Brief Intro:

Christianity is not just a religion. It is a relationship between God and us through Jesus Christ. How do all relationships grow? Through communication. Improving our communication always improves our relationships. Communication has two parts - listening and talking. God prompts us in many ways, but He speaks clearest through the Scriptures. We talk to Him through prayer. We listen to Him as we read the Bible and meditate on it. He listens to us when we pray. We respond to His Word with action. He responds to our prayers with action.

In the Bible, who would you say had the most effective prayer life?

By observing Jesus' prayer life, we discover two keys to effective prayer:

• a specific time
• a private place.

1. According to Mark 1:35, when and where did Jesus pray?
   • when:  _______________________________________
   • where: ______________________________________
2. According to Matthew 6:5, where do hypocrites pray?
3. What do you think Jesus is saying about public prayer?
4. From Matthew 6:6-9, where should we pray and to whom should we pray?
   • where:   _______________________________________
   • to whom: ______________________________________
5. From Matthew 6:7, what do the pagans think about prayer?
6. According to Matthew 6:9-13, what should we pray for?
   • v. 10 -
   • v. 11 -
   • v. 12 -
   • v. 13 -
7. In Matthew 6:5-6, there is the word "reward". How do you feel considering that people can receive rewards in heaven when they pray with Jesus' guidelines?

Personal Application: What did you learn from this lesson and how will you apply it in your life?

How will you set a specific time and place for daily prayer?

• where: ____________________________
• when:  ____________________________

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