The Challenge: DAY 15 – Prayer #5
Families who PRAY!
Welcome to DAY 15 of the 40-Day Mission-Minded FAMILY CHALLENGE!
Today’s video will challenge you to pray together as a family – real and honest before God – relying on His righteousness and grace, not your own works.
C’mon . . . Take the Challenge!
- Recommended Mission Resource: Brokenness, Surrender, Holiness
- Missionary Quote by Nancy Leigh DeMoss – of Revive our Hearts and Martin Luther
- Geography Quiz at lizardpoint.com: AFRICA and joshuaproject.net
- Memory Verse: James 5:16, II Cor. 5:21, Isaiah 64:6
- Today’s 5 minute video
A question for feedback:What are your thoughts about praying together as a family? Has this been a challenge for you, or has it been easy? Have you found any keys – or answers – that could help or encourage other families to pray together?
COMING NEXT WEEK: The BEATITUDES – with a Mission-Minded Focus!
Hello Quinn!!
I’m so happy to hear that you and your family are taking the 40-day challenge.
Thank you also for sharing your heart, and for telling me about your desire to be able to pray more freely with other people. I think a “key” is that you mentioned that you are “afraid” of praying with others. “FEAR” is not your friend. God is not the author of fear, and “FEAR” is a strategy or a weapon of the enemy.
II Timothy 1:7 says, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”
I would encourage you, Quinn, to spend some time praying alone with God to help you to make some steps to freedom, perhaps even baby steps. Maybe you can begin by praying a few times a week with a younger sibling, or with one of your parents, or to pray a word of blessing and thanks for a meal with your whole family (or maybe even at a time when you have a few guests over). Then, maybe you can just prepare your heart to surrender that area of “praying with others” to God, and to simply tell the Lord something like . . .
“Jesus, please help me to pray a simple prayer, without fear, the next time I am asked to pray. I surrender all fear in that area to You, and I ask you to help me. I realize it’s not about me, or what others think about me, but prayer is all about simply talking with you, and interceding on the behalf of others. Help me to love you, and to love others, more than I’m concerned about myself, and to be unafraid and BOLD for you.”
One of my favorite verses as a young preteen girl was from Jeremiah 1 starting in verse 6:
6 . . . “Ah, Lord GOD!
Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth.”
7 But the LORD said to me:
“ Do not say, ‘I am a youth,’
For you shall go to all to whom I send you,
And whatever I command you, you shall speak.
8 Do not be afraid of their faces,
For I am with you to deliver you,” says the LORD.
9 Then the LORD put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the LORD said to me:
“ Behold, I have put My words in your mouth.
10 See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms,
To root out and to pull down,
To destroy and to throw down,
To build and to plant.”
Quinn, prayer is powerful, and if you feel weak, that’s a perfect time for God to show Himself strong. It’s not about you, it’s all about Him. And through your prayers, God’s power can make a difference.
Thanks for sharing.
Let me know when you’ve had some victory in this area. It’s going to be exciting.
Blessings to you!
Mrs. Dunagan
Mrs. Dunagan,
I am 12 years old and am doing the 40 day challenge with my family. I am afraid of praying with other people, can you help? We liked doing the hand commands especially commandment eight. Thank you, Quinn
Kristin —
AWESOME!!!
Glad you found the lessons. It’s how our family has learned the Beatitudes (in fact, we have cartoon pictures like these for the entire Sermon on the Mount).
Just found the answer to my hopes in Day 16! Thank you for the Beatitude lessons!
Christy B –
You can go back and watch any of the first 14 challenge days that you missed so far. Just click here for the links: http://harvestministry.org/challenge
We’re glad that you found this day to we worthwhile!
Blessings to you!
I missed the first 15 days of the challenge, but it certainly is worthwhile enough to jump in right here! Thank you!
.-= Christy B.´s last blog ..Homeschool: What about special needs? =-.
What a great testimony, Christy, about stepping forward to pray publicly even when it was hard for you. May the Lord continue to bless you and your family as you’re growing in PRAYER and in your MISSION-MINDED walk with Him!
Ann
.-= Ann Dunagan´s last blog ..What is your part in God’s Great Commission? =-.
I used to be nervous praying in groups as well, in fact every once in a while it comes up again, but I heard someone say how much they appreciated my “real” sounding prayers and it opened up the door for them to pray naturally as well. Isn’t that what God wants!! He doesn’t want our eloquent speeches, he wants our hearts and praying together sometimes puts into words what other people are feeling or thinking anyway or it can even bless them in ways we never would have imagined. Please be available to pray in groups, only you have your words and God put each of us into those groups in the first place.
We are starting to review the Lord’s Prayer right now. I also love the resources you’ve provided for praying for other people around the world. Too often our prayers become small and centered around our own lives instead of focused on God.
I got a little behind this week but I love the focus on prayer and, again in perfect timing like only God can orchestrate, we came off a great sermon reminding us to ask the Lord of the Harvest… pray!
.-= Christy Nordstrom´s last blog ..A Yes Day! part 3 =-.
Brenda, it’s awesome that you are able to pray with your family. We would encourage you to step out little by little to “conquer” this fear. Realize that this fear is not from God, and He will help you. Try praying with one other person, then perhaps with a small group of a few people or in a home group. The Bible says that “perfect love casts out fear” so when you are more filled with LOVE for those who need your prayer support (and focused on that), it will help you to pray more with others. GOD will help you.
I am very fearful about praying in groups. I can do it for my family though. I don’t want my children to grow up with this fear so the earlier the better. They have to fear when they are children so use it while you can, I guess.