POP ON PRAYER But truly God has listened; he has attended to the voice of my Psalmprayer.66:19 6 Weeks of Prayer Prompts to Draw You Closer to the Lord Prince of Peace Lutheran Church princeofpeacefayette.org
Finally, notice that these prayer prompts are for your personal devotion and faith. But there is also an element of your personal prayers that are vital to our community together. Prince of Peace needs you and needs your prayer. To pray for God’s leading and direction. To pray in thanksgiving for our past and to pray us forward into our Thefuture.scripture
Introduction
lifted up here is meant to help your heart marinate on the word of God and meditate on His call for you and for Prince of Peace.
There is none like you among the gods, O Lord, nor are there any works like yours. All the nations you have made shall come and worship before you, O Lord, and shall glorify your name.
We are a people of prayer. It is the foundation upon which our lives are built and empowered. If your faith is a car, prayer is the fuel that makes it run. So welcome to your gas station. POP on Prayer is a 6 week prayer focus that will help you dive deeper into your prayer life and unite our community through the work of the Holy Spirit
POP on Prayer
Part personal devotion, part communal experience, this guide will lead you through 6 weeks of intentional scripture and prayer to direct your heart towards the Father. On the following pages are 12 scriptures with 12 different reflections and directions for your focused prayer. Invest time with 2 different prompts each week. While you do this personally, there is power and beauty that Prince of Peace will be on this journey together. Together we will be on a similar journey with our Lord. It is important that each prompt is hitched to a scripture. Prayer is a conversation—a two way street. But, most likely, you don’t hear Jesus talking to you. The good news is he never stops speaking to us through scripture. So, as you go through these prompts, image Jesus speaking to you directly. And respond to him. Talk with him. Trust that the Holy Spirit is involved in the whole process.
For you are great and do wondrous things; you alone are God. Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear your name. I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart, and I will glorify your name forever. ~ Psalm 86:8-12
✤ Reduce distractions. Put your phone in the other room. Turn off screens. Pick a place in your home.
✤ Enhance your focus. Light a candle to look at. A painting or picture that inspires your faith can be another way to focus your eyes. Turn on some instrumental music.
✤ Grab your journal or some paper. You can write out your prayers/thoughts or doodle while you pray and reflect. Healthy prayer doesn’t always entail hands folded, head bowed, and eyes closed. It can mean a wrestling with scripture as we listen for a word from the Lord
✤ Have your Bible with you to read and reread the scripture verse or phrase.
How to Pray There is no one way to pray. There is no one form to pray. There are some key components that are included, but prayer is more art than science. The most important parts of our prayer are who we address our prayers towards and praying in the name of PrayerJesus.
Experiment with different positions. Stand and pray as you walk. Sit in a comfortable position. Find a pillow and rest your knees on it as you kneel and pray. Fold your hands. Spread open your arms with your hands turned upward.
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✤ Schedule a period of time. If designating prayer time is new, set aside 10 minutes every day in the week ahead. If prayer time is a part of daily life, add this into your day, don’t replace your usual prayer time.
is a conversation with your Lord. It has similar components as any conversation you have with a friend or loved one. You name who you are talking with. You share what is on your heart. You dream together of hopes for what is going on in your world. You listen. If you are new to praying, you can try this: find a quiet room and two chairs. Set the chairs face-to-face and sit in one. Using your mind’s eye, picture Jesus sitting in the chair across from you. Carry on a conversation. What do you want to share with Him? What questions do you have? What are the concerns that burden your heart? What are you grateful for? Who comes to your heart that you want to tell Him about? Talk to Jesus. In the silence of your mind if you like. But, talking out loud can be a helpful practice too. Don’t worry, you can shut the door and no one but the One who needs to hear will hear you. Ways to Pray What follows this section is the Scripture and focus of our prayers. Here are some ways you can pray and some methods that can help you get more out of this shared time:
One great option, especially if carving out time in your day is hard, is to use a notecard and write out the scriptures and a word or two from the prompts. Keep that notecard close by and pull it out when you have some down time. Don’t be afraid to write down notes and thoughts that come to you as you pray and reflect.
Use the space below each prayer prompt as a place to write your prayers, share your reflections, draw pictures to help you express your heart, express what the Spirit reveals to you. This is just for you. So use this space to dive deeper into the Spirit and will of our Mighty God.
