Prayer Boot CampSample

Prayer Boot Camp

Congrats! You signed up for prayer boot camp. During our time together, we’ll do some exercises that will strengthen your ability to pray more alone and with others. By the end of this plan, if you follow each of the steps, you will have a stronger relationship with Jesus and more confidence regarding your ability to lead others to Christ through prayer.

Have you ever done a bootcamp-style workout? For years, we attended an outdoor boot camp program at our local YMCA. A great friend of ours led the program, and we loved it. The diversity was great. People brought courage and determined to get better. 

The exercises were set for the group, but each person had the opportunity to perform at their fitness level. If we traveled a certain distance, some ran while others walked. If we completed an obstacle course, we competed against ourselves to see how many times we could finish the course in a set amount of time. 

In a similar way, some of the prayer exercises will be super simple. Others will take grit. We will start out easier and will increase in challenge. Consider the beginning to be the warm-up. 

So what is step 1?

Step 1:  Pray more on your own. 

If you have never planned to pray on your own, let today be the first. Consider setting an alarm to remind you to pray.
How long does it need to be? This will depend on how much you’ve been praying in the past. If you’ve never planned prayer, start with 30 seconds. If you already pray for 5 minutes at a time, try to increase it to 10 minutes or improve the consistency of your prayer, carving out daily prayer time.

Pick one or two important topics that relate to your own life. Why? We are more likely to keep praying if prayer feels less of a burden and more like a relationship. God wants you to share your life with Him. For example, pray that God will increase your desire to read His Word or spend time meditating on the amazing blessings He has brought into your life.
First, we will pray together. Then, pray on your own as you read God’s Word.

Lord,
We desire to be close to You. We choose to discipline our bodies, training them to follow You (1 Corinthians 9:27). When we look in the mirror, help us see strength like David, Elijah, and Paul. We give You our weaknesses. We give You our strengths.  And we ask that You make us stronger. Make us prayer warriors.
Amen.