Prayer, Meditation, & Spirituality

Prayer, Meditation, & Spirituality

2005036

Topic # 0455 (prayer)

Introduction:

A. What if you were picked by your company to run in next year’s mini-marathon?

1. Could you do it?

2. What would you have to do over the next 11 months to successfully compete in this event?

a) How serious would you be?

B. If you were serious about competing – you’d have to enter a life of training.

1. Can’t run a marathon simply by going out & trying – not even by trying hard.

2. success would come by arranging your life around the activities that would enable you to do what you cannot do now

3. would you be prepared to arrange your life around:

a) New diet; daily weight training; endurance building by learning to pace yourself as you ran?

b) Many of us are capable of doing this – if we had time to devote full attention to it.

C. 1 Cor. 9:24-27 – we are to train ourselves to be godly. See also 1 Tim. 4:7-8.

1. Christians know about the need to grow – 2 Pet. 3:18.

2. So...we try harder to be like Jesus …

a) Try hard to be gentle; kind; study; and do the church thing.

b) But it works no better than trying to run the mini w/o training.

D. We’ve been called to a life of spiritual training.

1. 1 John 5:3 – it is not burdensome.

a) Sometimes we equate spiritual exercise w/pain.

b) Straining & over exertion do not help at all.

2. Training spiritually involves us engaging in practices, experiences, and relationships that will help us eventually do what we can’t do not – even w/trying hard.

3. Spiritual training can be pleasant – joyful - & the payoff enormously satisfying.

4. There are no limits for the Christian – Phil. 4:13.

E. God gives us all the tools for being truly spiritual.

1. He wants you to master the art of life.

2. How do prayer & meditation fit into this?

3. These are 2 fundamental elements in helping us become truly spiritual.

4. Let’s see how:

I. Meditating on God’s word.

A. Psa. 119:15-16; 48; 97; 148

B. Understand – meditation is not simply about acquiring scripture knowledge.

1. Yes...important to be familiar w/the Bible.

2. But...in context for today’s lesson – we’re talking about reading for transformation.

C. Remember it this way: Don’t read just for information but for formation.

1. Our desire by this exercise is to be conformed to Christ.

2. The goal is not to get through the Scriptures – it is to get the Scriptures through you.

3. This is made possible through meditation.

D. Not talking about some mystical – eastern religion thing.

1. 1 Tim. 4:13-15 – simply talking about the practice of sustained attention.

2. Whatever your mind repeats – it retains.

3. Think about it – everyday we give sustained attention to something.

4. But what is that thing?

E. Real growth comes when we take a basic truth of Scripture & meditate on it.

1. 1 John 3:1 – the Love of God. Take this & think about it.

a) What does it mean that God – the God of heaven – loves us w/this amount of love?

b) Is my life different because of His great love for me?

c) How?

d) Is the thought of His great love regularly on my mind?

e) How can I demonstrate my appreciation for His love?

2. Pick out a passage from a bible class; a sermon; it doesn’t matter.

3. All kinds of subjects/bible verses to mediate on.

F. In time – as you reflect on Scripture – you’ll develop a hunger for more & more of God’s word.

1. Mt. 5:6

2. By taking in Scriptures & the pondering of it; lingering on it; chewing on it; you’ll be feeding on the word of God.

3. You’ll be training your heart in a better way to live.

II. Quiet Time & Prayer.

A. How much quiet time do you have in your life?

1. One of the hardest things to do in our daily business is just STOP.

2. To be quiet.

3. Being quiet – usually produces boredom; anxiety; drowsiness.

4. We must find time to slow down – get our bodies still; so our minds will quit racing.

B. Do you desire to be delivered from the hurriedness and harassment that is daily life?

1. Work to get to a point to where your thoughts will be directed & not reactive.

2. A lack of quiet time hampers our prayer life.

C. Do you struggle w/distractions when you pray?

1. Mk. 1:35 – find a quiet place.

2. Jesus knew well the practice of solitude & prayer.

a) Solitude is a fundamental practice for those in pursuit of spiritual transformation.

b) It’s where we can create an inward attentiveness & give God access to our lives.

