Luke 18:1-8
Lead in: In the Book of Exodus, Moses is persistent in praying for Israel’s success in their scrimmages with local tribes who engaged them in battle. In 2 Timothy 3, the listener is urged to be persistent in staying faithful to God’s word, whether it be convenient or not.
Prompt: Reflect on a time when persistence paid off for you.
Lead in: In Luke 18, we hear the story of the poor widow who wears down an uncaring judge to get what she wants. While the widow’s persistence is admirable, it would be misleading to conclude that if we just pray hard and long enough our prayers will be answered the way we want them answered.
Prompt: Reflect on a time when your prayers were answered, but not in the way you wanted.
Prompt: What must be our attitude when we approach God in prayer?
Lead in: In the parable from Luke 18, a shameless judge is waiting for the usual bribe from a widow who has been defrauded of her property. But as he soon finds out, the widow will not be taken advantage of. She is not simply requesting a favor from the judge. She is demanding justice from the judge.
Prompt: Think of a time when you felt called to defend someone who was being taken advantage of.
Prompt: What are the things in your world that are worth fighting for?
Lead in: In Exodus 17, Moses led the Israelites to victory over Amakek. He could not have done it without the support of his lieutenants, Joshua and Hur, who held his arms up as the battle raged on.
Prompt: What are the battles you have faced? Who are the lieutenants who have supported you in those battles?
Lead in: As the Israelites made their way through the desert to the promised land, they often had to do battle with local tribes who tried to keep them from passing through their territory.
Prompt: What have been the obstacles that you have had to battle through to reach the promised land that you hope to someday reach?
Lead in: In I Exodus 17, as long as Moses held his arms in the air, the Israelites prevailed. That was not magic. His raised arms pointed to the God they relied on.
Prompt: Can you think of a time when you knew that if you were to prevail with the odds against you, that it would be God and not you who would make that happen?