Praying the Psalms: Prayers to Live By (Chris)

Prayer is essential to a faithful life, and we are instructed by the Bible to pray constantly: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.  Do not quench the Spirit.  Do not despise the words of prophets, but test everything; hold fast to what is good; abstain from every form of evil.”  [1 Thessalonians 5:16-22] Our prayers should have at least six aspects over time: 

• Prayer of worship – “rejoice always, pray without ceasing”
• Prayer of thanksgiving – “give thanks in all circumstances”
• Prayer of confession – “abstain from every form of evil”
• Prayer of petition – “do not despise the words of prophets, but test everything”
• Prayer of connection – “hold fast to what is good”
• Prayer of acceptance – “do not quench the Spirit”

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Lesson Plan

Praying the Psalms: Summary (Chris and Randy)

At first blush, the Book of Psalms challenge and even offend us with their brutal honesty and calls for God’s justice.  As we dig deeper and read them through the lens of Christ, we see how they reflect the entire human experience – not just what we are feeling on a given day.  Over time, as we meditate and reflect on them, the psalms teach us the rich language of prayer, and deeper prayer brings us closer to God.  In this summary lesson, we reflect on the main lessons from our study of the psalms.

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Lesson Plan (Randy)
Lesson Plan (Chris)