BECOMING THE ANSWER TO YOUR PRAYERS

By Cynthia Hyle Bezek

Note: This Bible study is formatted for small group open discussion. If you use this study by yourself, we suggest you journal your answers to the discussion questions. Also, please use suggested translations where indicated. Biblegateway.com is an excellent source for translations you may not have on hand.  

I attend a very “praying” church. And over the years we’ve seen some amazing answers to our prayers.

This year we’ve been praying especially fervently for the Holy Spirit to “break in and break through.” In other words, we’re praying for God to bring revival to us and to our community. However, we haven’t seen many signs of Him doing that so far.

Accordingly, the pastor recently launched a new series on “The Church.” His first message was about the early Church, as reported in Acts. He emphasized that the church is people, not a building, and that we’re Christ’s body. It’s our job to represent Him now that He’s returned to heaven. The message was good, although I didn’t learn much new from it.

It was his concluding comment, made almost off-handedly, that got me: “I wish I could pray a prayer and say some words and it would just happen,” he said. Then he pointed out the obvious: We can’t just pray these things—we have to get out there and tell people about Jesus. We need to share what He means to us. We need to love people in His name. Now that was convicting! It’s not hard for me to pray for revival—and I have been! But getting out there and actually “making disciples of all nations” (or even the people in my neighborhood) requires time and energy. It’s intimidating; it’s hard. It’s work. Honestly? I’d rather pray!

But I’m realizing that the idea that God calls some people to be “pray-ers” and others to be “do-ers” is not an idea that Scripture supports. So, whether you are naturally drawn to service and activism or to worship and intercession, it’s my hope that God will use this Bible study to inspire you to stretch in whatever ways you need to grow.

Discussion Questions

Dana Olson suggests that the “tension between ‘do-ers’ and ‘pray-ers’” has been around since the time of Mary and Martha. Read Luke 10:38–42 and summarize the issue in your own words. __________________________________________

Imagine you are Martha. How can you use the following Scriptures to support your position on the importance of being a “do-er”? Proverbs 31:27; Ephesians 4:28; 2 Thessalonians 3:10–12; 1 Timothy 5:10. __________________________________

Now imagine you are Mary. How can you use the following Scriptures to support your position on keeping the prayer focus? Psalm 27:4, 61:4, 84:10; Mark 6:31; John 6:27. __________________________________

How does the exercise you just did demonstrate the value God places on both prayer and action? __________________________________

In “Fruit-bearing Prayer,” Kim Butts writes about a group of college students who sought the Lord in order to obey what they heard. Read the following Old Testament stories and write what happened when people either prayed or failed to pray before acting. What do you learn in each instance?  Joshua 9:3–23:
__________________________________

1 Chronicles 14:8–12: __________________________________

1 Chronicles 14:13–17: __________________________________

2 Chronicles 20:13–23: __________________________________

There are times when intercession or even worship are not the initial response God desires. Read the following Scriptures and record why action can sometimes be more appropriate than prayer.   Exodus 14:10–16: __________________________________

Joshua 7:6–13: __________________________________

Isaiah 58:  __________________________________

Matthew 5:23–24: __________________________________

Kim Butts asserts, “Many of us miss the opportunity to bear abundant fruit simply because we do not stay continually in the presence of God in order to hear from Him.” What insight do the following verses from the Gospel of John provide concerning how Jesus balanced the tension between hearing and doing God’s will? John 5:16–20, 30; 6:38; 8:28; 9:4; 12:49–50. __________________________________

Action Steps

Do you typically identify more with contemplative Mary or activist Martha?

If you are someone who finds yourself so busy serving God that you hardly find time just to be with Him, set a date to sit at Jesus’ feet for a while. Take your journal, Bible, and some worship music and plan to just rest and enjoy His presence for at least a couple of hours. Ask Him to talk to you about your activities, priorities, and energy levels. Then ask Him for help to make any changes you need to make.

If you are a person who would rather be in your prayer closet than out among the needy and hurting crowds, ask God for His perspective. Lay out your prayer list before God. Spend some time meditating on Romans 12. Then ask the Lord to show you if there is one thing you can do, with His power, to be an answer to one of the items on your prayer list.