The “Year of Prayer” is an opportunity for you to grow in your faith and to deepen your spiritual life. It will help you develop the prayer life you already have, and discover new and different ways to use your daily time with God.
Participation in the Year of Prayer includes:
- DAILY prayer time, using suggestions from the prayer calendar that you can pick up at the church, or download from the link at the right.
- WEEKLY conversations with your prayer partner for support, encouragement, and accountability. You may select your own prayer partner (preferably not someone from your household), or you may ask to be matched with someone else who is seeking a prayer partner.
- MONTHLY individual spiritual exercises, to help you explore new avenues for your relationship with God. You are encouraged to give feedback on the exercises to the pastor, so that he can “coach” you as you deepen your spiritual life.
During the Year of Prayer, we will also have a spring study series on the Lord’s Prayer, and sermons based on prayers from the Bible (when the Daniel sermon series concludes).
Use the links to the right to find resources for your daily prayer time, for your weekly prayer partner conversations, and for the monthly spiritual exercises.
FAQs ABOUT THE YEAR OF PRAYER
1. Do I have to participate in all three parts (daily,
weekly, monthly) of the Year of Prayer?
No. You will certainly get the most benefit from
this experience if you do. But if for some reason you only want to be
part of one or two of the aspects of the Year of Prayer, that's fine.
Something is better than nothing!
2. What happens if I say I'm going to participate in the
Year of Prayer but then drop out of it?
Nothing. Signing up to participate is meant to help
strengthen your commitment to the project, not to fill you with guilt if you
don't. If you only participate for a week, that's a week of spiritual
development that you wouldn't have had otherwise.
3. Can I participate in the Year of Prayer without
signing up for it?
Yes. When you tell us that you plan to participate
in the Year of Prayer, this helps us match up potential prayer partners, if
requested. It also helps us evaluate how successful the program is, and
if there is enough interest in it to follow through on it.
4. I'm happy with the prayer life I have now. Why
should I change it?
Until we see God face to face in glory, we are growing in
our relationship with him. No matter how good your prayer life is now, it
can always be better. Sometimes comfortable patterns can become
ruts. The Year of Prayer will allow you to explore other ways of relating
with God, and you may find some ideas that you'd like to use.
5. How old do you have to be to participate in the Year
of Prayer?
If you're old enough to pray, you're old enough to be
part of the Year of Prayer.
6. Why do we need prayer partners? Isn't prayer
something just between God and me?
Prayer is a personal experience with God, but it is good
to have another person with whom we can talk about the struggles and joys that
you will experience during the Year of Prayer. It is also good to have
someone to talk with if you start to get off track in your prayer life.
You and your prayer partner will receive suggestions about what to talk about
together.
7. What will the pastor do with my feedback on the
monthly spiritual exercises?
Anything you tell your pastor about your prayer life will
be kept in strict confidence. This feedback will help him coach you in
the process of developing your prayer life. You may give him your
feedback in whatever way feels best for you: a letter in the mail, a slip of
paper in the offering plate, a phone call, email, etc. There will also be
a can in the back of the church where you can place your feedback.
8. If some of my friends who are not part of Old Union
Church would like to participate, is that alright?
Certainly! Anyone can be part of the Year of
Prayer with us. You can pass along the prayer suggestion calendar and the
monthly spiritual exercises to anyone who wants them.
9. How much time will this take?
You only need enough time each day to offer a brief
prayer, each week for a simple conversation with your prayer partner, and each
month to complete your spiritual exercise. Some monthly exercises will
take more time than others. But, just like it is with so many other
things, the more time you devote to the Year of Prayer, the more you will
benefit from it.
10. How can I participate in the Year of Prayer when I
already feel so overwhelmed with how busy I am?
If you are too busy to pray, then you are too busy.
Your time with God is not competition for the time you have to do other
things. It is the source of power for you to handle everything else.
