Read Take some time in advance to

read and consider the Bible

Study questions and come

up with personal examples to

encourage discussion.

WatchMake sure everyone can see

the screen and the audio is at a

comfortable level.

PrintBefore class, make enough

copies of this session’s handout

for your entire group. (The

handouts came with your

download.)

Note: For more detailed information, please see the How to Use This Leader’s Guide document.

SESSION 3:

PURSUIT OF PRAYER

Quick Start

S E S S I O N 3 : P U R S U I T O F P R AY E R 2

Open

Leader: You’ll need three pairs of volunteers, each pair will consist of a person playing an A-role the

other will play the B-role. In each case the B-role is easy; the A-role is the challenge. Prepare six index

cards, each with one of these messages. (Six gives you three back-ups, and if it’s really going well, you

could try it a few more times.) In each message, circle the words that are in bold.

Could I use your phone?

Come with me, to see something amazing.

Will you lend me a dollar?

I need a hug.

Get out now. It’s an emergency.

Would you like to go to a movie with me?

Put the first pair of players in front of the group. Explain the game like this:

These two will play out a very simple scene. Our script only has one line, written on this card. This person

(A) will deliver this message to this person (B), and the scene is successful when B understands the

message and responds appropriately…except there are some limitations. The message-giver (A) may

not use any words, and your arms must remain at your sides. Break these rules, and the game is over.

Of course the rules may change as we go.

Give A one of the message-cards, which you’ve selected, and then start the scene. Then pass that card

through the audience, so they know what they’re trying to communicate.

After about a minute, announce that A may use his or her arms to communicate the message. After

another 20–30 seconds, if the message still isn’t understood, allow them to use words—but not the

words that are circled on the cards. (They might need to see the card again.) After about two minutes in

all, call time, and start the next pair on a new message.

Hints: You may want to see if the early contestants discover these on their own. If not, you might want to

suggest these to the later contestants. (1) While they may not use words, they can use sounds. (2) The

receiver (B) could help out by making guesses, allowing A to indicate Yes or No.

After all the game-playing, talk about the experience.

S E S S I O N 3 : P U R S U I T O F P R AY E R 3

What seemed to work, and what didn’t?

[To the participants] How did you feel about these restrictions? Was it frustrating?

We’re going through a series of lessons about prayer. What do you think this game has to do with

prayer?

There may be many good answers here. The simplest is that prayer is about communicating with God,

giving and receiving messages. But there are all sorts of things that can get in the way of prayer. We’re

distracted, or ashamed, or selfish. Maybe sometimes we’re not really open to receiving his messages. In

any case, it’s a relationship worth working at. Let’s see more in this video.

ViewWatch Session 3: Pursuit of Prayer (20 minutes)

ReViewIn this video we saw a number of different problems that can affect the way we pray, or whether we pray

at all. First we met Taylynne, who was feeling guilty about sin she had committed.

How did that affect her prayers?

Here’s how she described it:

Even though I was praying to him, I still felt that guilt. I would just feel empty. I wouldn’t feel

anything. So I would always just be wondering if God is really hearing me. I just didn’t know what to do,

and I felt so lost and I felt so broken and God can never love me again. He thinks that I am just a bad

person and he will never forgive me.

If that was a good friend of yours, coming to you and telling you that, what would you say? How

would you help that friend connect with God again?

In Taylynne’s case, she had a youth pastor who reminded her of God’s love and forgiveness. That made a

big difference for her.

S E S S I O N 3 : P U R S U I T O F P R AY E R 4

It’s hard to know what to say, because you don’t want to shrug off the sin. You can’t say, “It’s no big

deal! Everybody sins. Don’t worry about it,” because sin is serious business. But the overwhelming truth

is that Jesus died to wipe away our sin. He took our sins to the grave with him. We are able to have a

relationship with God, regardless of what we’ve done, because of what Jesus did.

So, if you feel guilty about sin in your life, should you just keep praying as if there’s no problem?

Not exactly. Sin is a problem, and you have to deal with it. It’s like when you and a friend have a fight.

You can kind of hang out for a while, pretending everything’s okay, but it won’t be okay until you talk

about it. In the same way, you need to bring these guilty feelings to God. Tell him you’re sorry.

Get your Bibles and turn to Psalm 51. Here we have a great example of King David coming back to God

after he sinned. Here’s what he says:

Leader: Read verses 1–12 yourself, or get a really good reader to do it.

Bookmark this psalm. Memorize it. Hang it up in your room. Make it part of your vocabulary. And when

you feel far from God and you don’t know how to come back, use these words. David will show you the

way.

Later in the video, we met Phil, who had a different problem. His sister died in a car accident. How did

that affect his relationship with God?

