1 Pet. 5:7; 2 Kings 20:1-6; Psalms 51:15:17
OPEN IT: I
f you only had one more prayer request to make before your life was ended what would you ask for?
DIG INTO IT:
1. Read 1 Peter 5:7 and answer the following questions:
1 Peter 5:7. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
a) Is Peter’s advice hard for you to follow? Why or why not?
b) What exactly is God offering to do with our anxiety?
c) What does God’s willingness to do this reveal to you about God?
2. Read 2 Kings 20:1-6 and answer the following questions:
1. In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.”
2. Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord,
3. “Remember, Lord, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
4. Before Isaiah had left the middle court, the word of the Lord came to him:
5. “Go back and tell Hezekiah, the ruler of my people, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you. On the third day from now you will go up to the temple of the Lord .
6. I will add fifteen years to your life. And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend this city for my sake and for the sake of my servant David.’ ”
a) According to this passage, are all future events settled and cannot be changed?
b) Can our prayers change God’s mind? If so, how? If not, what does this passage mean?
c) Fifteen years later, Hezekiah died. In other words, the end result was the same. Knowing this, why did God answer his prayer?
3. Read Psalms 51:15-17 and answer the following questions:
15. Open my lips, Lord, and my mouth will declare your praise.
16. You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
17. My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.
a) Why did the Psalmist need God to open his lips? Why couldn’t he do it on his own?
b) What kind of sacrifice does God desire? Can that desire be fulfilled in prayer?
c) Is there a connection between brokenness and prayer? Explain:
REFLECT ON IT:
1. What type of prayer is easiest for you to pray – request, praise, meditation, or something else? Which is hardest?
2. Do you believe that your prayer can really change your circumstances and/or the circumstances of others?
3. Why do you think God wants you to pray to Him?
4. What if we had a God that didn’t want us to communicate to Him? What would we be missing?
5. What in your prayer life could be better than it is right now? Do you feel that you pray the way God wants you to?
6. How can we pray for you today?
PRAY ABOUT IT:
“The prayer power has never been tried to its full capacity…if we want to see might wonders of divine power and grace wrought in the place of weakness, failure and disappointment, let us answer God’s standing challenge, “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and might things which thou knowest not.” ~ J. Hudson Taylor
Davis, Barry L.. Instant Bible Studies for Small Groups (pp. 26-28). GodSpeed Publishing. Kindle Edition.