Deepening Our Relationship with God Through Prayer

The sermon emphasizes the significance of prayer as a means to foster a deeper relationship with God, likening it to a conversation with a loved one. The speaker encourages expressing gratitude for God's blessings, including family, church, and the sacrifice of Jesus, while seeking forgiveness and the anointing of the Holy Spirit. The importance of prayer extends beyond personal desires or informing God, as He is already omniscient. Instead, prayer is about not manipulating God but drawing closer to Him.

The speaker also highlights the role of the Holy Spirit's gifts, such as love, joy, peace, and self-control, in believers' lives. They express reliance on the Word of God, particularly the book of Ephesians, for overcoming worry by surrendering anxieties to God. The speaker declares victory over life's challenges through God's triumph and calls for prayer to be the first response in every situation, offering peace that surpasses understanding to those burdened with anxiety or fear.

The congregation is reminded of the power of Jesus' sacrifice, which allows them to be in God's presence, and the speaker expresses excitement about being a "House of Miracles." The service format is described as different from Sundays, with extended worship and scripture guidance, and an upcoming service with a special mission partner is teased.

The sermon underscores the necessity of having Jesus in one's life, regardless of challenges faced. Prayer is portrayed not as a means to receive things but as a way to grow closer to God. The congregation is encouraged to turn their worries into prayers, surrendering them to God to experience His wholeness and peace.

The speaker discusses the upcoming 21 days of prayer and fasting, with a focus on miraculous movements of God, gratitude, and resources like the "Pray First" app to aid in prayer. They express a commitment to daily prayer, referencing Philippians 4:6-7 to illustrate how prayer can alleviate anxiety, and emphasize the choice to pray instead of worry.

The sermon series "Pray First" is introduced, with 21 days of prayer starting September 11th, focusing on seeking God's voice. The speaker reflects on past prayers, realizing they were treating God as an errand boy, and emphasizes that prayer is about moving towards God, not getting Him to move towards us. The importance of replacing worry with prayer is reiterated, comparing it to fasting, where hunger prompts prayer, and encouraging praises to God rather than demands.

Key Takeaways:

- Prayer is a vehicle for deepening one's relationship with God, not a means to inform or manipulate Him. It is a conversation that should be filled with gratitude, worship, and the pursuit of God's will, rather than a list of personal requests. This approach to prayer fosters a more profound connection with the divine and aligns one's desires with God's purposes. [41:02]

- The gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as love, joy, and peace, are crucial for navigating life's challenges. By focusing on these gifts and the victory that God provides, believers can approach every situation with confidence and peace. Prayer should be the instinctive response to life's difficulties, offering a pathway to tranquility and a reminder of God's sovereignty. [01:01:38]

- Recognizing Jesus' sacrifice and the privilege of being in God's presence transforms the worship experience into a "House of Miracles." This awareness should inspire joy and a sense of anticipation during worship services, as believers come together to experience God's presence and learn from His Word. [33:19]

- Turning worries into prayers is a transformative practice that shifts focus from one's problems to God's greatness. This act of surrender allows believers to experience God's peace and wholeness, replacing anxiety with a sense of divine completeness. It is a conscious choice to trust in God's ability to handle any issue. [50:58]

- The "Pray First" initiative underscores the importance of seeking God's voice and aligning with His desires before presenting personal needs. Prayer is a journey towards God, an intentional act of seeking His presence and guidance. It is not about changing God's mind but about changing our position to be closer to Him. [35:58]

### Bible Reading

1. Matthew 21:22 (NIV)
"And whatever you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive."

2. James 4:8 (NIV)
"Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded."

3. Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

### Observation Questions

1. What conditions are mentioned in Matthew 21:22 for receiving what is asked in prayer?
2. What actions are suggested in James 4:8 as a way to draw closer to God?
3. According to Philippians 4:6-7, what should replace anxiety, and what is the promised result of presenting requests to God with thanksgiving?

### Interpretation Questions

1. How might the condition of belief, as mentioned in Matthew 21:22, affect the way one approaches prayer?
2. In what ways could the actions of washing hands and purifying hearts, as described in James 4:8, be symbolic of a deeper spiritual process?
3. Considering Philippians 4:6-7, what might be the relationship between thanksgiving in prayer and the peace of God that transcends understanding?

