An Hour in Prayer

Aug 22

Today, as the Underground, we come together in prayer and fasting. Every great move of God in the Bible and in history begins with Extraordinary Prayer and Fasting. From the other side of eternity, we will find that the most influential people were not, perhaps, Presidents or Prime Ministers but the people who walked with God through passionate prayer.

Strategic Focus: An Hour in Prayer

Today, we invite you to spend an hour conversing with your Father, who loves you fully and radically.

Prayer can be intimidating for many of us. Early in our prayer journey, we aren’t sure what to say. Or we may find ourselves constantly distracted. For some of us, the idea of spending an entire hour in prayer may seem a daunting challenge. But remember, prayer is a journey in a relationship, not a destination or an achievement.

First, we learn how to pray, like we’ve learned how to do many other things. You can learn how to pray. Then, you develop a prayer life, regular rhythms of contemplative prayer, practical prayer, and missional prayer. Eventually, you find yourself living a life of prayer, where you are engaging in a conversation with God that is running all day in the background, grounding you as you abide in Jesus.

Today, we will learn how to pray for an hour! So, you may need to read this prayer guide now to prepare yourself and plan for this hour later today, perhaps before bed. If you have an hour now, go for it. The following framework is from Dick Eastman’s book The Hour that Changes the World and has been further developed by Zume Training. This guide is the KCU take on this tool.

In just 12 simple steps – 5 minutes each – the Prayer Cycle guides you through 12 ways the Bible teaches us to pray. In the end, you’ll have prayed for an hour.

PRAISE

Start your prayer hour by praising the Lord. Praise Him
for things that are on your mind right now. Praise Him for something He has done in your life in the past week. Praise Him for His goodness to your family. Consider putting on a song that expresses your heart of worship or open up one of the following Psalms, which express praise to God, and make it your own: Psalm 145, Psalm 146, Psalm 40, Psalm 8, Psalm 65, Psalm 98, Psalm 150.

WAIT

Spend time waiting on the Lord. Be silent and let Him pull together reflections for you. Consciously relax, and let the tensions drain away from your body. Be aware of the natural rhythm of your breathing but do not force it.

Consciously consent to God’s presence and action within you. Give him your “Yes.”

You might find it helpful to choose a sacred word as the symbol of your intention. Examples of the sacred word would be: “Amen,” “Lord,” “Jesus,” “Abba,” or “Yahweh.”
A simple, inward, sacred gaze upon God may be more suitable for some people than the sacred word. If you get distracted in the silence, gently and graciously return to the word or your inner gaze upon His face.

CONFESS

Ask the Holy Spirit to show you anything in your life that might be displeasing to Him. Ask Him, “Where am I missing you? Where am I not joining you?” Listen and see if a specific incident or attitude is highlighted. Ask the Lord to show you the root of that behavior or attitude. Confess your unbelief, and then confess your belief that God is good, gracious, glorious, and great.

READ THE WORD

Spend time reading the Psalms, in the prophets, or passages on prayer in the New Testament. Passages on Prayer: Matthew 6:6-13, Philippians 4:6-7, Mark 11:22-25, James 5:13-18, Luke 11:9-13, 2 Kings 19: 14-19; 34-35, 1 Samuel 2:1-10, Matthew 26:38-41, John 17:20-23, Psalm 30, and many more!

ASK

Make requests on behalf of yourself. What do you need spiritually, relationally, emotionally, intellectually, or practically?

INTERCESSION

Make requests on behalf of others. Who is the Lord laying on your heart right now? Hold them before Jesus and make requests on their behalf.

PRAY THE WORD

Pray specific passages. Scriptural prayers and many Psalms lend themselves well to this purpose. Consider taking the passage your read earlier and now making it your prayer by praying God’s word back to God.

THANKS

Take a posture of gratitude. Remember the small pleasures of the last day; things like a good night’s sleep, a good conversation, the smell of morning coffee, and a child’s laugh. Notice the 1000 gifts from God you received today. As you remember these small gifts from God, take a moment to reflect on the gifts that you gave today, whether to God or others. How did you bring your strengths, sense of humor, abilities, encouragement, and patience to others today? When you have finished, pause briefly and thank God for these things.

SING

What song of worship and wonder comes to mind as you think of Jesus? Bring that up by memory and sing it. Play it on your phone or stereo if you’d like. Make that song your gift to Jesus.

MEDITATE

Ask the Lord to speak to you. Then, wait on him. Have a pen and paper ready to record the impressions He gives you.

LISTEN

Spend time merging the things you have read, prayed, and sung over the last 50 minutes, and see how the Lord brings them all together to speak to you.

PRAISE

Praise the Lord for your time with Him and the impressions He has given you. Praise Him for His glorious attributes. Let him know that you want this conversation to continue all day and ask for the grace to “pray without ceasing.”