![\"family](\"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/family-prays.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Central Thought:\u00a0 The presence of God is guaranteed in a family that prays together.<\/h3>\n<\/h3>\n\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Text: Joshua 24:15; Matthew 18:18-20; Genesis 18:19; Amos 3:3; James 5:16<\/h3>\n
\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Text: Joshua 24:15; Matthew 18:18-20; Genesis 18:19; Amos 3:3; James 5:16<\/h3>\n
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One of the real challenges that we often find in our contemporary, busy lives is finding time to be together as a family.\u00a0 It is especially difficult to find opportunities to pray together.\u00a0 Our Father in Heaven wants us to have strong, loving families.\u00a0 One of the great helps He has given us to achieve this is the family prayer.<\/p>\n
All of us, single or married, are eternally part of some family, someway, somewhere, somehow and much of our joy in life comes as we correctly recognize and properly develop those family relationships.\u00a0 God has placed us in families, where we can learn to overcome selfishness, pride, sacrifice for others, and make happiness, helpfulness, humility and love the very essence of our character.<\/p>\n
We learn that friends and neighbors come and go but the family remains and as we learn this, we find that we are our brother\u2019s keeper.\u00a0 We need to thank God for the opportunity of family prayer.<\/p>\n
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What do you understand by the phrase, \u201cThe family that prays together\u201d?<\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
This means a family that has a regular time to pray and study the Bible together.\u00a0 In 1 Timothy 3:5 we read, \u201cif anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God\u2019s church?\u201d\u00a0 Managing your family is caring for each member, teaching them God\u2019s way, leading them to grow in the Lord, and equipping them for adult life.\u00a0 Prayer is important in achieving all of these.\u00a0 A family with a heart of prayer for each other will have a heart of prayer for the world.<\/p>\n
Family members should have a time to share their joys and burdens together, Galatians 6:2<\/p>\n
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What is involved in praying together as a family?<\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
-Having a regular prayer altar:<\/span> \u00a0A place of bible study and worship time: A family should have a regular time to pray and read the Bible together; this should be taken seriously and practiced routinely.\u00a0 It helps in bringing up children in the way of the Lord.<\/p>\n
It is well to remember the great command that the Lord gave to Israel. \u201cHear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.\u00a0 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when you walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up\u201d, Deuteronomy 6:4-7.<\/p>\n
Worship of the Lord is first of all vertical and then horizontal and begins in the home and takes in the whole family.\u00a0 Where is your family altar?\u00a0 Where is that place you meet with God daily as a family?<\/p>\n
-Setting a time for fasting and praying for a purpose.\u00a0 Ezra 8:21-23; Joel 2:12:<\/span>\u00a0 Families may decide to fast and pray for a particular purpose, without hatred, enmity, jealousy, pride and unforgiveness among them.\u00a0 Their hearts and minds must be focused on God.<\/p>\n
-Serving God together.\u00a0 Joshua 24:15; Genesis 18:19:<\/span> Husbands and wives are to work together to bring glory to Christ through their home.\u00a0 Married couples ought to pray together, read the Word of God together, attend church services together, and labor together to bring the lost to Christ.\u00a0 Nothing brings unity like a common purpose.\u00a0 The desire of every believing husband and wife ought to be to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ together.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s important for parents to have their children involved in family prayer because this helps build the children\u2019s relationship with the Lord and also teaches them the importance of prayer.\u00a0 Families that pray together establish trust with one another, learn to pray in fellowship, and come in agreement before God.<\/p>\n
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What are some of the challenges, hindrances or difficulties in praying together as a family?<\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
-Disagreements, \u201cCan two walk together, except they be agreed?\u201d, Amos 3:3:<\/span> If we get angry with one another, there is no way we can pray together.\u00a0 The scriptures admonish us in 1 Peter 3:7, \u201cLikewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honor unto the wife, as unto the weker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.\u201d<\/p>\n
-Business, worldliness, sin. Isaiah 59:1-3:<\/span> Many Christians are too preoccupied with TV programs or overcrowded schedules or caught up in some other aspect of the pressures of modern life so that they do not have family prayers.<\/p>\n