### Application Questions

1. Reflect on a recent prayer request. Did you fully believe in what you were asking for? How can you cultivate a stronger belief in your prayer life moving forward?
2. Identify a specific habit or thought pattern that may be distancing you from God. What is one concrete step you can take this week to "wash your hands" or "purify your heart" in this area?
3. Think of a situation that is currently causing you anxiety. What is a prayer of thanksgiving you can offer in this situation, and how can you remind yourself to do this every time anxiety arises?
4. When you next face a difficult decision or challenge, how can you make prayer your first response? Plan a specific time and place to do this.
5. Choose one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as love or peace. What is one way you can actively seek to demonstrate this gift in a challenging relationship or environment this week?

Day 1: Prayer as Divine Dialogue
Prayer is not merely a list of requests but a conversation with God, filled with thanksgiving and a desire to know His will. It's an intimate exchange, where one opens their heart to God, expressing gratitude and seeking His guidance, much like a heartfelt talk with a close friend. This form of prayer strengthens the bond with the Creator and aligns one's heart with divine purposes. [41:02]

James 4:8 - "Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded."
Reflection: How can you make your daily prayer more like a conversation with God, focusing on relationship rather than requests?

Day 2: Embracing the Spirit's Gifts
The Holy Spirit bestows gifts such as love, joy, and peace, which are essential for overcoming life's hurdles. By embracing these gifts, one can face any situation with a sense of calm and assurance, knowing that victory comes through God. Prayer becomes a reflex, not just in times of need, but as a continual acknowledgment of God's sovereignty and provision. [01:01:38]

Galatians 5:22-23 - "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."
Reflection: Which fruit of the Spirit do you need to cultivate more in your life, and how can you pray for God's help in this area?

Day 3: Worship as a Miracle House
Recognizing the power of Jesus' sacrifice transforms worship into a space where miracles are expected and God's presence is palpable. This realization brings joy and anticipation to the worship experience, as believers gather to encounter God and receive from His Word. Worship is not just a routine; it's a celebration of the divine presence among us. [33:19]

Hebrews 10:19-22 - "Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings."
Reflection: How does the understanding of Jesus' sacrifice change your personal worship, and how can you carry that sense of God's presence into your daily life?

Day 4: Worry Transformed into Prayer
Turning worries into prayers is an act of surrender, shifting focus from personal struggles to God's omnipotence. This practice allows believers to lay down their burdens and receive God's peace, which fills the void left by anxiety with a sense of divine wholeness. It's a deliberate choice to trust in God's care over every aspect of life. [50:58]

1 Peter 5:7 - "Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you."
Reflection: What is one worry you can surrender to God today, and how can you remind yourself to turn to prayer whenever anxiety arises?

Day 5: Seeking God Before Self
The "Pray First" initiative encourages believers to seek God's voice and align with His desires before presenting personal needs. Prayer is a journey of drawing closer to God, seeking His presence and guidance above all else. It's a transformative process that changes the believer's heart, not God's mind. [35:58]

Jeremiah 29:12-13 - "Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."
Reflection: How can you prioritize seeking God's presence and guidance in your daily prayers, rather than focusing on your own desires?

**Are you a House of Miracles tonight? Are you a House of Miracles?**

Father, we're just so excited to be in your presence. We're just so excited to be in front of you today, God, that everything else is going on in our lives, it's just nothing, nothing, nothing compared to you.

So God, in this moment, just remind us that you're bigger than every problem. God, you're bigger than every need that we have. God, it's just a privilege and an honor for us to even just come and be able to worship you in this way.

Father, tonight we just say thank you for what you did for us, sacrifice on the cross on our behalf, all so that we could come back to you. And when you tore that veil, you removed the barrier between us and your presence. Father, we're just so grateful for that. We worship you, we adore you, we love you.

We just ask that you would continue to allow us this brief moment with you, that you would speak to us and move in our lives like never before. In Jesus' name, amen, amen, amen.

Come on, CLC, make some noise for Jesus!

Hey, I don't know about you, but I'm happy to be in the house of the Lord on a Wednesday night. It's good stuff happening. Why don't you do me a favor, say hi to somebody near you? We've got a couple more things we're going to do tonight. If you're online, we're so glad you're part of this service as well. Say hi to somebody in the chat; we'd love to connect with you.

I'm going to grab my laptop.

