Week 8 - Day 2

DAY 2 – In the following verse, a woman asked Jesus about the
right PLACE to worship.

Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in
Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship." Jesus said to
her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will
neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.
You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship,
for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour is coming, and now is,
when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and
truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is
Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and
truth." John 4:20-24 NKJV

The following verse from Isaiah gives us an idea of what
worshipping in “spirit and truth” looks like.

When you cry out for help, let your collection [of idols] save you!
The wind will carry all of them off; a mere breath will blow them
away. But the man who makes me his refuge will inherit the land
and possess my holy mountain." And it will be said: "Build up,
build up, prepare the road! Remove the obstacles out of the way
of my people." 15 For this is what the high and lofty One says--he
who lives forever, whose name is holy: "I live in a high and holy
place, but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to
revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the
contrite. Is. 57:13-15

The words contrite and lowly are translated from Hebrew words
that mean, “Crushed, bruised, broken, and depressed.”
When I (Amy) am feeling really down, I like to go to a quiet
place and worship God as my “hiding place” and “lover” of my
soul.

Now, let’s look at two more passages from Psalm and 1 Samuel.
O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise. You
do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take
pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken
spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
Ps 51:15-17

When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, "Surely the
LORD's anointed stands here before the LORD." But the LORD
said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for
I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man
looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD
looks at the heart." 1 Sam 16:6-7

True worship comes from a sincere and humble heart. A heart that
walks in the truth, obeying God’s laws out of love for Him. A
heart that has come to the realization that apart from God there is
no hope. Worship Him in Spirit and in Truth.

Week 8 - Day 1

EAT! - Week 8
SEEK GOD

Know God through Praise and Worship

Objective: To seek to know God intimately so that our lives
overflow worship in all that we do!

Key Verse: Exalt the LORD our God and worship at his footstool;
He is holy. Ps. 99:5

This is our last week. Don’t give up! Finish the race strong!
Worship. We all do it. Every day our affection, adoration,
devotion, honor and reference are given to something or someone.
Who or what do you worship? All too often my devotion lies with
the things of this world. But when we see God for who He really
is, worship is true and spontaneous! Our prayer is that the past
seven weeks strengthened your relationship with God in such a
way that you are already in a full-blown worship mode with the
Only One worthy of our worship! In this final week of Seek God,
you will study what God’s Word says about how we are to
worship Him. May you never be the same again.

DAY 1 – Rom 12:1-2 states, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in
view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy
and pleasing to God-this is your spiritual act of worship.” Read
1 Chr. 29 and look at how worship is a whole-life expression.
In what ways do you respond to God in worship? Meditate on this
question. Consider writing down your thoughts in your SOAR
notebook.

Week 8 - Group it!

GROUP ‘SHARE’ TIME
During our SHARE time this week, we are going to worship the
Living God!

Everyone has their own way to prepare to worship God. Maybe
today your life was chaotic and you didn’t have time to settle
your heart. Let’s take a moment now to do that – through prayer,
stillness, reading a verse. You choose the way that works for you.

If you need a verse, there are many verses in Psalm that can help
you prepare for worship. Pick your favorite or one of these and
take a few minutes to prepare your heart. (Ps. 134, Ps. 63:1-8, Ps.
150)

Something to Think About:

• If an investigator looked at your calendar and checkbook, what
would he say you worship?

o For me, he might say my children. What’s yours? Your
job, serving others, your family, money, health, sports, a
hobby, friends, depression, negative attitude? Lay it
down today. Ask God to give you a heart to worship
Him above everything else!

• Music is one way to worship, what are some other ways to
worship God?

• What are some ways that you can prepare your heart to
worship God?

Week 8 - Share it!

SHARE! - Week 8

SEEK GOD

Know God through Praise and Worship
Week 7 Review Question: Share one verse you wrote down in
your SOAR notebook and what it means to you. How did it
deepen your understanding of prayer? If you did the CRAVE!
Section and looked up the word “faith” in all four gospels, what
did you find?

Objective: To seek to know God intimately so that our lives
overflow worship in all that we do!

Key Verse: Exalt the LORD our God and worship at his footstool;
He is holy. Ps. 99:5

I (Sheri) was at a professional basketball game the other night. As
the players ran onto the court, fireworks were going off (inside the
building). My kids were mesmerized and entertained! The MC
would say, "Scream" and everyone in the place would get louder
and louder. The excitement over this team just making one basket
was unbelievable. I saw this one man wearing the wildest hat to
support his team and others with their faces painted. Whether the
basketball team was doing well or not, the fans were ‘sold out’!

This was WORSHIP.