He was angry. Angry with God. He lashed out against God in his behavior. Here’s what he said:

I was, like, “If there is a God, I’m going to do everything I can to push him away.”…It got to the

point where it was like retaliation. It was just bitterness. I just developed this hate for God.

That’s strong language, but it’s kind of understandable. People feel like that sometimes, when they face

terrible tragedies. They blame God for what happened. How could he allow this? How could a loving God

let them feel such pain?

Does it make sense to turn away from God over a painful disaster like that?

Yes and no. Nothing makes sense in a situation like that. It challenges what people think about God. If

you grow up expecting God to make everything good for you all the time, a deeply painful experience

S E S S I O N 3 : P U R S U I T O F P R AY E R 5

can shatter your whole belief system. If you see God as Santa Claus, he will disappoint you. It may seem

that he has betrayed you. Of course you’re angry. You might also be hurt, confused, and doubting.

How would those feelings affect your prayer?

Some people hold grudges against God which break off the relationship. It’s like a human friendship.

Someone betrays you—you don’t want to talk to them. In other cases, they might still go through the

motions, but there’s a wall up. It’s hard to really connect with God when you feel he has hurt you.

What can you do to get past this? Is there a way to “make up” with God? (How would you make up

with a friend? Can you do the same sort of thing with God?)

Communication is crucial. If you’re angry with God, tell him so. It might seem wrong to do that, but

remember that biblical heroes like Abraham, Moses, David, Job, Jeremiah, and Paul argued with God

and, as a result, seemed to grow in their relationship with him. God wants to hear from you, even if

you’re upset.

As in any relationship, you need to talk and listen. Prayer is a two-way street. So unleash your frustrations

with God, and then quiet down as he responds.

Understand that you may never understand. You might never make sense of what happened. You

probably won’t find an easy answer that explains everything. But you might come to know God better.

That’s what happened with Phil. He was upset and bitter, but he went back to God and prayed for peace,

and he got it.

Turn to Isaiah 55:9. Here’s another verse to put on your wall…and in your heart. Would someone read

that?

His ways are higher than our ways. Why is that important to remember when bad things happen in our

lives?

We don’t always know what he’s doing. He works things together for his purposes, and he doesn’t

always clue us in. We need to trust him for who he is, in all his mysterious complexity. He’s infinitely more

than Santa Claus. We need to connect with the God who is, not just with the God we want him to be.

Through prayer we communicate, we learn, we grow.

S E S S I O N 3 : P U R S U I T O F P R AY E R 6

In the last story on the video, Carli mentioned that she got “bored” with her faith. She wasn’t “on fire”

like she used to be. How does boredom affect our prayer lives?

It can make it a lot harder to pray. Why set aside time for a ho-hum prayer ritual when you can be

watching kittens playing on YouTube?

Does prayer always get boring? Is there a way to liven it up?

It’s easy to forget that prayer connects us with the awesome Creator of the Universe who cares deeply

about our lives. Think of your favorite movie star, the world leader you’re most impressed with, and

whatever classmate you have a crush on. Prayer is like a phone call with all of them, to the billionth

power. There would be nothing boring about it.

You could try different ways to make it more exciting—well-written guidebooks or creative techniques—

but the main thing is to remember who you’re talking to. And if you really open up to God, listening as

well as talking, he will make the experience more exciting.

This is essentially what happened to Carli. Remember that? In her boredom, she was starting to let her

friends influence her behavior in negative ways, so she prayed for them. And God answered big time. At

least one of those friends became a Christian and others are coming to church with her.

As we’ve seen, our prayers can be hindered by our feelings of guilt, anger, or boredom. Which of

those is most likely to block your pursuit of prayer, and what can you do about it?

Leader: No need to get public answers for this, but you might invite anyone who is especially grappling

with these problems to talk with you afterward.

Bible JourneyTurn to Philippians 4:6. Francis Chan mentioned this verse in the video, and it’s a good verse to consult

whenever you’re talking about prayer. Would some read verse 6?

What should we be anxious about? (Nothing!)

Okay, let’s be honest. What are you worried about right now?

Leader: Be honest about your own worries, and prompt them in confessing theirs.

S E S S I O N 3 : P U R S U I T O F P R AY E R 7

Grades? Getting into college? Making the team? Getting a girlfriend or boyfriend? Breaking up with

a girlfriend or boyfriend? Dealing with bullies at school? Learning to drive? Pimples? Losing weight?

Gaining weight? Coping with your parents? Hiding something from your parents? Keeping yourself from

murdering your little brother?

We’re anxious about all sorts of things! But this verse gives us a huge command: Don’t!

According to this verse, what should we do instead of being anxious?

Pray. Ask God for what you need. Thank him for what he has already given.

