Prayers for the Church: Paul

• Lesson 12 for the week of March 17 to March 24

Paul’s letters reveal him as a praying pastor. It was common for non-Christian Greek letter-writers to mention they are praying to the gods for the persons to whom they are writing, often speaking of their...

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The High Priestly Prayer: Jesus

• Lesson 11 for the week of March 10 to March 17

Relevant Passages: John 17 This prayer of consecration by a sinless Jesus to his Father can be divided into four sections depending on who Jesus is praying for: Himself, that the Father will glorify him,...

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Prayer: Listening to Jesus

• Lesson 10 for the week of March 3 to March 10

Relevant Passages: John 14-16 In John 14-16 Jesus prepares his disciples for his departure. Soon he will be arrested, put on trial and executed as a criminal. He points out that his followers will experience...

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The Prayers of Intercession: Daniel

• Lesson 9 for the week of February 24 to March 3

The book of Daniel three times mentions the prayers of Daniel while he was held as a captive in Babylon. First, he and his three companions pray for wisdom in uncovering and interpreting the king’s...

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Prayers of Desperation: Hezekiah

• Lesson 8 for the week of February 17 to February 24

Relevant Passages: 2 Kings 18-20; 2 Chronicles 32 Hezekiah had the challenge of being the king of the southern kingdom of Judah at the at the time the kingdom of Israel just to the north...

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Prayers for Reformation: Elijah

• Lesson 7 for the week of February 10 to February 17

Elijah we see a prophet to the king and the northern kingdom of Israel. A powerful figure, he brings both king and renegade nation to repentance for national sins. Ahab the king had married Jezebel,...

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A Prayer for God’s Dwelling: Solomon

• Lesson 6 for the week of February 3 to February 10

Relevant Passages: 1 Kings 8; 2 Chronicles 6 When the first Temple in Jerusalem was built a service of consecration was held at which King Solomon contributed a major prayer. In the ancient Middle East...

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Prayers of Penitence: David

• Lesson 5 for the week of January 27 to February 3

Relevant Passages: Psalms 32, 51, 130; 2 Samuel 11, 12 1. David King David committed adultery with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah, a loyal soldier away at battle. When she tells David she is pregnant,...

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Prayers of Triumph: Hannah and Mary

• Lesson 4 for the week of January 20 to January 27

Relevant Passages: 1 Samuel 1-2; Luke 1 1. Hannah Hannah was praying for a son in the sacred tent at Shiloh. Because she was childless, she lived under constant ridicule from her husband’s other wife....

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A Prayer of Supplication: Moses

• Lesson 3 for the week of January 13 to January 20

Relevant Passages: Psalm 90 Psalm 90, a somber and elegant psalm directed towards God consists of three parts: (1) The contrast between “You,” the eternal God, and “we”, his ephemeral creatures, vs. 1-6; (2) Our...

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Prayers of Despair: Job

• Lesson 2 for the week of January 6 to January 13

To embrace the vast book of Job in one study is impossible. So we limit ourselves to Job’s words directed to God, and to a final prayer Job offered on behalf of his accusers. You...

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