Bold Prayers

Ok, I looked and I tried really hard to find prayers in the book of Acts in which they prayed over their food, or said, “Lord be with me” / “Keep me safe” / “Watch over me” / “keep me safe” / “give me a better house or a raise”. Now I know God is not offended at these prayers and there is nothing unbiblical about them. I just wonder what type of prayer He expects to hear from us. I remember a few guys in the old testament that said before a king, “hey you can throw us into the fire and God will rescue us, but if he does not we will not bow.” (Daniel 3).

That bold prayer and bold statement is a far cry from the standard prayer today. I challenge you to stop praying selfish and small prayers this week and begin to pray bold prayers. Start by picking two or three bold things to pray for. Follow the example in Acts 4 by praying for boldness in your life and in the lives of others. If you or someone you know has a great need, pray that God will work a miracle in that situation. Consider sharing your bold prayer requests with others and ask them to pray your bold prayers with you. The Book of Acts is full of examples of amazing boldness as the first church began the task of advancing Christ’s kingdom into all nations.

During the Bold series, read the Acts YouVersion reading plan at http://www.youversion.com/reading-plans/acts. As you read, be intentional about finding examples of bold living that you can follow in your own life.

Don’t let

• What’s one of the most miraculous things you’ve ever seen or heard about?

With your Bible or YouVersion, read Acts 4:23-37.

In this passage, Peter and John prayed bold prayers before God that led to bold results.

• How would you describe the way you typically pray? In what ways do your prayers reflect what you believe about God?

• What stood out to you about bold prayers after reading Peter and John’s prayers in Acts 4?

• When was the last time you were amazed by the power of prayer? How did that experience affect your relationship with God?

• Why do you think prayers become bolder when they are prayed together in a group?

• What’s keeping you from changing your selfish and small prayers into bold prayers?

• What bold prayers do you need to start praying today?

• Peter and John’s prayers led to bold results. What bold results would you like to see come from your bold prayers?

• What impact do you think it would have on your church if everyone began praying bold prayers?

• In what ways have you seen the power of bold prayers build your faith in Christ?