Regardless, dive in and let the Holy Spirit work in you, through you, and with you as we join together in prayer for our shared future together.
Another way to create fertile soil for these prayers is to talk about the Scripture and topics around the dinner table. “What do you think this means?” is a great place to start with all ages.
✤ Doing this privately is wonderful. ✤ Joining together with a loved one is wonderful too. ✤ Find ways to include your children, as appropriate. ✤ Share your insights and the things God reveals to you. With a friend. With council. With the church staff.
The simple answer is, any way that works for you. For some this will mean investing a significant amount of time to pray through it all at once and returning to do it over again through the course of the week or month. For others, bite sized chunks work best. Set an alarm during a portion of the day that is most often free and invest 5-10 minutes praying through the prompts—one each day. Work through them and then cycle back around again.
How to Use this Guide
“When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of him, and the song of man that you care for him?” ~ Psalm 8:3-4
POP Prayer Guide
WEEK 1
Prayers always are directed at the Triune God. Begin by ascribing glory and honor to the God of all creation. As you begin your prayer, praise Him for the beauty of creation; the intricacies of the way things hold together; the grandeur of our God and, despite our insignificant size, impact, and lifespan—that your God knows you, cares for you, and redeems you.
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” ~ John 13:34-35
Love is a tall order. Spend some time thanking God for the love that you have received from others and the lasting impact it has had on your life. Recognize how it was Jesus who was the author of that love, both directly and indirectly. It can be healthy to confess times when you have failed to love as Jesus loves. Seek the Lord’s direction on how to act on love for others. Who are the people in your sphere who God is laying on your heart to reach out to and love in word and deed? Pray that the Holy Spirit would provide an opportunity in the coming week for you to connect with this person.
Grace is a gift you have been given that you do not deserve. God’s love has given you the gift of life and has transferred you from the grave to the promise of eternal life with your Lord. As you pray through this prompt, give thanks for this amazing gift. Name the grace. Name that from which you have been saved—the things that rob you of life. And, finally, begin to turn this prayer beyond you. Pray for one person whom you know that does not yet know about this gift of grace. Who is your one person? Pray for them. Pray for an opportunity to extend grace to this one in the days and weeks ahead. Pray that the Holy Spirit would reveal himself to them and that you would have the opportunity to nudge them towards Christ Jesus.
WEEK 2
This is the last thing that Jesus says to the disciples prior to his ascension into heaven. They—and we—are not orphaned. The Holy Spirit comes to us and brings power and purpose to us. Pray that the Holy Spirit would come to you and to us. That Prince of Peace would learn to better tap into His Power and that we would step into our God given calling to be witnesses of God’s work, power, forgiveness, hope, and love. Pray that the Holy Spirit would reveal himself to you, especially as it relates to decisions and what is taking place in your life. And finally, that the Holy Spirit might direct all of us who are praying through this prayer guide.
“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ— by grace you have been saved…” ~ Ephesians 2:4-5
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” ~ Acts 1:8
WEEK 3 Jesus prayed, “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” ~ John 17:20-21
Here Jesus is praying prior to his arrest, trial, and crucifixion. In these verses, Jesus is praying for you and for the church. Unity is a big deal to Jesus and lack of unity is a big obstacle to the witness of Christ’s Church. Join Jesus in praying for the unity of His church. Pray for a spirit of cooperation among the churches in Fayette County. Pray that we would find more that binds us together than that which separates us. Pray for unity among Prince of Peace as we continue forward. Pray for a sense of cooperation and a unified direction as we love and serve the Fayette County community.
“A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell along the path and was trampled underfoot, and the birds of the air devoured it. And some fell on the rock, and as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up with it and choked it. And some fell into good soil and grew and yielded a hundredfold.” ~ Luke 8:5-8
This parable is about the type of soil that grows faith. To be clear, the Holy Spirit is the sower. The Holy Spirit is the one responsible for the growth and development of faith. At best, this is something we partner with the Lord to accomplish. We are subcontractors. Like farmers, our work is to prepare the soil as best we can. Pray for Prince of Peace, that we might be a place of good soil. Pray for our ministries. Pray for the ones we are doing currently and wisdom in creating new ones. Pray for the people that will be leading these ministries and supporting them to make them thrive. Pray for the people that walk through our doors. Pray that the Holy Spirit would be tilling the soil and making things ready. Pray for hearts to receive the Word as it is read and preached.
“Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.”
WEEK 4
Some say that the youth are the future of the church. While this is certainly true, it is equally true that our children and youth are the church today as well. Timothy reminds us that children and youth have many gifts to offer us today. They have gifts we need. Pray for our youth and children. Pray for your children and/or grandchildren. Pray for your kids’ friends. Pray for the children of Prince of Peace. Pray for Ms. Paula and Ms. Meredith as they lead, love, serve, and equip our children and youth in the faith. Pray that we may grow in our influence and reach of families within our communities.
~ 2 Timothy 4:1-2
~ 1 Timothy 4:12
God has always called men and women as servants to be His voice piece. In this time, pray that the Holy Spirit would continue to lift up and work through men and women of the faith to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Pray for Pastor Scott as he continues to serve Prince of Peace. Pray that the Lord would use him to speak truth, walk in humility, and help all of Prince of Peace follow more closely to Jesus. Pray for his family as well. And pray a prayer of thanks for all the pastors and ministers that have touched your life in powerful ways. Pray that the Lord would continue to raise up new preachers and teachers who will continue to be called to serve the church in this way. Pray, as well, for our bishop and the rest of the leadership of the North American Lutheran Church.
“I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by this appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.”
“In your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.” ~ 1 Peter 3:15
WEEK 5
The Holy Spirit gives gifts. But they are not just gifts for you to enjoy. The gifts given to you are to be utilized in and for His kingdom. Here you don’t need to pray that the Holy Spirit would give you gifts—he already has! Instead, pray that these gifts would be revealed to you and that you would be given the opportunity to leverage those gifts for others. Also, pray that all of God’s children would be equipped for ministry. Pray for Prince of Peace that we would be an equipping church that assists in the uncovering and utilization of gifts. Pray that you might better see the gifts in others and point them out when they are being used faithfully. Pray that the full repertoire of God’s gifted people would be unleashed within our community for the sake of others.
“And Jesus gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ.” ~ Ephesians 4:11-12
As a follower of Jesus you have hope; unquenchable and undeniable hope. Pray here that you might recapture this hope and come to a deeper understanding of what it means to place your faith and trust in the God of the universe. Confess the times, moments, and seasons when your hope has been muted. Now, pray that the Holy Spirit would make your hope infectious. Pray that you would have opportunity to share the reason for your hope. Ask for the words to use and the story to tell of how Jesus has brought you from darkness to light; from sorrow to joy; from death to life.
WEEK 6
“Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.” ~ Hebrews 12:14 Biblical peace is about far more than an absence of conflict. Shalom is about fullness. As our Lord prayed, peace is when things are “on earth as it is in heaven.” Peace is about God’s work in you, and it is about your work with others. It is no secret the world we live in today is conflicted. We are divided. We are against. We are short tempered and over extended. With little margin in our lives and with our energy depleted, peace is more illusive than ever it seems. Lift all of this up to the Lord. Share your longing for internal peace and your inability to grasp it. Mimic the Lord’s longing for peace with everyone and confess your contribution to the current reality. Pray that the Holy Spirit would bring you healing from wounds of the past that rob you of this shalom. Pray for insight in how to live and love in such a way that peace is your calling card and compassion is your first impression. Pray for ways to make God’s reality your reality in the week ahead: for you and for Prince of Peace. Pray for wisdom of how POP might be a force for peace within our community. And pray for boldness to act on such wisdom. “I will take my stand at my watchpost and station myself on the tower, and look out to see what he will say to me, and what I will answer concerning my complaint. And the Lord answered me: write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it.” ~ Habakkuk 2:1-2 Habakkuk, one of the minor prophets, is most known for the theme from a few versus after this, “the righteous shall live by faith.” Here, the prophet is standing guard and trying to figure out what is next and in what direction he is to lead the people. The Lord tells him to write the vision and make it plain so folks can see, read, and follow. In your prayers, ask for the Holy Spirit to grant a clear vision as you lean into His future. Pray for your future. Pray for the future of your family. Pray that you and your loved ones would lived into and out of God’s purpose for you. And pray for Prince of Peace. Pray for clarity of God’s vision. For our leaders and staff, that we would be united in our movement forward, clear with the direction we are headed, and unified in our purpose and plan.