Before national championship game, fans prepare for “watch
parties.” They get all the right clothing gear, the right food and
then they explode in cheer and celebration for their team.
I love the following verse from the Bible where it talks about a
crowd that gathered to wait for Jesus. They came early – maybe
gathering like a parade and when the Jesus (the One and Only)
came in, read below what took place:

As soon as He was approaching, near the descent of the Mount of
Olives, the whole crowd of the disciples began to praise God
joyfully with a loud voice for all the miracles which they had
seen, shouting: "BLESSED IS THE KING WHO COMES IN THE
NAME OF THE LORD; Peace in heaven and glory in the
highest!" Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Him,
"Teacher, rebuke Your disciples." But Jesus answered, "I tell
you, if these become silent, the stones will cry out!" Luke 19:37-
40 NASB

This is WORSHIP.

There are two kinds of worship seen in these examples. One is
worshipping of something that is temporal (basketball) and the
other is worshipping the Eternal Living God. What or who do
you worship?

The past seven weeks have been a season to prepare our hearts to
worship God. Our prayer is that your life becomes an overflow of
worship to the Father! Whatever you do, work at it with all your
heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, Col. 3:23

Week 7 - Day 7

DAY 7

Today, as you read the Truth of God’s Word, open your SOAR
notebook and take notes on what each Scripture passage teaches
about prayer. Look carefully. Remember the Holy Spirit is your
Teacher. Are you teachable? Tell God you are hungry to know
Him more and ask Him to make you teachable.

First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and
thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all
who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life
in all godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the
sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to
come to the knowledge of the truth. Therefore I want the men in
every place to pray, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and
dissension. 1 Tim 2:1-4, 8 NASB

Wives, likewise, be submissive to your own husbands, that even if
some do not obey the word, they, without a word, may be won by
the conduct of their wives, when they observe your chaste conduct
accompanied by fear. Do not let your adornment be merely
outward--arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine
apparel-- rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the
incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very
precious in the sight of God. For in this manner, in former times,
the holy women who trusted in God also adorned themselves,
being submissive to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed
Abraham, calling him lord, whose daughters you are if you do
good and are not afraid with any terror. Husbands, likewise,
dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as
to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of
life, that your prayers may not be hindered. Finally, all of you
be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as
brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous; not returning evil for
evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing
that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing. For
"He who would love life and see good days, Let him refrain his
tongue from evil, And his lips from speaking deceit. Let him turn
away from evil and do good; Let him seek peace and pursue it.
For the eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, And His ears
are open to their prayers; But the face of the LORD is against
those who do evil." 1 Peter 3:1-12 NKJV

The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD: but
the prayer of the upright is his delight. Prov 15:8 KJV

Cornelius answered: "Four days ago I was in my house praying at
this hour, at three in the afternoon. Suddenly a man in shining
clothes stood before me and said, 'Cornelius, God has heard your
prayer and remembered your gifts to the poor. Send to Joppa for
Simon who is called Peter. He is a guest in the home of Simon the
tanner, who lives by the sea.' Acts 10:30-33

The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him
in truth. He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears
their cry and saves them. Ps 145:18-19

I cried to Him with my mouth, And He was extolled with my
tongue. If I regard wickedness in my heart, The Lord will not
hear; But certainly God has heard; He has given heed to the voice
of my prayer. Blessed be God, Who has not turned away my
prayer, nor His loving-kindness from me. Ps 66:17-20 NASB
Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this
reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a
thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me -- to keep
me from exalting myself! Concerning this I implored the Lord
three times that it might leave me. And He has said to me, "My
grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness."
Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so
that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well
content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with
persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am
weak, then I am strong. 2 Cor 12:7-10 NASB

Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and
said to the disciples, "Sit here while I go and pray over there."
And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and He
began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. Then He said to
them, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here
and watch with Me." He went a little farther and fell on His face,
and prayed, saying, "O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup
pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will." Then
He came to the disciples and found them asleep, and said to
Peter, "What? Could you not watch with Me one hour? Watch
and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is
willing, but the flesh is weak." Again, a second time, He went
away and prayed, saying, "O My Father, if this cup cannot pass
away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done." And He came
and found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy. So He
left them, went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the
same words. Matt 26:36-44 NKJV

You are now enriched with much of the Alive and Active Word
of God’s message about prayer! You are called. Enlist yourself
on God’s prayer warrior team!

CRAVE! THE EXTRA MILE

Challenge: Look up the word “faith” in the four gospels
(Matthew, Mark, Luke and John). Document in your SOAR
notebook the similarities you find everywhere you see the word
“faith.” What did God reveal to you through this exercise? Write
it down so you can SHARE! later with others.
Hebrews 11 & 12:1-3 – These verses will give you a boost.

