1. Have a selected place.

“The problem in prayer is not that God is too busy for us, but that we feel too busy for him. God does not remove himself from us; we remove ourselves from him.” (Doriani, Following the Call, Moore, 170)

2. Have a selected time.

“Listen in silence, because if your heart is full of other things you cannot hear the voice of God. But when you have listened to the voice of God in the stillness of your heart, then your heart is filled with God. This will need much sacrifice, but if we really mean to pray and want to pray we must be ready to do it now….Remember, before you speak, it is necessary to listen, and only then, form the fullness of your heart you speak and God listens.” (Mother Teresa, Following the Call, Moore, 173)

Luke 5:16
Luke 6:12
Luke 9:18
Luke 9:28
Luke 11:1
Luke 22:41

3. Have a selected agenda.

“have no other motive in prayer than to know Him.” (Studies in the Sermon on the Mount, Chambers, 52)

“The great battle in private prayer is the overcoming of mental woolgathering…Enter the secret place, and right in the centre of the common round you find God there all the time…Unless in the first waking moment of the day you learn to fling the door wide back and let God in, you will work on a wrong level all day; but swing the door wide open and pray to your Father in secret, and every public thing will be stamped with the presence of God.” (My Utmost for His Highest, Chambers, pg. 236, August 23)

“True prayer rests in God’s generosity, not in our efforts to earn rewards. True prayer waits on God’s wisdom, rather than assuming that we can accurately assess our needs. True prayer trusts God and finds its confidence in him.” (Doriani, Following the Call, Moore, 170)

Sermon Questions

1. Describe your prayer life. What have been some victories in developing your time alone with God? What have been some struggles in creating this time? What have been some things you have learned about prayer and God during prayer?

2. If you knew of someone who didn't know how to pray, what words of insight would you give him/her?

3. What are essential aspects of your prayer life?

4. Share some answers to prayer requests in recent days in your life.

5. Why does Jesus give such strong instructions about prayer in Matthew 6?

6. What other examples of prayer from the Bible that we can learn from and be encouraged by?