Courageous Prayer — Activation #1

This month we’re excited to introduce a new idea which we’re hoping will help all of us as we step out and ask God to grow our courage in sharing our faith. We are launching 4 different ‘Activations’ through the year.

An Activation is an activity or a challenge which seeks to put something into practice that we’re trying to learn and grow in. We’re hoping they act as a bridge that the good news can travel across, resulting in many spiritual conversations throughout the year.

The first one is Courageous Prayer.

“An Activation is an activity or a challenge which seeks to put something into practice something we’re trying to learn and grow in.”

Now if you’re anything like me, sometimes you can lower your expectations of what God can do. Now I would never necessarily say that but I know it’s happened when my prayers start to become less specific and a bit safe and general. If you can resonate with that in any way, what we need is to come back to what we know to be true about God and his desires.

Let me bring together a truth about God and a prayer that will help us as we raise our expectations and start to pray some courageous prayers.

“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness, he is patient with you not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9)

This truth encourages me that his timing is perfect and his desire is for all to come to know him. Just think about that for a moment as you picture all the people you’ll meet as you go about your day. He wants all to come to know Him.

He also promises to give us boldness when we ask him. In the book of Acts the disciples were experiencing much hardship and persecution for their faith. Peter and John had just spent the night in jail for sharing the gospel. So on their release maybe you’d expect them to back off a bit, lie low. Nope, instead they prayed:

“Now Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness” (Acts 4:29)

I love that prayer, sometimes we can put the disciples on a pedestal, turn them into heroes, but here we see where their boldness and courage came from, they asked God for it!

We can do the same. When praying for boldness to share Jesus with people, we’re not having to twist God’s arm. Rather it’s more like a child asking their Father for the resources they need to do the jobs the father has asked them to do! It’s God’s plan, his idea, his initiative in the first place. Of course he’ll give us what we need it’s his pleasure and delight.

So God wants to answer our prayer for courage when we ask him, but he also wants to use prayer to reveal himself to others.

That’s our hope as we launch Courageous Prayer.

This month, could you:

• Pray out loud with someone?
• Pray with someone for healing?
• Pray with someone who is experiencing difficulty?
• Approach local shops / companies and offer to pray a blessing over their business. Return a few weeks later and ask the owner whether God has answered your prayer?
• Look for an opportunity to pray with someone to accept Jesus?

Father,

We come to you as the disciples did, asking for boldness. Help us to look out for opportunities to offer prayer, trusting it has the power to change and transform lives.

Amen

Author: Rich Bradley