-12 and 15 3. Discuss ways in which the mercy seat may be used to strengthen fellowship with shared prayer. Matthew 18:19, 20; Philippians 2:1-4; 1 Thessalonians 5:12-18 4. Take part in the Worldwide Prayer Meeting, linking up with the IHQ website at http://sar.my/wwpm and the Centre for Spiritual Life Development at www.salvationarmy.org/csld, with its global call to 24-7 prayer. Note: for In Discussion point 4, if you do not have access to the Internet, reference to The Salvation Army Year Book, All the World or other Army periodicals may help. Choose one or two territories or situations in prayer
PRAYING FOR EACH OTHER one rmy
TEACH US TO PRAY one rmy
IN PRAYER
05 not in your own country and pray for them. Pray for the General and the Chief of the Staff with their heavy leadership responsibilities. Activity Ideas •• Think about whether the group could organise a special prayer event at the corps – a prayer concert; a 24-hour or whole week period of prayer. •• Ask everyone to write down on a small piece of paper a personal need that they would like someone else to pray for. Mix up the papers, redistribute them and ask each person to pray for the need they have received. •• Do a similar thing, but this time write down a prayer request concerning a person or situation outside the group. •• Look at the prayer requests again and discuss whether there is anything practical that the group could do for those people and situations. •• Read the extract from Called to be God’s People (see text on page 11). •• Read the passage from Servants Together (see text on page 11).
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rmy leader’s manual
IN PRAYER
ASK – AND RECEIVE SUPPORTING RESOURCES Books: Holiness Unwrapped. From Generation to Generation. Renovation of the Heart.
06 IN PRAYER Pray that the Lord will help you to put into practice what you have learned about prayer. Dear Lord, we thank you for the possibility of praying for others. Help us to be more aware of those who need our prayers. We thank you too for the strength that comes when we meet with others for prayer. Help us not to forget or neglect to do so. In Jesus’ name.
SESSION OUTCOMES •• Understanding the importance of praying for others. •• Understanding that sometimes action is required as well as prayers. •• Understanding that we have a responsibility to pray for the Army worldwide.
TAKE PART in the Worldwide Prayer Meeting at http://sar.my/wwpm REFER TO the Centre for Spiritual Life Development with its global call to 24-7 prayer at www.salvationarmy.org/csld
IN DISCUSSION Take time to discuss the following (see page 11 of the In Prayer book): 1. In what ways are asking, seeking and knocking different from each other? In what ways may they be the same? Matthew 7:7, 8; Jeremiah 29:13, 14; Psalm 27:4; Luke 11:5-10 2. James said our prayers sometimes fail because we ask for the wrong things. What could this mean? James 4:3; 1 John 5:14; Psalm 66:18-20 3. What kind of things should we ask for in prayer? What shouldn’t we ask for? Philippians 4:6, 7; James 1:5; Matthew 7:11; Ephesians 6:18, 19 4. Consider the statement that to pray ‘your will be done’ is the most complete prayer of all. Luke 22:42; John 4:34; Romans 12:2; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18; 1 John 2:17 Note: for In Discussion point 1 you may need to explain the background to Jeremiah 29:13, 14. The country of Judah had been invaded by Babylon and many of the people had been taken into exile in Babylon, where they were very downhearted about their situation. Jeremiah wrote to encourage them and to advise them what to do. Activity Ideas •• Read the passage from Holiness Unwrapped (see text on page 11). •• Read the extract in From Generation to Generation (see text on page 12). •• There are some Christians who think that bad things should not happen if
leader’s manual
an international teaching resource
in prayer
they love and serve God. If something bad happens and God does not take it away, they may feel very distressed or angry. How would you help such a person? •• Share some ways in which God has answered your prayers. •• Look back over all the ‘In Prayer’ teaching. Share some of the important things you have learned. Are there any ways in which your praying has changed?
