Cornerstone’s 40 Days of Experiencing More of the Spirit
WEEK 4: Hearing the Spirit for Others
Using chapters 6-7 of Alan Kraft’s book “more” and the message from Doug on Sunday, respond to the following questions before going to your group.
Breaking the Ice
Describe a time when you were in a foreign country and couldn’t speak the language. Was it funny? Frustrating? Humbling?
How did you wind up working through these language barriers?
Briefly, in just a couple of minutes ...
Read aloud 1 Corinthians 14:1-3.
Was there anything that particularly caught your attention, challenged or spoke to you personally?
Did it raise any questions or create any push-back for you?
If you read Chapters 6-7 in the book “more”, how did your reading complement and deepen your understanding of this week’s theme?
Exploring God’s Word
Don’t feel pressured to answer every question.
Prior to reading the book and hearing this week’s message, what would you think of when you’d hear the word “prophecy?”
Read aloud 1 Thessalonians 5:19-22, and discuss your observations.
How do these verses build upon what we learned in last week’s message about listening to the Spirit?
How do they impact your attitude and approach toward prophetic words? Explain.
Can every Christian prophesy?
According to Acts 2:17–18, how would Peter answer that question?
According to 1 Corinthians 14:1, how would Paul answer that question?
In what ways could prophecy easily open up a door to pride and arrogance in our own hearts?
In light of this, how can we maintain humility in exercising this ministry? In answering this question, you might refer to
1 Corinthians 13:2, 4-7.
In this week’s message, we learned that there are three steps involved in praying prophetically for another person ...
#1 Be attentive to the Spirit. Quiet your heart and listen to the Holy Spirit.
#2 Release to another person what you’re hearing, seeing, or sensing. And if you feel like you know the meaning of it, share that as well.
#3 Pray into whatever you have seen or heard. After you have shared whatever you feel God has brought to your mind, take a moment and pray into that.
Spend a few minutes reviewing what each of these steps involve, why each is important, and any thoughts you might have about doing these well in a humble, loving way.
Making It Real
As the application of this week’s focus, if you’re processing this message in a group setting, we’d like to encourage you to practice praying prophetically as a part of your group.
Have one person sit in the center of the group. Take 5-7 minutes, and as you are listening to the Spirit for this person, speak out what you are hearing/seeing/sensing. It could be a word, a portion of Scripture, a picture, etc. Release it to them lovingly and humbly. If comfortable doing so, pray into it.
Not everyone is going to have something to share. No pressure. After doing this, debrief the experience both with the group and the person being prayed for.
If there is time, have other people experience the same thing.
Breaking the Ice
Describe a time when you were in a foreign country and couldn’t speak the language. Was it funny? Frustrating? Humbling?
How did you wind up working through these language barriers?
Briefly, in just a couple of minutes ...
Read aloud 1 Corinthians 14:1-3.
Was there anything that particularly caught your attention, challenged or spoke to you personally?
Did it raise any questions or create any push-back for you?
If you read Chapters 6-7 in the book “more”, how did your reading complement and deepen your understanding of this week’s theme?
Exploring God’s Word
Don’t feel pressured to answer every question.
Prior to reading the book and hearing this week’s message, what would you think of when you’d hear the word “prophecy?”
Read aloud 1 Thessalonians 5:19-22, and discuss your observations.
How do these verses build upon what we learned in last week’s message about listening to the Spirit?
How do they impact your attitude and approach toward prophetic words? Explain.
Can every Christian prophesy?
According to Acts 2:17–18, how would Peter answer that question?
According to 1 Corinthians 14:1, how would Paul answer that question?
In what ways could prophecy easily open up a door to pride and arrogance in our own hearts?
In light of this, how can we maintain humility in exercising this ministry? In answering this question, you might refer to
1 Corinthians 13:2, 4-7.
In this week’s message, we learned that there are three steps involved in praying prophetically for another person ...
#1 Be attentive to the Spirit. Quiet your heart and listen to the Holy Spirit.
#2 Release to another person what you’re hearing, seeing, or sensing. And if you feel like you know the meaning of it, share that as well.
#3 Pray into whatever you have seen or heard. After you have shared whatever you feel God has brought to your mind, take a moment and pray into that.
Spend a few minutes reviewing what each of these steps involve, why each is important, and any thoughts you might have about doing these well in a humble, loving way.
Making It Real
As the application of this week’s focus, if you’re processing this message in a group setting, we’d like to encourage you to practice praying prophetically as a part of your group.
Have one person sit in the center of the group. Take 5-7 minutes, and as you are listening to the Spirit for this person, speak out what you are hearing/seeing/sensing. It could be a word, a portion of Scripture, a picture, etc. Release it to them lovingly and humbly. If comfortable doing so, pray into it.
Not everyone is going to have something to share. No pressure. After doing this, debrief the experience both with the group and the person being prayed for.
If there is time, have other people experience the same thing.