Prayer of Supplication

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Prayer Guide for “A Call to Pray and Fast” Week 3 - September 1, 2016 Purpose of Cottonwood Creek Church: WE EXIST TO GLORIFY GOD BY LOVING GOD AND LOVING OTHERS

Why “A Call for Prayer and Fasting”    

To seek God individually with humility (2 Chronicles 7:11-16) To seek God personally through adoration and confession (Psalm 51:1-10) To seek God corporately through uniting of our hearts as a congregation. (Matthew 18:20) To seek God’s will for us individually as a follower of Christ and as a Church (Matthew 6:33)

Why do we pray? Luke 18:1 One day Jesus told His disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up. Acts 6:4 Then we apostles can spend our time in prayer and teaching the word. Mark 14:38 Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak. Philippians 4:6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done. Colossians 4:2 Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. 1 Timothy 2:1,2 I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them.

Why do we fast?       

To To To To To To To

Seek God’s Guidance (Acts 14:23) Express Grief (Judges 20:26) Seek Deliverance or Protection (2 Chronicles 20:3-4) Express Repentance and the Return to God (1 Samuel 7:6) Humble ourselves before God (1 Kings 21:27-29) Overcome Temptation and Dedicate Yourself to God (Matthew 4:1-11) Express Love and Worship to God (Luke 2:37)

Prayer of Adoration To adore God is to enjoy Him and delight in Him Psalm 34:1-3 I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul makes its boast in the LORD; let the humble hear and be glad. Oh, magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together! Psalm 84:10 Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. Psalm 16:11 You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. Respond/Application (Write your response in the space below) Praying through Scripture is a great way to pray because it does 3 things   

First, it focuses your prayers upon God instead of yourself. Second, it keeps your prayers from being boring and repetitive. Third, it allows you to praise and enjoy God.

Pray through the 3 Psalms above. 

Let the words of the verses above guide your heart, your words, and adoration of God.

Questions to help you Respond   

Do you enjoy God or do you begrudgingly submit to Him? If you are honest with yourself, do you find sin more enjoyable than God? What/who do you seek to find pleasure, joy and satisfaction in?

Prayer of Confession Confession to God and to others is an admission that you are a sinner and that you desperately need the grace of Jesus Christ. When we confess our sin, we boast in the death and resurrection of Jesus that our debt has been paid in full! 1 John 1:8-10 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar and His word is not in us. Proverbs 28:13 Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy. Respond/Application (Write your response in the space below) Praying through Scripture is a great way to pray because it does 3 things   

First, it focuses your prayers upon God instead of yourself. Second, it keeps your prayers from being boring and repetitive. Third, it allows you to praise and enjoy God.

Pray through the 2 verses above 

Let the words of the verses above guide your heart, your words, and confession to God

Questions to help you Respond    

Do I walk in a regular rhythm of confession to God and to other people? If you don’t have a habit of confessing sin to God and to others, why not? What is the danger of not confessing sin? What do you think about the most? What do you spend the most time doing? What do you spend most of your money on? The answer to these things may reveal sin and idolatry in your heart.

Prayer of Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a worshipful posture of your heart that acknowledges that God is sovereign and He is in control of every detail of your life. Psalm 9:1-2 I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds. I will be glad and exult in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High. Philippians 4:6-7 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Respond/Application (Write your response in the space below) Pray through the 3 verses above 

Let the words of the verses above guide your heart, your words, and thanksgiving to God.

Questions to help you Respond    

What do you take for granted? Think of the Lord’s faithfulness in your life and thank Him? Do you think that you are a grateful person or do your actions reveal that you are entitled? Thank Him for sending His Son to pay the ransom of your sin and then sending the Holy Spirit to dwell in you.

Prayer of Supplication Ask God specifically for His will in all areas of your life. This includes praying that His Kingdom come, that He would be glorified, petitioning for our own needs and interceding for others. Your Relationship with God - Pray that you would be Rooted in Christ Ephesians 3:14-19 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of His glory He may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Your Relationship with Others -In the month of September and October, Cottonwood Creek will be focusing on RELATIONSHIPS. Will you take time to pray for the relationships in our church? Pray for:    

Your family (Father, Mother, Children, Relatives, Marriages, Spouse, Future Spouse) Pray for Families/ Marriages you know that are struggling, splitting apart Pray for students Pray for Neighbors, Co-Workers, and close friends

Ephesians 1:15-22 For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when He raised him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things under his feet and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

Matthew 5:23-24 So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Our Church and City - Pray for our Church, City, and Leadership Psalm 127:1 Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.

Respond/Application (Write your response in the space below)  

Pray through the topics and Scriptures above. Let the words of the verses above guide your heart, your words, and supplication to God.

Questions to help you Respond    

Who do you need to seek reconciliation with? Have you truly been delighting in God and worshipping Him with your life? What is your hope for our church? What is your hope for our city and schools?