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Overview
We all pray . . . some. We pray to stay sober, centered, or solvent. When the lump is deemed malignant. When the money runs out. When the marriage is falling apart. But wouldn’t we like to pray . . . more? Better? Stronger? With more fire, faith, and fervency?
In this four-session video-based study (DVD/digital video sold separately), bestselling author Max Lucado reveals his own struggles with prayer and how he discovered that it is not a privilege for the pious nor the art of a chosen few but a simple tool everyone has been given to have a conversation with God. He shows you how to:
- Let go of uncertainties about prayer.
- Trust that God hears you.
- Embrace a prayer life that brings peace and rest.
Join Max Lucado on a journey to the very heart of biblical prayer and the power unleashed with five simple sentences: "Father, you are good. I need help. They need help. Thank you. In Jesus' name, amen."
This study guide includes leader helps, discussion questions, conversation starters, and between-session activities to enhance your understanding and application of Max's teaching.
Sessions include:
- Father, You Are Good
- I Need Help
- They Need Help
- Thank You
Designed for use with Before Amen Video Study 9780529123428 (sold separately).
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780529123411 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | HarperChristian Resources |
| Publication date: | 10/07/2014 |
| Sold by: | HarperCollins Publishing |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 96 |
| File size: | 277 KB |
About the Author
Since entering the ministry in 1978, Max Lucado has served churches in Miami, Florida; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and San Antonio, Texas. He currently serves as the teaching minister of Oak Hills Church in San Antonio. He is the recipient of the 2021 ECPA Pinnacle Award for his outstanding contribution to the publishing industry and society at large. He is America's bestselling inspirational author with more than 150 million products in print.
Visit his website at MaxLucado.com
Facebook.com/MaxLucado
Instagram.com/MaxLucado
Twitter.com/MaxLucado
Youtube.com/MaxLucadoOfficial
The Max Lucado Encouraging Word Podcast
Read an Excerpt
Before Amen
The Power of a Simple Prayer
By Max Lucado
Thomas Nelson
Copyright © 2014 Max LucadoAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-529-12341-1
CHAPTER 1
Father, You Are Good
How should we draw near to God? Come like a little child. That was the advice of Jesus. Come carefree. Joy-filled. Playful. Trusting. Curious. Excited. Forget greatness; seek littleness. Trust more, strut less. Make lots of requests and accept all the gifts. Come to God like a child comes to Daddy.
Introduction
Insane complexity.
It is everywhere, seeking to swallow us up. It shouts so loud we can barely hear ourselves think. In many cases, it makes no sense. But the countless options, endless flavors, and infinite opportunities slam against our lives like a tsunami.
If you are more than fifty years old, you probably remember a time when there were only three TV channels. There was a time at night when a voice came on the television to say, "This concludes today's programing." After that announcement, the TV went blank! There was nothing to watch.
If you are under thirty, you can't imagine a world without hundreds of channels available twenty-four hours a day providing cooking shows, shopping networks, sports, movies, situation comedies, children's programming, "reality" shows, religious shows, news, and programs about virtually anything you can imagine. You can sit down to relax and watch a half hour of TV and spend the entire time wading through the sea of options, never settling on something entertaining or relaxing.
Suppose you wanted to learn about fly-fishing. Years ago, you would find someone who loved the sport and have a conversation with him or her. You might check out a book about fly-fishing from the local library. If you were really motivated, you could go out and watch an actual person artistically dance a fly across the waters of a stream. But today, if you want to get an introduction to fly-fishing, all you have to do is a Google search. Within a fraction of a second, you will have at your disposal more than ninety million online articles, videos, sales promotions, pictures, and perspectives on this one topic.
Into our complex world, Jesus calls us to prayer. His invitation is gentle and quite simple. Be honest. Be yourself. There are not a lot of rules. You don't need ninety million articles and videos to learn to pray. Just talk with your heavenly Father and be confident that he hears you, he loves you, and he is good.
Talk About It
What are some of the things we do that make prayer more complex than it needs to be?