ASK – AND RECEIVE one rmy
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IN PRAYER Thank God for his answers to prayer and pray that he will continue to guide you in your prayers. Dear Lord, we thank you for the many times you have answered our prayers. We ask that your Holy Spirit will continue to help us in our prayers, so that we will know how to pray and what to ask for. In Jesus’ name we pray. SESSION OUTCOMES •• Understanding the structure of the Lord’s Prayer. •• Recognising the need to surrender our will to God’s will. •• Recognising the need to be open with God and trust him for daily provision. •• Recognising the need to ask God for forgiveness for ourselves, and offer forgiveness to others. •• Recognising that we need strength from God to resist temptation and that his power is unequalled. – ask – and receive one
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REFERENCED RESOURCES one rmy
one rmy ‘Christian monotheism’, pp 25, 26, Chapter 2, Section A, The Salvation Army Handbook of Doctrine.
REFERENCED RESOURCES FOR THIS UNIT This unit in part relates to Doctrines 2, 4, 9, 10 and 11
BOOKS Some of these resources are shared on the One Army website. The Salvation Army Handbook of Doctrine, the second doctrine, read more in chapter 2. 08 Holiness Unwrapped, see the chapter ‘A man of prayer’, page 37. The Salvation Army Handbook of Doctrine, the fourth doctrine, read more in chapter 4. Samuel Logan Brengle, Heart for God, see the chapter ‘The secret of power’, page 14. One Army – In Christ: ‘God the Father’. Holiness Unwrapped, see the chapter ‘Self-Control’, page 105, and Renovation of the Heart, Dallas Willard, NavPress, Carol Stream, Illinois, USA. These may be used in both the ‘Teach us to pray’ and ‘Ask – and receive’ sections. The Gospel in Brief, Leo Tolstoy, see Chapter IX, Darton, Longman and Todd, London, UK. USA National War Cry, March 2014, see ‘Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do’. US News and Beliefnet prayer survey. Called to be God’s People, see ‘Call to the Mercy Seat’, p 23. Servants Together, see ‘Hearing God in the silence’, p 6, Salvation Books. Servants Together, see ‘Bringing everything into the presence of God through prayer’, p 6. From Generation to Generation, see the Introduction, p xi. ADDITIONAL RECOMMENDED RESOURCES •• For a further list of supporting resources see page 17 of the In Prayer book. @TSAOneArmy •• Remember there are additional activity ideas in the youth section of each book. What resources would you add? •• Don’t forget to ask your own territory Let us know by emailing about supporting resources it may have OneArmy@salvationarmy.org produced. or visit www.salvationarmy.org/ •• The One Army website is frequently onearmy/resources adding to its resources. Don’t forget to look there – and make contact. referenced resources
one rmy leader’s manual
Monotheism is the doctrine that there is only one God. This belief is not unique to Christianity; it is also held by a large section of the world’s population who belong to other faiths, including Jews, Muslims and Sikhs. However, Christian monotheism has its own particular meaning and content. Christian monotheism affirms the oneness of God (Deuteronomy 4:39, 6:4; Isaiah 44:6; Mark 12:29-31). Moreover, the one God, eternal, supreme and personal, is revealed and known as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, an eternal tri-unity. God has always been, is and always will be Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Christian monotheism does not mean that God resides in passive isolation. He is a God who is related to his creation; he is not a static being, unrelated and unmoved. The great Initiator, Preserver and Governor of all things interacts with his creation. The way in which God makes himself known and meets with his people is central to the biblical record (Exodus 3:1-6, 13, 14; 34:6-7). His desire for a holy and loving relationship with humanity is central to the message of both the Old and New Testaments (Deuteronomy 6:4, 5: 2 Kings 13:23; Jeremiah 7:23; Jonah 3:10; Ephesians 1:4, 5; 2 Timothy 1:8-12; 1 Peter 1:15). A man of prayer – p 37 from Holiness Unwrapped. Jesus was a man of prayer. The gospels show that he constantly kept in touch with God the Father by taking time to pray.