All right, so we do things a little bit differently at First Wednesdays than we do on Sunday. It gives us a little bit of a chance to kind of have a little bit of extended time in worship. We get to take a little bit more time with communion, and then I get to kind of guide you through scripture a little bit more detailed than I would on a Sunday. Because like on Sunday, we got a lot of people that may have been wandering into church for the very first time. But if you're at church on a Wednesday night, you probably really, really love Jesus.

So a couple of you, but that's all right.

I do want to give you a teaser though: next month, you do not want to miss First Wednesday because one of our favorite mission partners is actually going to be here, and that is PG Vargas. He is the founder of a ministry that we've partnered with in India for a really long time. You've gotten to hear from his son, AV, a few times here recently, but PG, the founder, the originator, the father, is actually going to be here next month, and he's going to be sharing on First Wednesday. You don't want to miss that. It's absolutely incredible what God has been able to do through that ministry, or what he's been able to do through that ministry with partnering with God. It's just really cool, so you don't want to miss that.

But here we are, First Wednesday, and we are in a series called "Pray First" on Sundays. It just kicked off this past Sunday, and there are a lot of cool things that are happening with this series that I'm going to give you a little bit of a commercial break, and then we're going to dive into some scripture. Is that okay?

All right, so here's a commercial break. Starting this Sunday, we're entering into 21 days of prayer, and this is the good one because notice it doesn't say fasting, right? So you can eat all you want as long as you're praying.

Okay, so we're going to do 21 days of prayer. It's going to run from September 11th, that's this Sunday, all the way through Saturday, October 1st. And with this 21 days of prayer, we're going to have a prayer gathering right here in this room. It's also going to be streamed online for those of you that can't make it, but Monday through Friday at 12 noon. So if you got a lunch break, take it at noon, pray with us. It's going to be a great time. We'll have a little bit of worship, a little devotional, some time to pray. And then on Saturday, it's going to be the same exact format, but we're going to do it at 9:00 a.m. on Saturdays. You get that at live.cla.tv, or you can join us right here in the building.

With that prayer meeting, each of those three weeks during the 21 days, we have a little bit of a different emphasis on our prayers. The very first week, we're just going to be praying to hear God's voice. Before we tell him anything about what's going on or what we need or what we want, we're going to put all of that aside and just say, "God, what do you want? God, what do you want to do in my life in these 21 days? God, what are you wanting to do in my city? What are you wanting to do through me? God, what do you want?"

Before we get into what I want, because if I hear what you want and what you want doesn't align up with what I want, I'm just going to throw what I want out, and we're just going to focus in on what you want, God. So before I speak, we're going to listen to the voice of God.

Then in the second week, we're going to be praying for God to move. And when we say praying for God to move, I mean for him to move in ways and in situations and in places and in things that there is no hope if he doesn't move. Like we're going to spend a week just praying for miracles, praying for God to do what only God can do.

And then my favorite week, guess what we're going to do? We're just going to celebrate. We're just going to pray prayers of gratitude because you can't listen for the voice of God and then pray for miracles and then just end. Like you got to say thank you, right? And we're going to be celebrating things that he's already done, but we're going to be celebrating in advance. Like because we believe so strongly that God is going to move in our lives, that we're going to go ahead and celebrate before we even see it happen.

So we're going to spend a week just praying prayers of gratitude. I hope you'll join us for those three weeks, those 21 days. We have some resources for you to go along with this. If you want to snap a picture of this, there's a QR code, or you can go to prayfirstbook, and we have a book that we've actually... we'll have some in print, but we're a digital kind of church. So you can actually grab this on your phone, and there's a lovely PDF that walks you through several different types of prayers. It's packed with great resources. I think it's like 60 pages long. It's a hefty book, and there's some really cool stuff in there.

But I'm even more excited than the Pray First book. I'm excited about the Pray First app. Okay? And so this is actually something that was created by some friends of ours at Church of the Highlands in Alabama, and it is absolutely amazing. I have fallen in love with this app since I downloaded it about three weeks ago.

And here's the deal: how many of you have the Bible app on your phone, right? Like you know how much you need the Bible app in order to read your Bible. Like it's just got everything in there. It's got devotionals and it's got everything that you need, right? Well, that's what this is for your prayer life.

