As we take time over the next 40 days to be intentional in seeking God through prayer and fasting, we will provide prayer prompts each week that will help us to be joined in our efforts together.
Week 1 (September 12th - September 17th)
Here are some prompts to jumpstart your prayer time this week. You can use any or all of the suggestions below throughout the week, or you can make your own. We recommend spending time on just one of these prompts per day; don’t try to blitz through the whole list in one sitting.
-
An idol is anything or anyone we give our attention, affection, and allegiance to in place of God. Ask the Lord: what idols do I need to confess?
-
Spend time examining where the idol of Self keeps appearing in your life. Where does this preference for Self cause the most damage relationally? How does it affect your relationship with God?
-
Meditate on this statement: God is not asking to be first among other gods; He’s asking to be ALL. What is getting in the way of God being your ALL?
-
Read Matthew 6:16-18 out loud, slowly, at least three times. The reward for true fasting is God Himself; He is our greatest reward. Spend time thanking God for His presence in your life.
Week 2 (September 18th - September 25th)
Here are some prompts to jumpstart your prayer time this week. You can use any or all of the suggestions below throughout the week, or you can make your own. We recommend spending time on just one of these prompts per day; don’t try to blitz through the whole list in one sitting.
-
Consecration means “to set aside something as holy and sacred.” The first step the Israelites took to consecrate the Temple was taking out the trash. What toxic behaviors or mindsets need to be cleaned out? Where have you been allowing sin to fester and grow in your life? Take time asking God to shine a bright light on the dark corners of your heart.
-
The dedication of the Temple involved three different sacrificial offerings, one of which was the burnt offering. Nothing would be left from a burnt offering, because it was totally consumed by the flames in offering to God. We live as “revived” people when we offer all we are to God and hold nothing back. Look over this list and consider where you might be holding back in one or more areas: assets/possessions, relationships, time, giftedness. How can you bring all of this before the Lord without holding back from Him?
-
Celebration is the appropriate response to consecration and dedication. Take time to celebrate God’s goodness to you through Jesus. Play a favorite song of worship during your time alone with God, and then rest in the joy that comes from knowing Jesus personally. Write out a prayer of thanksgiving because you have been rescued from sin and revived in the life that God offers.
Week 3 (September 25th - October 1st)
- Read Nehemiah 8:1, noting that the people requested the Word of God to be read. How much do you long for the Word of God? Ask God to increase your appetite for His Word.
- Read Nehemiah 8:2-3a. How much do you value reading God’s Word? What priority does His Word have in your life? Ask God to guide you in prioritizing time with Him. Take out your calendar and carve out time this week when you will read God’s Word.
- Read Nehemiah 8:3b-5. Do you respect the Word of God in your life? What is your heart posture towards the Word? When the Word of God is opened do you have other things to do? What attention do you give to the Word? Ask God to give you clarity and focus on His Word. Before you read your Bible, pray for undivided attention.
- Read Nehemiah 8:6. When you read the Word, is it a chore - or do you come ready to worship God while you read? Do you view the Word as an opportunity to connect with the Author? Ask God to reveal Himself as you read His Word.
- Read Nehemiah 8:7-8. The point of understanding the Word of God is so that we obey. Do you come to the Bible ready to obey? Is your heart receptive to how God may correct you through the Word? Ask God to soften your hearts and to give you a spirit of humility.
- Read Nehemiah 8:10-12. The Word of God will revive your joy because God has given us His word on paper, in the Spirit, and in the flesh. Would you say your relationship with God would be described with joy? If not, why not? Ask God to revive your joy through His Word.
Week 4 (October 1st - October 8th)
- Spiritual laziness can be a major contributor to why we drift. Ask God to expose any areas of laziness in your walk with Christ.
- Consider this principle: Scripture before phone. When you wake up in the morning, is your instinct to grab your technology to see what you missed – news headlines, social media posts, fantasy football scores? Or is your first impulse to feed yourself on the Word? While Scripture before phone is not a hard-and-fast rule, what benefit might it have in your life to fight off spiritual laziness and distraction?
- Read Hebrews 2:1. In what ways do we sometimes neglect what we have heard? Think of all the sermons, devotionals, podcast messages you’ve heard that are rooted in God’s Word. Now read James 1:22. Ask God to help you be a doer of the Word so that you do not neglect what you have heard.
- Leave space in your prayer time with God to ask Him if there has been any drift in your relationship – even what may be imperceptible to you. Ask the Lord to graciously uncover wrong habits or heart attitudes that could lead to spiritual drift, if left unchecked.
Week 5 (October 8th - October 15th)
- Ask God to expose in your heart what idols exist in your heart and life. Perhaps those idols were mentioned in Sunday’s sermon: politics, relationships, and success. Or perhaps it’s something else. Leave space in your prayer time for God to uncover an idol, even where you don’t think one exists. Then read 1 Thessalonians 1:9 out loud. Repent and turn away from whatever idol(s) God has revealed to you.
- Read Psalm 115:3-8. Spend time processing these statements/questions from Sunday’s sermon. Take them one at a time, slowly, and deliberately. You will be like who or what you serve. Who leads you? Who do you serve, truly? Who do you submit to? Do you have gods that can’t see, can’t smell, can’t save?
- Read 1 Thessalonians 1:10. What does it look like for us to be eagerly expecting and awaiting Jesus’ return? What will that look like in your life? Ask God to give you a heart of hopeful expectation and an eager longing for Him to return, and to purify your actions in light of that reality.
- What do you need to turn your back on in order to turn to Jesus fully?
Week 6 (October 15th - October 22nd)
- Read Revelation 3:1 out loud. Where is there spiritual deadness in your life? Where are you shining up the exterior, but inside there’s no vibrancy or life. Ask God to expose this in your heart, wherever it may be hiding.
- Read Revelation 3:2 out loud. In what ways do you need to wake up in your walk with Jesus? Who has God been using to try and get your attention and wake you up, and what have you been doing in response? Ask God to remind you of the urgency of the hour, to recognize that “the night is nearly over” and to wake you up in His Word.
- Read Revelation 3:3a out loud. Why do we need to remember the Gospel? What does it look like for you to hold fast to the Gospel, even if we’ve been following Jesus for a long time?
- Read Revelation 3:3b out loud. Why it is important for you to pursue Gospel-centered repentance instead of waiting for “surprise discipline”? Why is it sobering for you to know that Jesus will show up unannounced “like a thief” and how does that change your perspective?
- Read Revelation 3:4-5 out loud. Where do you need the victory that only comes from Jesus? What peace and assurance comes into our life when you rest in the victory that Jesus has secured?
- Read Revelation 3:6 out loud. What has the Spirit of God been saying to you through this message, through this series, and/or through your time in prayer/fasting? What do you need to do in response? What action step will you take?