He prayed when he was alone (Mark 1:35), withdrawing from the crowd to give prayer his full attention (Luke 5:16). Sometimes he prayed all night (Luke 6:12). He drew strength from his relationship with his Father. He was energised in Spirit from these encounters and his motives were kept holy as he was able to determine his priorities. He prayed with his disciples (Luke 9:18). He prayed during deeply personal moments – such as his baptism (Luke 3:21) – and he prayed when he was engaged in day-to-day ministry (Luke 10:21). He prayed in his darkest moments – as at Gethsemane (Luke 22:41) and when he was dying (Luke 23:34). Prayer was natural to 09 Jesus. It should be natural to us. It is vital to holy living. ‘A real human being’, p 80, Chapter 4, Section A2, The Salvation Army Handbook of Doctrine. We believe that Jesus’ true humanity is clearly revealed in the Bible. The Gospels describe how Jesus possessed normal human faculties. He felt hunger and thirst and weariness (Mark 11:12; John 4:6), experienced delight, anger and grief (John 11:35), affection and compassion (Mark 1:41). He developed from childhood to adulthood (Luke 2:52). He learned facts by observation and could be surprised and horrified. He bled and died. In addition, the Gospels witness to the significance of his prayer life, the reality of his temptations (Matthew 4:1-11; Luke 4:1-13), the importance he gave to Scripture and the role of community and religious tradition in his growth and development. He was fully human.
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an international teaching resource
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one rmy
The secret of power, p 14, 15 from Samuel Logan Brengle: Heart for God. If I was dying and had the privilege of delivering three words to Christians, I would say, ‘Wait for God!’ Take time. Miss your breakfast if necessary, but take time to wait for God. I once heard William Booth say in a Salvation Army officer’s council: ‘Take time to pray God’s blessing down on your own soul every day. If you don’t, you will lose God. God is leaving men every day. They once had power. They walked in the glory and strength of God, but they ceased to wait on him. They neglected to seek his face, and he left them. I am a very busy man, but I take 10 time to get alone with God every day and commune with him.’ Wherever I go I find men and women who were once believers but have slid away. My heart aches as I think of the way in which the Holy Spirit has been grieved, and of the way in which Jesus has been treated. If these backsliders were asked why they lost their faith, they would give a thousand different reasons, but in the end there is really only one: they did not wait for God. If they had waited for him when the assault was made on their faith, they would have renewed their strength. They would have run through their enemies and not been weary. They would have walked in the middle of trouble and not fainted. Wait for God. This means more than a prayer of 30 seconds on getting up in the morning and going to bed at night. It may mean one prayer that gets hold of God and comes away with the blessing, or it may mean a dozen prayers that knock and persist and will not be put off, until God reveals his presence. leader’s manual
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There is a drawing near to God, a knocking at Heaven’s doors, a pleading of the promises, a reasoning with Jesus, that puts all the wealth of Heaven at the disposal of a person. Wait for God. Bringing everything into the presence of God through prayer, pp 6, 7 from Servants Together. We have a strong tradition of personal, spontaneous prayers in our worship, often to the exclusion of written, liturgical prayers. This tradition is of great value and should be nourished in the teaching of our people from early childhood or early Christian life, as it is a spring of power and new life. Even though that priority should be kept, written and liturgical prayers can have an immense impact in worship and be a means of blessing as well as a teaching tool in the quest for a dynamic prayer life. We can draw upon prayers from church history as well as write them ourselves. In a novel by the Swedish writer Sven Delblanc, The Daughters of Samuel, the poor widow Cecilie gets a pair of glasses from her children for her birthday present. They are very much needed. These glasses become both a joy and a pain to her. Her sight improves and her work gets easier, but now she is able to see the bitterness and poverty in the faces of her children. She notices the hopelessness. She turns this experience into a prayer: ‘Don’t make the world so cruel that I want blindness as a gift! That is all I dare to pray, Thou good and merciful God!’ Her prayer is like the old biblical prayers which contain cries for help and for a more just world. She doesn’t ask for liberation from the sharp sight that notices both joy and pain. She asks that she will never reach the point where the pain and cruelty become her whole horizon.
