Feb 10th 2013 Psalms – Authentic Prayer for Today Week 5 – Enemies

February 13, 2013/Kasey Crawford

This week we continue to learn authentic prayer through the example of the Psalms. This message unpacks how to pray about enemies and situations where people wrong us, hurt us and frustrate us.

If you want a study tool to go along with the podcast, see Lift Notes here:

Psalms: Authentic Prayer for today, week 5:

Prayers about Enemies

February 10th, 2013 by Kasey Crawford

Today’s Passages: Psalm 3:1; 43:2; 139:19; 46:6-10, Luke 6:27-28

These prayers represent the honest pulse from one of the many emotional seasons of life: we all feel at times that we have ________________.

We all encounter people that do us _____________.

What should we do about enemies?

When it comes to enemies, do you _____________ about them or ___________ about them?

In Psalm 46:6 the Psalms honestly complains to God about his enemies, “Nations are in uproar, kingdoms totter” then God responds,

“Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:10

“Be still” means to _____________.

God is calling the one praying to release the enemy to His control.

God is saying: let go of the responsibility and ___________ of trying to fix the enemy problem on your own ______________ and give it up to God and trust that He will take care of your enemy in the right way and the right time.

These prayers were written in a time when the people lived by the code “an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.”

The psalms of prayer to God about enemies are a very countercultural response. And that’s the point, showing that in relationship with God there is a ______________ way of responding.

These prayers in the Psalms are an _________ of what comes into full revelation when we get to Jesus and he embodies the heart of heaven when he says and lives out things like:

²⁷ “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, ²⁸ bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. Luke 6:27–28

People often spend more __________ and ____________ complaining and gossiping about people in their life than praying about them.

That can be quite harmful to others and to yourself as you are carrying around the ____________ of bitterness.

Can you take the enemy prayer challenge?

“I ____________, commit that when I am having a hard time with someone, I will pray about it more than complain about it.”

If you actually spend the time to pray about them, God has the opportunity to do really helpful things in ___________ ___________ that will help you response very differently to the situation.

If you spend more time praying about them than complaining about them the situation _________ change for the better.

Taking it Home this week….

Is there someone in your life that is a hard person to deal with right now? Someone that is causing you pain or frustration?

Can you take the enemy prayer challenge and commit to praying about them more than complaining about them?