Before It All Begins: An Extraordinary Prayer
Study Guide

• Isaiah 54:2, 3

  • The Message—"Clear lots of ground for your tents! Make your tents large. Spread ________! Think __________ ! Use plenty of rope, drive the tent pegs deep. You're going to need lots of elbow room for your growing family."
    
    
  • William Carey's two great principles of action:
    • "___________ great things _____ God."
    • "___________ great things ______ God."
      
      
• What does God dream about night and day?
  • Look at Isaiah!
    • Isaiah 45:22
    • Isaiah 52:10
    • Isaiah 56:7
    • Isaiah 49:6
    • Isaiah 53:5
      
      
  • The heart of God is fueled by a passion, fired by a compassion for lost people.
    
    
• An extraordinary prayer based upon an extra-ordinary promise for these extraordinary times:
  • "O God, enlarge the place of ______ tent. Stretch ________ tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen ________ cords, strengthen ________ stakes. Spread _______ out to the right and to the left, so that we with our children will inherit the nations and settle in their cities for You.
    
    
  • "O God, help me to ___________ great things for you and __________ great things from you to reach lost people for Jesus."
    
    
• "My soul has been so burdened that I have not been able to rest. What line can we dwell upon that will make the ______________ impression upon the human mind? There are our ______________ . They are to be conducted in such a way that they will develop missionaries [radical young change agents for Christ] who will go out to the highways and hedges to sow the seeds of truth." (Fundamentals of Christian Education 529)

Our extraordinary prayer for an extraordinary year:

"O God—grant that we will attempt
great things for you—
and expect great things from you."

Answers: out, big; attempt, for, expect, from; our, our, our, our; attempt, expect; deepest, schools.