3. Maybe it’s getting up before others do; after everyone goes to bed; lunch hour; etc. Find some quiet time – reserved for you & God.

D. When you sit down to pray – a few moments of preparation will help.

1. Don’t think about what’s on the plate for later; or what happened yesterday.

2. Concentrate on right now.

3. Discipline yourself to bring your thoughts inline w/what’s going on – communication w/God.

E. Prayer is food for the soul. Psa. 105:3-4; 145:18-21

F. Look at Jesus. Prayer sustained Him while on earth. His heart was continually directed toward God.

1. Walt Weaver: He could turn aside for long seasons of prayer. In fact, prayer was so habitual with Jesus, in one sense, His whole life seems to have been a prayer offered up to God. The times that were regularly given to prayer are a true index to his inner self.

2. EVERY incident in life is an event to be dealt with in prayer.

a) it is through prayer that we can experience:

b) True JOY through Christ.

c) TRIUMPH through Christ.

Conclusion.

A. Remember the mini-marathon? Ready to run?

B. You’re in a spiritual marathon. How well are you running? How serious is your training?

1. 1 Cor. 9:24b – run in such a way that you may win.

2. It is possible! You can finish the race!

C. But not w/o the two essential ingredients we talked about today. Prayer/meditation are absolutely essential.

D. How committed are you to arranging your life around these activities?

1. What worldly thing are you willing to part with so that you can be transformed?

a) Turn off TV.

b) Get up hour earlier; stay up hour later

2. Remember – spiritual transformation is not a compartmentalized pursuit.

a) Involves the entirety of your life.

b) 1 Tim. 4:15 – Are you absorbed in spiritual things?