-Lack of openness and secrecy:<\/span>\u00a0 This constitutes a challenge to family prayers; family members should open up to one another on issues affecting them in the office, business places, school, etc., so that such issues can be brought before the Lord.<\/p>\n
-Lukewarmness. Revelation 3:16:<\/span> \u00a0A lukewarm life is a displeasure to God; He would have us to be fervent in spirit.\u00a0 Some persons have a lukewarm and lazy attitude to prayers; they have problem waking up early to participate in family prayers, this ought not to be so.<\/p>\n
-Satan himself:\u00a0<\/span> Satan will do everything he can to keep us from family prayer, or at least to see that our prayers are only intermittent and mechanical and without sincerity.\u00a0 In Daniel\u2019s day, Satan influenced evil men to pass laws against prayer.\u00a0 In our day, Satan\u2019s efforts seem a little more subtle.\u00a0 But remember, the greatest schools on earth are individual homes.\u00a0 Yet how many homes voluntarily give up family prayer by allowing other less important things to take priority.\u00a0 Satan doesn\u2019t care how he stops us \u2013 just that he stops us.\u00a0 James 4:7 says, \u201csubmit yourselves therefore to God.\u00a0 Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.\u201d\u00a0 Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.<\/p>\n
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How do we overcome these challenges outlined above?<\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
-We must repent and return to our first love, Revelation 4:7<\/span><\/p>\n
-Resist the devil and no fall for his antics, James 4:7<\/span><\/p>\n
-Learn to live peaceably with our family members, Romans 12:18:<\/span>\u00a0 If it be possible as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.<\/p>\n
-Be ruled by the Word:\u00a0<\/span> Make the word of God your rule and authority and live in obedience to all it says.\u00a0 It will keep you walking straight and guard you from all manner of temptation.<\/p>\n
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What are some of the consequences of not praying together as a family?<\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
The family could be torn apart; there may also be disunity because prayer has a way of unifying hearts together.<\/p>\n
The blessings of God maybe hindered and individual prayers may not be answered, 1 Peter 3:7.\u00a0 Such family will not benefit from the fulfillment of scriptures on prayer of agreement.<\/p>\n
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What are some of the blessings and benefits of praying together?<\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Of a truth, \u2018the family that prays together stays together\u2019.\u00a0 A family that has her focus on praying to the Lord Jesus Christ has a foundation that cannot be shaken and will definitely withstand and overcome all that comes her way.<\/p>\n
Visible progress is made by the family, as there is peace, unity, and focus.\u00a0 The family members derive a lot of power and confidence to face and overcome life challenges.\u00a0 Proverbs 27:17; Acts 4:31.\u00a0 Families can be united and help strengthen one another through family prayer.<\/p>\n
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Daily Living Application<\/h3>\n
There is great power in a loving, consistent and fervent family prayer.\u00a0 Do not deny your families this blessing.\u00a0 Do not allow the strength that comes from family prayer to slip away from you and your loved ones through neglect.<\/p>\n
Call your family members together.\u00a0 Make your family prayers a top priority and you will enjoy great blessings.<\/p>\n
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Memory Verse:<\/h3>\n
Matthew 18:19-20 \u2013 \u201cAgain, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven.\u00a0 For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Family that Prays Together \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Central Thought:\u00a0 The presence of God is guaranteed in a family that prays together. \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Text: Joshua 24:15; Matthew 18:18-20; Genesis 18:19; Amos 3:3; James 5:16 One of the real challenges that we often find in our contemporary, busy lives is finding time […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":799,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-793","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sundayschool"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/family-prays.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/793","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=793"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/793\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":811,"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/793\/revisions\/811"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/799"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=793"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=793"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=793"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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