And so that app actually has places... well, here, let me just show you some of the stuff it has. So it has different prayer plans where you can actually learn different types of prayer, some models for prayer. In fact, we're going to be going over some of these prayer plans in this 21 days of prayer and fasting. You can create your own prayer list, so if you want to keep a list going of who you're praying for, what you're praying about, you can do that in there. They've got worship music, like instrumental music that's already embedded in the app. You don't have to do anything else; just hit play on it.

And then there's even resources that they have, teaching from some of their pastors, and just some really cool stuff. But download the app because there's a lot of just awesome stuff in it. And if you need help, you can actually download the CLC app or open up your CLC app right now, and there should be a little button there that has all the resources. If not, it'll be there by Sunday. I can't remember if it got updated yet or not, but good stuff, free resources, and commercial break is over.

So here's what we're hoping. Here's my prayer for the 21 days of prayer: I'm praying that you would develop a new habit for prayer, that prayer would become just kind of an everyday part of your life, that it would just instill this passion in you for prayer. That's the first thing that I'm praying.

The second thing, though, is I'm praying that you would experience a paradigm shift when it comes to prayer. That what you think prayer is supposed to be or what you think prayer is all about, that in these 21 days, there would just be kind of a shift in your understanding. Because prayer is so much bigger than what we make it out to be often.

Okay, because here's the thing: the purpose of prayer is not to give God new information. I don't know how many times I've gone to God in prayer giving him information, and I don't understand why I do it. Because prayer is not our time to inform God on what he's been missing.

Okay, like we go to prayer and we're like, "God, I know you've been really busy, and so I'm guessing you haven't been paying attention, but the gas prices, whoo, God, they're really crazy. If you could just do something about that." And, "God, I know you've probably been distracted with some other things, but if you didn't know, my mother is in the hospital, and it'd be really great if she wasn't." And, "God, I don't know if you've noticed or not, but my grades lately have kind of slipped, and it would be really great if you could turn that C into an A."

I just want to let you know what's going on. And here's the problem, though: if God is omnipresent, which means he's everywhere all at once, and if God is omniscient, that means he knows everything, then why do we try and give him information in prayer? Because that's not what prayer is supposed to be, but that's what we turn it into.

Okay, here's the thing: the purpose of prayer is also not to get God to do what you want. God is not a genie in a bottle. He's not your Amazon wish list. And this one kind of hurts me: he's not your errand boy. I thought, man, I've prayed some prayers that if I look back on them today, I'm like, "Ugh, I was just giving God my to-do list and saying, 'God, if you could do this, this, and this, this and this, I'd be happy.'"

He's the God of all creation, and when we go to him in prayer, there needs to be a reverence for that. He's not your errand boy; he's your master. You're his errand boy. But we mix it up in prayer so easily.

And the purpose of prayer, believe it or not, is actually not to get God to move towards you. A lot of times we use prayer to say, "God, I need you to come down here where I am. God, I need you in this situation. I need you to get out of heaven and come down here." And as good as that may sound, that's actually not what's supposed to happen with prayer.

It's not about getting God to leave heaven to come down to us. The purpose of prayer is actually to get us to move towards God. And that's why we pray, because it's in prayer that we draw closer to him. The way you can look at that is like if God is in a place, you're just trying to get to that place, and prayer is the vehicle you use.

Like prayer is how you go from here to there. But as we're intentional about that, and as we put in that effort to get closer to God, James tells us something really interesting happens. In James 4, he says that if you draw near to God, what happens? He'll draw near to you.

But who makes the first move? Is it God will draw near to you and then you draw near to God? No, we make the first move, right? We move first. And prayer, first and foremost, is how we draw near to God. The byproduct of that is that as we get closer to him, he's also getting closer to us. That's why he said, "If you seek me, you'll find me." Right? Who moves first? We do.

And ultimately, the purpose of prayer, our goal with prayer, is just to spend time with God. That's the goal. And if God never answers a prayer the way you want him to, that's okay, because the goal wasn't for him to do stuff. The goal is just to spend time with him.

And any prayer that brings you closer to God is not wasted. And this is the paradigm shift. This is what I would love for us to end this 21 days with: an understanding that, God, even if you didn't answer another prayer I pray for the rest of my life, I'm still going to pray to you every day because it's how I get closer to you.

And at the end of the day, I just want you, not the stuff that you do.

In Philippians 4:6-7, it's one of my favorite passages on prayer. We're going to dissect it in a second at a different translation, but this is the one that a lot of us probably memorize the scripture in, right? "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God."