Week 7 - Day 6

DAY 6

"I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. "Every
branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every
branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more
fruit.” You are already clean because of the word which I have
spoken to you. "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot
bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you
unless you abide in Me. "I am the vine, you are the branches; he
who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from
Me you can do nothing. "If anyone does not abide in Me, he is
thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and
cast them into the fire and they are burned. "If you abide in Me,
and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be
done for you. "My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much
fruit, and so prove to be My disciples. "Just as the Father has
loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. "If you keep
My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept
My Father's commandments and abide in His love. "These things
I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your
joy may be made full. "This is My commandment, that you love
one another, just as I have loved you. "Greater love has no one
than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. John 15:1-13
NASB

Write your favorite verse from this passage. Mine (Sheri) happens
to be that He laid down His life for His friends…there is no greater
love than that! Since I spent most of my life feeling rejected, I
can’t believe that I have always had this Savior and friend that laid
down His life for me! What caused you to choose the verse you
chose?

Let’s look at two parts of this passage: “Apart from me” and “If
you abide”

“Apart from me” means that apart from Him, it’s impossible
to be fruitful and our prayers are hindered. When we are
abiding in the love of God, He makes us fruit bearers.
Answered prayer is about God’s will and glory being
accomplished on earth through us.

Now, let’s look at the fruitfulness of a believer who abides in
the Vine!

I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in
my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name.
Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete. John
16:23-24

I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I
have been doing. He will do even greater things than these,
because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask
in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You
may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. John
14:12-14

"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock,
and it will be opened to you. "For everyone who asks receives,
and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.
"Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a
loaf, will give him a stone? "Or if he asks for a fish, he will not
give him a snake, will he? "If you then, being evil, know how to
give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father
who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him! Matt
7:7-11 NASB

"Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall have been
bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall have been
loosed in heaven. "Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on
earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them
by My Father who is in heaven. "For where two or three have
gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst." Matt
18:18-20 NASB

Do you have someone to pray in agreement with you on a regular
basis (a prayer partner)? If not, consider asking God to show you
who He wants to be your prayer partner. I (Amy) prayed this
prayer a few years back. Not long after that, I had a name of an
acquaintance pop into my mind, with the thought that this gal was
who I needed to ask to be my prayer partner. I located her phone
number, called her up, and then I stumbled through trying to
explain my reason for calling. Awkward!

Do you know what she said in response to my request? Basically,
she said, “I have chills. I have asked God for a prayer partner and
He told me to wait, because He would send her to me.” Wow!
God is so good and faithful!

Week 7 - Day 5

DAY 5

When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him,
asking for help. "Lord," he said, "my servant lies at home
paralyzed and in terrible suffering." Jesus said to him, "I will go
and heal him." The centurion replied, "Lord, I do not deserve to
have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my
servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority,
with soldiers under me. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and that
one, 'Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, 'Do this,' and he
does it." When Jesus heard this, he was astonished and said to
those following him, "I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone
in Israel with such great faith. I say to you that many will come
from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast
with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the
subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness,
where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Then Jesus
said to the centurion, "Go! It will be done just as you believed it
would." And his servant was healed at that very hour. Matt 8:5-
13. I (Amy) want Jesus to be astonished by my faith in Him!

Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. Without
warning, a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves
swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went
and woke him, saying, "Lord, save us! We're going to drown!" He
replied, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" Then he got
up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely
calm. The men were amazed and asked, "What kind of man is
this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!" Matt 8:23-27

Jesus was with them in the boat! What storm is in your life right
now? Maybe you are in a financial storm, a marriage storm? The
same Jesus that rebuked the storm that the disciples were in, lives
in YOU! What can you learn from these scriptures to build your
faith in Jesus?

Jesus could have told the disciples to ride out the storm because
He was with them, but that is not what Jesus did. He rebuked the
storm and there was an immediate perfect peace. He can do the
same for you today! Pray and ask! He is the same today as He
was in that boat all those years ago.

Now let’s look at some scripture about intercessory prayer.

Epaphras, who is one of your number, a bondslave of Jesus Christ,
sends you his greetings, always laboring earnestly for you in his
prayers, that you may stand perfect and fully assured in all the will
of God. Col 4:12 NASB
We have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you
with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and
understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life
worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing
fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being
strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so
that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully
giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the
inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has
rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the
kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the
forgiveness of sins. Col 1:9-14

WOW! Read those verses again and make a list of what Paul
asked God to do on behalf of his brothers and sisters in Christ.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on
the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the
devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood,
but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers
of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the
heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that
when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your
ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm
then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the
breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted
with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In
addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can
extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet
of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers
and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on
praying for all the saints. Eph 6:10-18

Prayer is important because it is how we war in the spiritual
battle!
• How have you been warring in the past? With prayer or your
own strength?
• How will you battle differently in the future?