Luke 11:1 – “One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”

David Wilkerson

Teen Challenge

Jesus was a source of constant amazement to his disciples.  Imagine hearing him teach.  Imagine seeing him perform the miracles.  Imagine watching Jesus deal with the Jewish Religious leaders who were constantly trying to trap him and his words.  The disciples were always watching Jesus.  When he was eating, sleeping, teaching, and traveling, they were always watching. 

And here in our text, Luke says, Jesus was praying, and when he had stopped, one of them spoke to him  The disciples were watching him in prayer and as they watched it became clear to one of the disciples that somehow the amazing power of Jesus was connected with his prayer life.  When he had finished, one of them, speaking for all the disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray.”

For the follower of Jesus, prayer is our lifeline.  James says you have not because you ask not.  If you don’t pray you will experience a very limited working of God in your life.

The disciples request tells us something about the importance of prayer in the life of Jesus.  They watched.  They noticed.

They could have said, Lord teach us to heal, teach us to how to do miracles, teach us how to draw a crowd.  Teach us how to give inspiring sermons, but no…they said teach us to prayer.  They knew that everything he did was a result of his prayer time.

So, let’s talk about a passion for prayer…

1. A passion for prayer comes from a belief that prayer changes things.

2. A passion for prayer comes from a hunger to know God more intimately. 

Today’s challenge: Ask God to give you a passion for prayer. Begin to intentionally set aside a small amount of time to pray. As you do, your hunger to know God will grow.

Discussion Questions:

• What was it about Jesus' prayer life that caused the disciples to ask him to teach them to pray?
• What hinders our consistency in prayer?
• What would our lives look like if we had a passion for prayer?

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