This is like, man, this is one of my favorite passages on prayer. In fact, I love it so much that we've incorporated it into our staff meetings. So every Monday morning, we have a staff meeting, and the last line on the agenda every week is called "anxiety killers" because prayer kills anxiety.

"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything through prayer." So if you're anxious about something, you can kill it with prayer.

Now, I want to take a moment. This is where we're going to do that little bit of a deeper dive. I want to kind of walk through this passage, but we're going to use the Message translation because it just kind of puts it in some language that we can kind of have a little bit of fun with. We can kind of understand a little bit better because like "supplication," that's just not a word I use on a regular basis.

So here we go: Philippians 4:6-7 starts off with "Don't fret or worry." And if I tell you, "Don't do something," what does that mean? Well, it means don't do it, Asa. But I'm looking for a deeper logical truth to that. If there's an option to not do something, what does that mean for us?

It means that there's a choice because you can't tell somebody not to do something that they have no control over. But if he says, "Don't fret or worry," guess what? You have the choice to fret or worry, or you have the choice not to worry.

Anxiety is not inevitable. And I know for some of you, you're like, "Yeah, but you don't work where I work. You don't have the boss that I have." Anxiety is absolutely inevitable. No, it's not. It is always a choice, and you can choose not to do it.

Instead of worrying, pray. So what does this word mean? This means we're going to swap actions, right? So we've got a choice to make. Are we going to worry? And we're saying no, we're not going to. And instead of worrying, what are we going to do? We're going to pray, right?

We're just going to swap that action. Not only am I going to choose not to do something, I'm going to choose to do something else. Like fasting isn't about just choosing not to eat; it's choosing to replace that time with something else.

So when your stomach grumbles when you're fasting, instead of going, "Man, I'm so hungry," you use that as an alert in your life to say, "Oh, I'm praying about this thing that I need in my life," or "I'm praying about this situation that I need clarity on," or "I'm trying to get closer to God."

And so every time my stomach rumbles, I'm not going to grab some food because I'm replacing that food with my time with God. Make sense?

And so I'm not going to worry; instead, I'm going to spend that worrying time as praying time. And then he says, "Let petitions and praises..." and we've got to kind of highlight this right here, the praises part, right? Because we got to be careful to remember that God is not your genie in a bottle.

As my wife loves to say, we don't come to God with a honeydew list. The other translation says, "With thanksgiving," right? And it's with praises that we come to him because he is worthy of that. We need to show him honor, right? He deserves it, and praising him is what we do because he's worthy of those praises.

And so we're not just going to pray about stuff, but we're going to worship. We're going to praise God in the process, and we're going to shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns.

So we're going to take all those things that are stressing us out, we're going to take all that stuff that is causing us anxiety or causing us to worry, and we're just going to shape that stuff into prayer and give it back to God.

Instead of freaking out, instead of getting all bent out of shape, and instead of having cold sweats and losing sleep, instead of experiencing all that anxiety, I'm just going to take all those things that didn't go away just because I chose not to worry about them, but I'm just going to take that stuff and I'm going to turn those into prayers.

So instead of saying, "Oh my God, I don't know what I'm going to do about my boss; he is just on my back," instead, you're going to say, "God, I need you to help me because my boss is on my back."

Right? Same situation, but now it's not about the anxiety; it's about the prayer, and you're shaping it, you're molding it. Instead of saying, "Man, I don't know what to do about my kids because they just won't listen," instead, you say, "God, I need you to give me patience with my children. Give me wisdom to know how to teach them and guide them, and God, I need you to move in their lives in a way that they would recognize you at work in them."

We're going to shape the worries into prayers, turning our worries into prayer requests. And before you know it, I love that line because I don't know when it happens, right? Because like you're just turning worries into prayers, and you're turning worries into prayers, and then something else happens. You turn that worry into prayer, and then all of a sudden, before you know it, like you don't know exactly when it happens, but you're praying and you're praying and you're praying, and all of a sudden, at some point in that process, all the worry and all the stress and all the anxiety has become replaced by a sense of God's wholeness.

How cool is that? God is awesome, like beyond imagining awesome. And when we turn those worries into prayers, and as we turn them over to God, before you know it, there's just this sense of how awesome God is. When you come into the presence of God, everything else fades away, and everything else just becomes smaller, right?

