Week Two

Leaping into Prayer

When watching competitive swimmers we get to see the rhythms of breathing and moving gracefully and powerfully through the water! There is a well practiced drill of when to turn the head and breathe, often knowing how long they can wait before needing to breathe. If it is too long it hinders the performance due to a lack of oxygen. There is a basic need to breathe! To inhale with the head out of the water and exhale usually in the water. If we think about prayer as the water we swim through in life of faith it can help us understand the rhythms within prayer. The swimmer dives into the water. This week we take a diving leap into prayer.

SEEDS TO SOW: You could find time this week to sit and read Matthew 4: 1-11 a few times and then dive into some time of open-ended prayer with God.

Read Matthew 4: 1-11

Going into the wilderness can sound a bit scary, like diving into an open water swim - you know it is going to be cold!

When we stand and look at diving into prayer, how do we feel about it?

Read Matthew 4: 1-11 (again!)

The swimmer dives into the water. We dive into — leap into — prayer! We need to inhale by listening and taking in what God says to us in prayer and we exhale, giving out to God in prayer — sometimes with puffed out cheeks from the depths of our lungs! To build a rhythm swimmers work on a pattern of inhaling and exhaling.

How could we apply those principles of taking in and letting go to a time of prayer?

Read Matthew 4: 18-22

Persevere following Jesus in prayer, it might start to look or feel different as our prayer life deepens, but keep on praying, this is the way! The disciples didn't tread water, they didn't stay where they were in their faith.

What helps us not to tread water but to keep on swimming in our lives of prayer?