Talking with God • Part 2

We have all had those times when it seems like God either doesn’t hear our prayers or that He doesn’t care. The disciples had been there as well, so they came to Jesus and asked Him how to pray. How do you pray when it feels like God doesn’t hear you? How do you pray when you feel like God doesn’t care? Today we will look at the essential aspect of our prayer lives (hint: it’s not so much about how you pray; it’s about the nature of the one you pray to). 

1. Can you share a time when someone persistently kept asking you for something, and you gave in and gave it to them mainly so they would leave you alone?
2. Read Luke 11:5-8. What tension do you feel when you read this story? If you were a character in this story, how would you be feeling if you were the one doing the knocking? How would you feel if you were the homeowner?
3. For Jesus, prayer is all about connecting with God as Father. When you come to pray, it’s not to impress people or inform God, but it’s coming to Him as your Father who knows you and wants to be with you. Can you share a time when you struggled with the idea that God truly wanted to be with you, that He truly wanted to hear from you?
4. Sometimes when we come to God, we have a feeling of inferiority and unworthiness. We are afraid to ask because there’s a lack of confidence that God will answer. After all, we’re not sure if He even wants to hear from us. How can seeing God as a loving Father take away those doubts and fears?
5. Jesus gives us a new way to pray. The confidence we have is not in our words, or being in the right place, or giving all the details because we might miss something. Our confidence comes in the reality that Jesus invites us to go to God as Father. He is a Dad that loves you and wants to hear from you. This relationship is the perspective that changes prayer for us. Pastor James shared about his children bursting into his room; how can having that same confidence with God boost your confidence when you come to God in prayer?
6. The second point Pastor James made was that we need to seek God with persistence. He described how Jesus taught that we would only persist in prayer if we are sure God loves us as a Good Father and when we come to Him as His child. What would need to change in your thoughts to believe that God loves you as a Father and wants to give all good things to you? Can you trust God to do what is right?
7. Sometimes the only way for God to show you His power is to let you face a situation that only His power can bring you through. Can you share with your group a time when God brought you through a challenging situation?
8. Read Luke 11:9-13. What stands out to you in these verses?