When you take God next to anything, it's like Shaq next to Kevin Hart. It's worse than that; it's like the Sears Tower next to an ant. Like God next to anything, it should make you laugh. And as big and as bad and as ugly as that problem you're facing right now is, if you put that thing next to God, it should make you laugh because he's bigger.

If he can speak the world into existence, he can handle anything. For Kevin Hart, everything coming together for good, what that means is that I trust him with all of it. And even when I disagree with what he's doing, or even when I don't like what he's doing, or even when I don't understand what he's doing, I know that everything is coming together for good.

Why? Because rule number one is that God is good all the time. And if you are ever in doubt of rule number one, just use rule number two, which says, "When in doubt, refer back to rule number one." My God is good all the time, all the time.

And even when we don't understand it, even when we don't agree with it, we can trust in the goodness of God. So everything coming together for good, it will come and settle you down.

How have you been in a place where you're like, "I need somebody to just settle them down," right? Like they're freaking out, they're panicking, their worry is getting out of control, and I just need somebody to come over there and just be like, "Hey, settle down now."

Right? This is where that peace that surpasses all understanding comes into play. That's what it means to just kind of settle you down. And you started off with all these worries and all these fears and all these anxieties, but you've shaped them into prayers. You've given them over to God; he's good in your life, and you're trusting his goodness.

And all of a sudden, in that awesomeness of God, you're just like a breath of fresh air. And in that moment, it just calms you down, settles you.

And this is my favorite sentence. This is why I chose this translation, the way it phrases this: "It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life."

And this is, to me, what prayer is all about: replacing our worry with Jesus and getting our focus off of ourselves and onto him. That if at the center of your life is the anxiety and the fears and the worry about the next paycheck, the next job, the illness, the kids, the wife, the husband, if you're preoccupied with all that stuff, what would happen if you just replaced all of that with Jesus?

Took the focus off of yourself, just put it on the cross, put it on him, put on his love for you, put on his power and his mercy, his grace. What would that look like?

So when we pray, what we're doing is we're turning our worry into peace. And that peace, it doesn't come from you getting your way. The peace comes from being connected to God, who's so much more important than everything else in your life.

And I can be sick, but as long as I got Jesus. And I can be broke, but as long as I got Jesus. And I can lose my job, but as long as I have Jesus. And I can be going through hell, but as long as I've got Jesus.

Because as long as I can take all those fears and worries and problems and just shape them into prayers, that process is always going to draw me closer to God, and God's always going to come closer to me when that happens.

And I'll get closer to his love and his grace and his mercy. And if God never answers another prayer, or if every prayer he answers is with a no, I'm okay because as long as I have Jesus, I have everything I need.

Because the peace that I need in my life is the Prince of Peace. And if I got that, nothing else matters. That's what prayer is all about.

And when we pray, what we have to understand is that the relationship is more important than the answer. The relationship is what it's about.

And we can pray, and you can pray, and pray, and pray, and somebody will look at you and say, "Why are you still praying about that thing? It's never happening." And you can say, "That's fine because it's not about the thing happening; it's about the relationship. I'm just cultivating a relationship with my God. I'm just getting as close to him as I can possibly be because prayer isn't about getting stuff; it's about getting closer to God."

And so let's actually do that right now. Why don't we turn the last few minutes of this service just into a prayer meeting? And let's shape those worries and those fears and that anxiety. Why don't we just shape it into prayers and give them up to God?

So I'm going to invite the band to come on back up. I'm going to invite you to go ahead and stand to your feet, and I just want us to pray.

And I don't want us to pray little prayers about, you know, "Oh man, I'm going through something." I just pray a prayer that'll just draw you closer to God. And we're going to be teaching you how to pray over the next three weeks. We're going to get really into the nitty-gritty of what to say and how to walk through a prayer.

But right now, in this moment, it doesn't have to be eloquent; it's just a conversation. It's just a moment for you to connect with the living God. It's just about building that relationship the same way I sit and I talk with my wife, the same way I sit and I talk with my kids because I want to get to know them better. I want them to know me better. I want our relationship to be stronger.

That's what prayer does for us with God.

So right now, everywhere in the room, just lift up your voices in prayer.

Father God, we just worship you. We love you. God, you are awesome. God, there are so many things that I can thank you for in this season, in this moment. But God, I'm just thanking you because you are awesome. You are so much bigger and better than everything I've ever faced in my life.

