Week: Mark's Gospel
Each day we will simply pray (P.R.A.Y.) together.
P: PAUSING to be still.
R: REJOICING with a Memory Verse and REFLECTING on some verses from the Bible.
A: ASKING God to help us and others.
Y: saying YES to God’s ways.
We start by pausing and taking a deep breath:
In and out.
In and out.
We remember that God is here, and so together we prepare ourselves to be with God.
Pause
Jesus, we hear You inviting us, and so we choose to follow You, with all our hearts, with all our minds, with all our souls and with all our strength.
We REJOICE and celebrate God’s goodness with this week’s memory verse:
Read by Eli
Psalm 103:8
The Lord shows mercy and is kind.
He does not become angry quickly, and he has great love.
Psalm 103:8 (NCV)
God, help us to remember Your Word.
Today, we’re REFLECTING on one of the occasions when Jesus taught His disciples about prayer.
Read by Eli
Mark 11:22-24
Jesus answered, ‘Have faith in God. I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, “Go, fall into the sea.” And if you have no doubts in your mind and believe that what you say will happen, God will do it for you. So I tell you to believe that you have received the things you ask for in prayer, and God will give them to you.’
Mark 11:22-24 (NCV)
Jesus isn’t actually suggesting that we should ask God to throw mountains into the sea – that would be a bit weird.
What He’s saying is this; First, God is powerful, really powerful. And because of that, when we pray, God can do things that seem impossible. And then second, our faith matters. Believing that God can do something matters. Of course, having faith doesn’t guarantee that what we pray for is going to happen, but it does help.
Let’s press pause and talk about today’s question, which is: What miracles can we remember from the Bible? Do we know anyone who has experienced a miracle?
And now let’s ask God to help us and others.
Lord God, we believe that You are a powerful God, and that You can do impossible things. But, if we’re honest, we also don’t believe sometimes, or we find it hard to believe. And so we ASK You to grow our faith a little bit more this week.
Let’s pray for those who are finding it hard to believe and pray to God to do impossible things because they feel like they’ve been believing and praying for a long time, but nothing has changed. Maybe we know someone who feels like this?
Father God, we ASK You to be with those who feel like their faith is fading. Comfort them and give them strength. We join our prayers with theirs, and we ASK You to do the impossible thing that they’ve been praying for.
As we read the Bible again, let’s listen for a word or a phrase that the Holy Spirit might want to say to us from today’s verses.
Mark 11:22-24
Jesus answered, “Have faith in God. I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, fall into the sea.’ And if you have no doubts in your mind and believe that what you say will happen, God will do it for you. So I tell you to believe that you have received the things you ask for in prayer, and God will give them to you.
Mark 11:22-24 (NCV)
What word or phrase stood out from today’s Bible verses?
And now, let’s say YES to God together.
Lord God, Maker of the Heavens and the Earth, You are awesome and wonderful – and You can do far more than we can ever imagine or think. We say YES to believing in You and trusting You.
After enjoying this time with God and each other, let’s say our memory verse together:
Psalm 103:8
The Lord shows mercy and is kind.
He does not become angry quickly, and he has great love.
Psalm 103:8 (NCV)
Let’s put a hand on our heart.
Father God, fill us with Your love. Help us to love You, and everything that You’ve made.
Let’s point to our eyes.
Lord Jesus, help us to see You, and to see others the way that You see them too.
Let’s point to our ears.
Holy Spirit, help us to hear You, and give us courage to do what You say.
Joy lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband and her dog. She works for Bridgetown Church where she leads kids as they grow, learn, and have lots of fun. Joy loves gardening, summer camp, eating ice cream, and reading her favourite books, The Chronicles of Narnia.
Eli is 11 and lives in Melbourne, Victoria with his mum, dad and two younger sisters. He enjoys music, reading, riding his skateboard and playing soccer.