[Your Response]
or
Who taught you to pray? What did he or she teach you?
[Your Response]
Video Teaching Notes
As you watch the video teaching segment for Session 1 featuring Max Lucado, use the following outline to record anything that stands out to you.
A member of the PGA (Prayer Giants Association) or the PWA (Prayer Wimps Association)
[Your Notes]
Why we pray
[Your Notes]
The disciples' sign-up sheet for Prayer 101 with Jesus
[Your Notes]
A simple, easy-to-remember, pocket-sized prayer: Father, you are good. I need help. They need help. Thank you. In Jesus' name, amen.
[Your Notes]
The launch pad of prayer: "Oh, Daddy"
[Your Notes]
How to pray and how not to pray
[Your Notes]
Prayer expresses trust and also builds trust
[Your Notes]
Start each day in prayer
[Your Notes]
Video Discussion and Bible Study
1. Talk about your personal experience with prayer. Be honest as to whether you struggle or excel. Just share your journey.
[Your Response]
2. Tell about a person in your life who models passionate and natural prayer. What drives that person to pray? What have you learned by observing his or her intimate communication with God?
[Your Response]
3. Max says, "We all have our doubts about prayer." Describe a time when you struggled with prayer. What questions did you ask? How honest were you with God? How has God taken you a few steps forward as a person of prayer through your doubting process?
[Your Response]
Read: Matthew 6:9–13
4. What are some of the key topics Jesus teaches his followers to focus on in this prayer? Why are these topics simple yet very important?
[Your Response]
Max offers a little prayer—a springboard—to launch us into conversation with God on some of the epic and massive yet simple topics of life. Here is the prayer:
Father, you are good.
I need help.
They need help.
Thank you.
In Jesus' name, amen.
5. Max says that "Oh, Daddy" is a good way to begin a prayer. What are some of the various ways we can address God? What does each attribute, quality, or name mean as we speak to God in prayer?
[Your Response]
6. If we truly approached God as a dear, loved, tender Daddy, what kind of interaction would mark our conversation with him?
[Your Response]
Read: Matthew 6:5–8
7. How have you seen prayer become a production or an opportunity for spiritual showing off? How have you seen this kind of attitude and practice find its way into your own conversations with God, either in private or in public?
[Your Response]
Read: Isaiah 46:9 and Genesis 1:1–5, 26–27
8. Why can you trust God when it comes to your life and prayers? What has God done in your life to show you that he is trustworthy? What is one action you can take that will show God and the people around you that you know he is good and trustworthy?
[Your Response]
9. In the video presentation, Max gives a snapshot of how one person might start the day in prayer. Of course, it will look different for each person. What might a day of prayer look like in your life if you took the lesson of today's study seriously? In particular, what specific and practical thing could you do during one of these times of the day to show God that you trust him and know he is good?
[] When you first wake up, before you get out of bed ...
[] As you encounter family members or roommates where you live ...
[] As you work, go to school, or engage in your vocation ...
[] When you face a point of tension or conflict ...
[] When something good and joy-filled happens ...
[Your Response]
Closing Prayer
Take time as a group to pray in any of the following directions:
• Thank God for someone in your life who has been a consistent example of simple, authentic, passionate prayer.
• Confess where you have been a prayer wimp and let God know that you want to learn to pray with greater passion and authenticity.
• Tell God some of the ways you have experienced his goodness.
• Thank God for being a loving and present Father.
• Thank God for hanging in there with you, even when you struggled with doubts and questions.
Between Sessions
Personal Reflection
Take time in personal reflection to think about the following questions:
• What are some of the ways I pray that are natural and flow out of a simple understanding of God as my Father—as my Daddy? How can I develop this part of my prayer life?
[Your Response]
• What are some bad habits, routines, or attitudes that have seeped into my life of prayer? What can I do to minimize and remove these?
[Your Response]
• What experiences have caused me to question God's goodness and wonder if he really cares about me or hears my prayers? How can I talk with God about these specific things that keep me from praying with confidence?