How does prayer cure anxiety?

There are many good answers to this, but we might say that prayer puts us in a place of trust. Whatever

the situation is, we can trust God to deal with it. We don’t always know how he will work things out, but

he will work things out. We can trust him to do what’s best.

Why would thanksgiving be an important part of these prayers?

When we thank God, we recognize how he has worked things out in the past. We also appreciate certain

aspects of the situation we’re in. It turns our attitude from negative—fearing the bad things that might

happen—to positive.

Would someone read verse 7?

What happens when we pray instead of worrying? (God’s peace enters our hearts and minds.)

Why does it talk about “guarding” our hearts and minds? What does that make you think of?

It’s a military word, but you might also think of sports—linemen guarding a quarterback in football—or

even a celebrity with a bodyguard. When we get into the practice of turning things over to God, his

peace stands guard over our attitude, keeping those negative thoughts and feelings from creeping in.

S E S S I O N 3 : P U R S U I T O F P R AY E R 8

Scripture Lab

Leader: Distribute the Principles of Prayer handout (example handout on page 33). Divide into groups of

4–5. Assign each group a different Scripture to start with.

Here are a number of Bible verses that have to do with prayer. Some are about the kinds of hindrances to

prayer that we talked about earlier—guilt, anger, boredom. Others give general instructions or examples

of prayer. Your task is to try to come up with “Principles of Prayer,” based on these verses. Talk within

your group about what the verses are saying and how you can put that message into your own words.

You may skip some, or put two or three together. Be creative and have fun with it.

Leader: Give them 8–10 minutes to work on this, then gather everyone to review their principles. If

you wish, use a board up front to write down especially well-worded principles. You might consider

assembling and publishing (in some form) the best principles they come up with. The notes below are

mere ideas, for your benefit.

A. Deuteronomy 4:29

Seek the Lord with all your heart and soul, and you will find him.

B. 2 Chronicles 7:14

Prayer should be made humbly and with a commitment to do right.

C. Psalm 27:4

Prayer involves an intimate interaction with the Lord.

D. Psalm 40:1

Prayer requires patience, but it’s worth it.

E. Psalm 145:18

Prayer should be full of truth, accompanied by obedience, and offered in love.

F. Isaiah 29:13

Some people pray with their lips but not their heart.

G. Jeremiah 33:3

God shows us amazing things when we pray.

H. Matthew 26:41

Prayer can help us deal with temptation.

S E S S I O N 3 : P U R S U I T O F P R AY E R 9

I. Luke 18:1–8

Persistent prayer pays off.

J. Luke 18:9–14

Humble prayer beats proud prayer every time.

K. 1 Corinthians 14:15

Prayer involves the spirit, but also the mind.

L. 2 Corinthians 1:10–11

We help people by praying for them.

M. Ephesians 6:18

There are many kinds of prayer. Use them.

N. Colossians 4:2–4

Prayer requires devotion and thankfulness.

O. Hebrews 4:16

We may confidently ask for God’s mercy and grace.

P. James 5:15–16

Prayer promotes healing of body and soul.

Q. 1 Peter 4:7

Prayer requires clear thinking and self-control.

R. 1 John 1:9

God honors a prayer of confession by forgiving our sins.

Last WordLet me warn you about something. Sometimes when we look at all these things the Bible says about

prayer, we try to make rules about it. In order for our prayers to work, we say, we have to do this, this,

and this. But that’s not what this exercise is about.

Remember what prayer is: Talking with God. We have a relationship, and this is the way we

communicate. We can come to God in many ways—confession, thanksgiving, a cry for help—and he

responds in many ways.

S E S S I O N 3 : P U R S U I T O F P R AY E R 1 0

I hope these principles get you excited about this privilege of prayer that we have. Don’t ever let it

become a chore. This is a glorious time together with the One we love.

It’s like Francis said in the video, “I can’t live without being close to God…It drives me nuts if there is any

separation between you and me…This is what makes life worth living.”

Handout

PRINCIPLES OF PRAYER

S E S S I O N 3 : P U R S U I T O F P R AY E R 1 1

See what principles of prayer you can glean from the following verses.

A. Deuteronomy 4:29

B. 2 Chronicles 7:14

C. Psalm 27:4

D. Psalm 40:1

E. Psalm 145:18

F. Isaiah 29:13

G. Jeremiah 33:3

H. Matthew 26:41

I. Luke 18:1–8

J. Luke 18:9–14

K. 1 Corinthians 14:15

L. 2 Corinthians 1:10–11

M. Ephesians 6:18

N. Colossians 4:2–4

O. Hebrews 4:16

P. James 5:15-16

Q. 1 Peter 4:7

R. Colossians 4:2–4

S. 1 John 1:9