God’s Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path.
Hangout Guidelines – Pray Without Ceasing
No surprises here.
Prayer undergirds all we do in iStudy, but that doesn’t mean all prayer has to take place during a hangout. You may use the following list to control the time.
- Begin the hangout with a brief prayer.
- Announce that praises and prayer requests, like questions, may be chatted.
- Ask that praises and requests be for personal situations or needs, particularly as they impact member participation in iStudy, ability to grow deeper with the Lord, learning more about God, and living out His Truth.
- If time allows, ask members to share requests verbally after lesson discussion ends.
- Keep a record of requests shared verbally and also copy the chat column before signing out. (You may ask someone else to do this, a group administrator or assistant GL).
- Send all prayer requests to members, putting their email addresses in the BCC field. (Again, someone else can do this.)
A Word on Prayer Requests
This is another area where grace and discernment are essential. “Pray for me as I deal with a difficult co-worker” or “pray my son finds a job” are examples of requests aligned with iStudy objectives. They are personal, and the first one reflects a member’s desire to live out God’s truth.
- “Pray for my boss’s wife’s cousin” or “pray for the missionaries we heard about at church,” on the other hand, are not bad requests, but they are less personal and might be less closely aligned to iStudy objectives.
Again, be sensitive to Holy Spirit leading.
Now we’re going to look at some specifics when it comes to leading a group meeting. Click next for the how-to section.