Our prayer life could be illustrated by such a pair of glasses. Through prayer we get a sharp and clear sight of our own reality and the reality of the world around us. We bring everything into God’s presence when we praise him for all he is and all he does. We bring to him our pain and the sharpness of our protest as we pray, ‘Deliver us from evil.’ We come with our petitions, the most natural part of prayer, and with our intercessions, our open acts of love for others. Prayer sharpens our sight and our hearing and fills our silence with God’s rest and peace. Call to the mercy seat, p 26 from Called to be God’s People. The mercy seat is a place for confession, repentance, consecration and spiritual guidance. When the International Spiritual Life Commission calls for Salvationists to ‘recognise the wide understanding of the mercy seat that God has given to the Army’, it is emphasising that ‘it is not only a place for repentance and forgiveness, but also a place for communion and commitment’. It continues: ‘Here we may experience a deep awareness of God’s abundant grace and claim his boundless salvation. The mercy seat may be used by anyone, at any time, and particularly in Army meetings when, in response to the proclaimed word, all are invited to share loving and humble communion with the Lord’. In a sense, there can be as many reasons for using the mercy seat as there are human needs.
Hearing God in the silence, p 6 from Servants Together. We Salvationists are not as well trained in hearing God in the silence as hearing him in the sounds. With many other people of today, we are also discovering the wonder of worship in silence. The Orthodox Church calls itself the church of silence. Silence is seen as an expression of awe because God can come in the silence (1 Kings 19:11, 12) more than in the mighty manifestations. The Quaker tradition is built on silence in worship. The silence is a condition for listening to God. The essence of prayer is not so much our words, but an offering of ourselves and a willingness to listen. We need times of silence when we step back, reflect and refrain from filling up time with our activities and words. This is a vital act of worship. It is a fountain of new life and strength. Silence can be frightening unless we discipline ourselves for it and learn to live with it. In the silence our whole being turns into prayer because we are in the presence of God in our nakedness of spirit, our poverty, our sins and our broken words. Here we are given rest, healing and peace. For Jesus said, ‘Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest’ (Matthew 11:28). The fruit of the Spirit is self-control, p 105, 106 from Holiness Unwrapped. In his book Renovation of the Heart, Dallas Willard writes: ‘The strongest human will is the one that is surrendered to God’s will and acts with it’. This is self-control of the highest order. It is rooted in God and is empowered by God. It is a manifestation of the holy life – fruit of the Spirit’s indwelling. leader’s manual
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one rmy The human will and self-control do not easily go together. Surrendering our will for the greater good of those around us, demands effort. When strong desires take over, self-control is left floundering. Alexander Pope’s collection of Moral Essays include this statement: ‘The ruling Passion, be it what it will, The ruling Passion conquers Reason still.’ And so it does. Passion can be dangerous. Unchecked it can cause untold damage. Religious passion can be as damaging as any … A reflection on the history of the Church and other religions gives more than enough proof. The crimes some people have committed passionately in ‘the 12 name of God’ are unspeakably perverse. Addictions are another manifestation of not being in control. There are easily observed addictions – such as those involving substance abuse – but there are also less obvious addictions. These may include mindlessly watching the television, over-eating, collecting, arguing or working, for example. They all need facing up to and rectifying. Proverbs 25:28 makes the comment that ‘Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control’. There is nothing commendable about it. Our defences have gone. Titus makes a number of references to the need to be self-controlled, but his injunction to be ‘self-controlled and pure’ (2:5) gives a reminder that lack of self-control – giving into passions and desires – leads to impurity. It taints the holy life and alienates us from God. At the heart of the problem is our free will. It has been given to us by God and he encourages us to use it wisely. He has chosen not to control us by force. His leader’s manual
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self-control as the Almighty God is beyond anything we can imagine. The surrender of Jesus to his Father’s will – his prayer battle in Gethsemane and his surrender to the crucifixion – demonstrate a strength of willpower unsurpassed. It is this God who invites us to invite him to live his life in us, thus blending our wills. It is not achieved overnight! Introduction, p xi in From Generation to Generation. When Mary was told the news that she was to become a mother – and not just any mother, but the mother of the Son of God – she set an example for every generation. With simple, uncomplicated acceptance, she replied: ‘I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said’ (Luke 1:38). It was total surrender. Complete obedience to God’s will… At the end of his life Jesus was found in the Garden of Gethsemane displaying the same attitude as his mother and effectively with the same prayer on his lips. Battling against the temptation to back out of giving his life on the Cross, he prayed: ‘Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done’ (Luke 22:42). It was total surrender. Complete obedience to his Father’s will.