God, I am so grateful for you. Father, thank you for blessing me. Thank you for the family that you've given me. Thank you for this church that you've allowed me to be a part of. Father, thank you for every single blessing in my life.

Father, thank you for the relationships that you've given me. Father, thank you for the gifts you've given me. Father, thank you for just who you are. God, I just thank you in this moment because you're awesome. You are awesome, God.

And Father, tonight, I just thank you for the cross. God, I thank you for the sacrifice that you paid for me, that by your stripes I'm healed, that the blood that you shed purchased my salvation, that you tore the veil in the temple so that I could come boldly before the throne of grace.

And so, Father, I just say thank you in this moment for the cross, for everything that you've done on my behalf so that I could be made righteous in you.

And Father, I just ask that you would just wash me clean of every sin, of every mistake, of every problem, of every issue. God, that you would just purify my life so that I could give it back to you.

And God, even in this moment, I just surrender my life to you. Every piece of me, every part of me, I just hand it over to you, God. Whatever you want to do in me or through me, you have free reign because, God, you are in control, not me. God, you're the master, not me. This is your life, not mine, because I've given it over to you.

Do whatever you need to do in me. And Father, I just ask for a fresh anointing of your Holy Spirit in my life. God, that you would just pour out your spirit on me, that I would understand things in a way that I shouldn't be able to understand at my age, but there would just be a grace and an anointing.

Father, I pray for the gifts of the Spirit to be active in my life. Father, I pray for the fruit of the Spirit to be active in my life, that I would walk through every single day with love and joy and peace and patience and goodness and kindness and self-control.

God, give me self-control, that you would just move in my life. And Father, I thank you for your word that brings life. Father, I thank you for Ephesians; it tells me that I don't have to worry. It's a choice, and I can choose today to offer all of the anxiety, all of the fears, all the worries, all the doubts, everything back over to you.

Father, thank you for your word. Father, I just worship your name because, God, you are magnificent. God, you are awesome. God, you are holy.

And Father, I thank you right now because you are Jehovah Nissi; you are our banner of victory. And that every situation that I'm facing in this life right now, Father, you're the victory. I don't have to worry; I don't have to be afraid because you are my victory.

And you are Jehovah; you are my shepherd, and you're going to guide my feet. You're going to lead me in the path to life. Father, I worship your name because you are good. You are so good.

And Father, I just ask right now that you would move in this church, Father, that you would just set us ablaze for you. Father, that we would have a passion for prayer like never before, that prayer would be our first response to every situation.

Father, before we talk about it, before we think about it, before we worry about it, we're going to pray about it. And Father, I just pray for every single person in this room that is bogged down with anxiety or fear or worry, that even after hearing these scriptures, they're still saying, "It's so hard to let go of that anxiety because what if, and what if, and what if, and what if, and what if."

Father, I just ask that you would just break the what-ifs in this moment, Father, that you would give us a peace that surpasses all understanding, that you would move in us, that you would move in this church, that we would hunger and thirst for righteousness. We would hunger after you.

"Turning our worries into prayer requests and before you know it, all the worry and stress and anxiety has become replaced by a sense of God's wholeness." [51:56]

"When you come into the presence of God everything else fades away and everything else just becomes smaller... like the Sears Tower next to an ant." [52:42]

"As big and as bad and as ugly as that problem you're facing right now is, if you put that thing next to God it should make you laugh because he's bigger." [53:19]

"When we pray, what we have to understand is that the relationship is more important than the answer. The relationship is what it's about." [57:21]

"Prayer isn't about getting stuff; it's about getting closer to God." [57:46]

"God is good all the time, and even when we don't understand it, even when we don't agree with it, we can trust in the goodness of God. So everything coming together for good, it will come and settle you down." [53:49]

"What happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life is what prayer is all about: replacing our worry with Jesus and getting our focus off of ourselves and onto Him." [55:33]

"Prayer is not about eloquence; it's about building a relationship with the Living God, just as we connect with our loved ones to know and understand them better." [58:55]

"Father that we would have a passion for prayer like never before that prayer would be our first response to every situation father before we talk about it before we think about it before we worry about it we're going to pray about it." [01:02:54]

"The purpose of prayer is actually not to get God to move towards you... it's not about getting God to leave heaven to come down to us, the purpose of prayer is actually to get us to move towards God." [44:21]