For those that may be having problem opening the wedsite or may not have the program to open it here is the outline, this is day 1. Day One – The Secret of His Power Suggested Format for United Prayer Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples (Luke 11:1). Praise (Approximately 10 minutes) • Begin your prayer time by praising God for teaching us to pray more effectively. • Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us… (Romans 8:26). • Take time to praise God for who He is (His character) and for what He does. Confession (Approximately 5 minutes) • Confess our lack of prayer and intercession—both personally and as a people—and ask God to forgive us for failing to commune with Him in prayer and intercession. Far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you (1 Samuel 12:23). • Ask God to show you any other sin in your life that needs to be confessed; then take time to silently listen for His answer. Ask His forgiveness and joyfully accept His mercy. Supplication and Intercession (Approximately 35 minutes) • Pray for God to give us the Holy Spirit to teach us how to pray like Jesus and truly intercede for others. I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication (Zechariah 12:10). • Pray for a passion for prayer, a conviction of how much we need to pray, and a realization of the power available to us through prayer. • Pray for prayer groups to spring up everywhere. Ask God how to have more prayer in your church. • Pray that we will learn to pray for God’s guidance before making plans. • MTTC: Church leaders working with initiatives in the 630 cities to be wise, Spirit-filled, servant leaders who seek and follow God’s plans and demonstrate successful soul-winning. • Pray for Adventists, and all Christians, to experience true revival and reformation in their walk with God. Pray that they will be filled with the Holy Spirit, personally know Jesus through the Bible and prayer, and live holy lives. Pray this for yourself, your local church’s members and pastor, and the following groups of people: church leaders at all levels, parents, children/youth, singles, teachers, pastors, health workers, and missionaries. • Ask God which five people to pray for during these ten and let the Holy Spirit bring people to mind. Write their names (if appropriate) and prayer needs on two index cards. Carry one with you, and put the other in the group box, to be prayed over each night. • Pray for other requests that are on your heart. Thanksgiving (Approximately 10 minutes) • Rejoice that God hears and answers our prayers. See Jeremiah 33:2, 3. • Thank Him for answering our prayers before we can even see the results. Songs to Sing (sing these songs, or others, as God impresses you to during the prayer time.) Come, Holy Spirit; Spirit of the Living God (SDA Hymnal #672); Hear Our Prayer, O Lord (SDA Hymnal #684); I Need the Prayers (SDA Hymnal #505), For You I am Praying (SDA Hymnal #284). Ellen White on the Lord’s Prayer After this manner therefore, pray ye… (Matthew 6:9). The Lord’s Prayer was twice given by our Savior, first to the multitude in the Sermon on the Mount, and again, some months later, to the disciples alone. The disciples had been for a short time absent from their Lord, when on their return they found Him absorbed in communion with God. Seeming unconscious of their presence, He continued praying aloud. The Savior’s face was irradiated with a celestial brightness. He seemed to be in the very presence of the Unseen, and there was a living power in His words as of one who spoke with God. The hearts of the listening disciples were deeply moved. They had marked how often He spent long hours in solitude in communion with His Father. His days were passed in ministry to the crowds that pressed upon Him, and in unveiling the treacherous sophistry of the rabbis, and this incessant labor often left Him so utterly wearied that His mother and brothers, and even His disciples, had feared that His life would be sacrificed. But as He returned from the hours of prayer that closed the toilsome day, they marked the look of peace upon His face, the sense of refreshment that seemed to pervade His presence. It was from hours spent with God that He came forth, morning by morning, to bring the light of heaven to men. The disciples had come to connect His hours of prayer with the power of His words and works. Now, as they listened to His supplication, their hearts were awed and humbled. As He ceased praying, it was with a conviction of their own deep need that they exclaimed, Lord, teach us to pray (Luke 11:1). Jesus gives them no new form of prayer. That which He has before taught them He repeats, as if He would say, You need to understand what I have already given. It has a depth of meaning you have not yet fathomed. The Savior does not, however, restrict us to the use of these exact words. As one with humanity, He presents His own ideal of prayer, words so simple that they may be adopted by the little child, yet so comprehensive that their significance can never be fully grasped by the greatest minds. We are taught to come to God with our tribute of thanksgiving, to make known our wants, to confess our sins, and to claim His mercy in accordance with His promise. ~ Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing, pages 102, 103.
Posted on: Mon, 28 Apr 2014 12:46:26 +0000