[Your Response]
• How do I tend to address God in prayer? How has God been like a loving Father to me? How could I address him with more intimate and trusting names?
[Your Response]
• Are there certain times or situations when my prayers tend to become more of a production? How can I seek greater authenticity in these moments?
[Your Response]
Personal Actions
Starting Your Day with a Pocket-Sized Prayer
For the next week, start each day lifting up this simple prayer. Commit it to memory (this should take only a few minutes).
Father,
You are good.
I need help.
They need help.
Thank you.
In Jesus' name, amen.
Say this prayer out loud. Emphasize one line at a time, and then build on that line. When you pray, "I need help," linger there and talk with your Father about a few areas of your life where you really do need help. When you pray the words, "Thank you," let God know about some of the things he has done that make you smile and bring joy to your heart. Each day, let this prayer become a simple tool to express your heart to the One who loves you most and wants you to know that he is a trustworthy and good Father.
Living Lessons
God has placed people in your life who model prayer that is real, natural, and rooted in a confidence in their heavenly Father. These people are living prayer lessons for you to learn from. Identify two or three people who live the kind of prayer life you long to experience. Then, call one of these people and ask if he or she would be willing to help you learn about prayer during the weeks you are walking through the Before Amen group study. If the person is willing, try some (or all) of the following:
1. Interview the person about prayer. Keep notes that you can share with the rest of your group members. Here are some questions to get the conversation started:
Who taught you to pray?
[Your Response]
How does prayer weave through the flow of your normal day?
[Your Response]
How does prayer connect you to God as your Father?
[Your Response]
What advice would you give to someone who wants to grow deeper as a person of prayer?
[Your Response]
Have you faced a time when it was hard to pray? If so, what helped you during that time?
[Your Response]
Are there prayer pitfalls you could warn me to avoid?
[Your Response]
2. Invite this person to pray for you during the coming four weeks as you learn to pray with greater passion, authenticity, and trust in your heavenly Father.
3. Ask the person if he or she would be willing to pray with you once a week during the four weeks of this small group learning experience. You could do this face-to-face or over the phone. As you pray with this person, seek to learn from his or her example and record any insights below.
[Your Response]
Names Matter
In the coming four weeks, try to address God with new and fresh names. Each of God's names reflects an element of his character.
Begin by listing some names of God that you see used in Scripture and what the name expresses about him; a few examples have been provided. Use a Bible dictionary, concordance, or other reference tool, if necessary.
Then, as you pray, incorporate some of these names as the Spirit leads you.
Recommended Reading
As you reflect on what God is teaching you through this session, read chapters 1–3 of the book Before Amen by Max Lucado. In preparation for your next session, read chapters 4–6.
Journal, Reflections, and Notes
[Your Notes]
CHAPTER 2I Need Help
Storms come crashing into our lives, our health teeters, our relationships fracture, our finances evaporate, and we can face the fragility of life and the uncertainty of almost everything we know. In these moments, Jesus extends this simple invitation: "Bring your problems to me." Here is the million-dollar question: Are we willing to utter these three words, "I need help," even if we have to choke them out?
Introduction
What is the first word a child learns and utters with confidence?
Dad delights when the first word is "papa" or "daddy." Mom beams with glee when it is "mama." Everyone thinks it is cute when the first word is "hi," "doggy," or "bye-bye." Sometimes, to a parent's dismay, that first word is "no"!
What about a first simple sentence? What does a little boy or girl learn to say early in life that can cause a parent to delight? Try this on for size: "I can do it all by myself!" There is a point when most children gain a sense of self-confidence and try to do things on their own. Sometimes they can actually deliver on their declaration, while at other times they can't quite accomplish it. Regardless, parents are proud that their baby is growing up and seeking independence. We want them to be self-sufficient. But this simple sentence that delights mothers and fathers can break the heart of our heavenly Father.
God delights when we say, "I need help!" Mature faith does not declare, "I can do it all by myself." Jesus died on the cross for our sins because we can't do it all by ourselves. The Holy Spirit came on the church and comes on every follower of Jesus because we can't do it all by ourselves. Our heavenly Father is ready to help, empower, uplift, guide, and save us when we recognize our need and call for help.