E. Would you describe yourself as a spiritual person? Do you possess a desire to be deeply spiritual?

1. Many Christians are miserable spiritually – caught up in living life – can’t figure out what’s wrong.

2. Something inside desperately hungering for God – for a close, personal, intimate relationship w/Him.

3. Don’t look in the wrong areas. Do what you need to do to be transformed.

F. Begin today through your obedience to the gospel.

G. I N V I T A T I O N



Prayer, Meditation, & Spirituality 2005036 Topic # 0455 (prayer) Introduction: A. What if you were picked by your company to run in next year’s mini-marathon? 1. Could you do it? 2. What would you have to do over the next 11 months to successfully compete in this event? a) How serious would you be? B. If you were serious about competing – you’d have to enter a life of training. 1. Can’t run a marathon simply by going out & trying – not even by trying hard. 2. success would come by arranging your life around the activities that would enable you to do what you cannot do now 3. would you be prepared to arrange your life around: a) New diet; daily weight training; endurance building by learning to pace yourself as you ran? b) Many of us are capable of doing this – if we had time to devote full attention to it. C. 1 Cor. 9:24-27 – we are to train ourselves to be godly. See also 1 Tim. 4:7-8. 1. Christians know about the need to grow – 2 Pet. 3:18. 2. So...we try harder to be like Jesus … a) Try hard to be gentle; kind; study; and do the church thing. b) But it works no better than trying to run the mini w/o training. D. We’ve been called to a life of spiritual training. 1. 1 John 5:3 – it is not burdensome. a) Sometimes we equate spiritual exercise w/pain. b) Straining & over exertion do not help at all. 2. Training spiritually involves us engaging in practices, experiences, and relationships that will help us eventually do what we can’t do not – even w/trying hard. 3. Spiritual training can be pleasant – joyful - & the payoff enormously satisfying. 4. There are no limits for the Christian – Phil. 4:13. E. God gives us all the tools for being truly spiritual. 1. He wants you to master the art of life. 2. How do prayer & meditation fit into this? 3. These are 2 fundamental elements in helping us become truly spiritual. 4. Let’s see how: I. Meditating on God’s word. A. Psa. 119:15-16; 48; 97; 148 B. Understand – meditation is not simply about acquiring scripture knowledge. 1. Yes...important to be familiar w/the Bible. 2. But...in context for today’s lesson – we’re talking about reading for transformation. C. Remember it this way: Don’t read just for information but for formation. 1. Our desire by this exercise is to be conformed to Christ. 2. The goal is not to get through the Scriptures – it is to get the Scriptures through you. 3. This is made possible through meditation. D. Not talking about some mystical – eastern religion thing. 1. 1 Tim. 4:13-15 – simply talking about the practice of sustained attention. 2. Whatever your mind repeats – it retains. 3. Think about it – everyday we give sustained attention to something. 4. But what is that thing? E. Real growth comes when we take a basic truth of Scripture & meditate on it. 1. 1 John 3:1 – the Love of God. Take this & think about it. a) What does it mean that God – the God of heaven – loves us w/this amount of love? b) Is my life different because of His great love for me? c) How? d) Is the thought of His great love regularly on my mind? e) How can I demonstrate my appreciation for His love? 2. Pick out a passage from a bible class; a sermon; it doesn’t matter. 3. All kinds of subjects/bible verses to mediate on. F. In time – as you reflect on Scripture – you’ll develop a hunger for more & more of God’s word. 1. Mt. 5:6 2. By taking in Scriptures & the pondering of it; lingering on it; chewing on it; you’ll be feeding on the word of God. 3. You’ll be training your heart in a better way to live. II. Quiet Time & Prayer. A. How much quiet time do you have in your life? 1. One of the hardest things to do in our daily business is just STOP. 2. To be quiet. 3. Being quiet – usually produces boredom; anxiety; drowsiness. 4. We must find time to slow down – get our bodies still; so our minds will quit racing. B. Do you desire to be delivered from the hurriedness and harassment that is daily life? 1. Work to get to a point to where your thoughts will be directed & not reactive. 2. A lack of quiet time hampers our prayer life. C. Do you struggle w/distractions when you pray? 1. Mk. 1:35 – find a quiet place. 2. Jesus knew well the practice of solitude & prayer. a) Solitude is a fundamental practice for those in pursuit of spiritual transformation. b) It’s where we can create an inward attentiveness & give God access to our lives. 3. Maybe it’s getting up before others do; after everyone goes to bed; lunch hour; etc. Find some quiet time – reserved for you & God. D. When you sit down to pray – a few moments of preparation will help. 1. Don’t think about what’s on the plate for later; or what happened yesterday. 2. Concentrate on right now. 3. Discipline yourself to bring your thoughts inline w/what’s going on – communication w/God. E. Prayer is food for the soul. Psa. 105:3-4; 145:18-21 F. Look at Jesus. Prayer sustained Him while on earth. His heart was continually directed toward God. 1. Walt Weaver: He could turn aside for long seasons of prayer. In fact, prayer was so habitual with Jesus, in one sense, His whole life seems to have been a prayer offered up to God. The times that were regularly given to prayer are a true index to his inner self. 2. EVERY incident in life is an event to be dealt with in prayer. a) it is through prayer that we can experience: b) True JOY through Christ. c) TRIUMPH through Christ. Conclusion. A. Remember the mini-marathon? Ready to run? B. You’re in a spiritual marathon. How well are you running? How serious is your training? 1. 1 Cor. 9:24b – run in such a way that you may win. 2. It is possible! You can finish the race! C. But not w/o the two essential ingredients we talked about today. Prayer/meditation are absolutely essential. D. How committed are you to arranging your life around these activities? 1. What worldly thing are you willing to part with so that you can be transformed? a) Turn off TV. b) Get up hour earlier; stay up hour later 2. Remember – spiritual transformation is not a compartmentalized pursuit. a) Involves the entirety of your life. b) 1 Tim. 4:15 – Are you absorbed in spiritual things? E. Would you describe yourself as a spiritual person? Do you possess a desire to be deeply spiritual? 1. Many Christians are miserable spiritually – caught up in living life – can’t figure out what’s wrong. 2. Something inside desperately hungering for God – for a close, personal, intimate relationship w/Him. 3. Don’t look in the wrong areas. Do what you need to do to be transformed. F. Begin today through your obedience to the gospel. G. I N V I T A T I O N