When you face hard times, what reflexive response do you say to your heavenly Father? "I can do it all by myself," or, "I need help"?
Talk About It
What are some signs that we are relying on our own abilities when we face challenges in life?
[Your Response]
or
What are some indicators that we recognize our need and are looking to God for help when we face tough times?
[Your Response]
Video Teaching Notes
As you watch the video teaching segment for Session 2 featuring Max Lucado, use the following outline to record anything that stands out to you.
Taking our problems to Jesus ... the only One who can solve them
[Your Notes]
What happens when prayer meets real life
[Your Notes]
The story of the wedding in Cana of Galilee
[Your Notes]
In faith, we leave our problems with Jesus
[Your Notes]
The blind man crying out to Jesus over the crowd and the noise
[Your Notes]
Jesus still answers prayers for healing
[Your Notes]
Sickness of the soul: defensive and defeated
[Your Notes]
God specializes in guilt removal
[Your Notes]
Video Discussion and Bible Study
1. Talk about a time when a "red engine light" came on in your life and the only option you had was to take this problem to Jesus.
[Your Response]
Read: Philippians 4:6–7
2. How can prayer help you overcome anxiety? How have you experienced the peace of God through an encounter with him in prayer?
[Your Response]
3. Tell about an answered prayer that was specific, shocking, and faith-building.
[Your Response]
4. What are you saying to God, yourself, and the world when you declare these words in prayer: "I need help"?
When you say, "I need help," you are telling God ...
[Your Response]
When you say, "I need help," you are declaring to yourself ...
[Your Response]
When you say, "I need help," you are witnessing to the world ...
[Your Response]
Read: John 2:1–11
5. In the story of the wedding in Cana, Mary simply states the problem but is not emphatic about what Jesus should do about it. What does this teach us about how we pray and how much information we might need to give God?
[Your Response]
What kind of patterns and habits mark your prayer life?
[Your Response]
6. Max challenges us, "Take your problems to Jesus, not the bar, not out on others, not in temper tantrums, just to Jesus." Where do we tend to take our problems rather than bringing them to Jesus, trusting him, and then leaving them there?
[Your Response]
Why is it hard to really leave our problems with Jesus and not keep carrying them in our heart, in our mind, or on our back?
[Your Response]
Read: Matthew 20:29–34
7. These blind men cried out for Jesus over the roar of the crowd, and they kept crying out even after people told them to be quiet. What are some ways that the world can try to silence us, stopping us from crying out to Jesus?
[Your Response]
What can we do to keep crying out, even over the roar of the world and the voices that say, "Be quiet"?
[Your Response]
8. God will answer all prayers for healing by followers of Jesus. Maybe this will happen immediately, maybe over time, and maybe when we see Jesus face-to-face, but healing is on the way. How can we embrace this truth and not become bitter if we don't get the healing in the timing or the way we might want?
[Your Response]
9. Max says this about defensive souls and defeated souls:
Defensive souls keep the skeleton in the closet. Tell no one. Admit nothing. Seek innocence, not forgiveness. Life is reduced to one aim: suppress the secret. Defeated souls are defined by the past. They didn't make a mistake; they are the mistake. They didn't foul up; they are a foul up. They don't hide the past; they wear it on their sleeve.
In what areas are you feeling defensive or defeated? How can your group members join you in prayer about this?
[Your Response]
10. How would your life, attitudes, health, and relationships be different if you actually lived a truly guilt-free life?
[Your Response]
What is one action you feel convicted to take in light of the truth shared in this session?
[Your Response]
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Before Amen by Max Lucado. Copyright © 2014 Max Lucado. Excerpted by permission of Thomas Nelson.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Contents
A Word from Max Lucado,Session 1 Father, You Are Good,
Session 2 I Need Help,
Session 3 They Need Help,
Session 4 Thank You,
Small Group Leader Helps,