Discussion question your group will work through:
1.Batterson opens with the ancient legend of Honi, who drew a circle in the sand and prayed persistently for rain until it came. What about that image strikes you most — Honi's boldness, his desperation, or his willingness to hold God to His promises?
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About This Study Guide
Draw the Circle: A 40-Day Prayer Challenge by Mark Batterson is a devotional companion to his bestselling book The Circle Maker, built around a simple but radical conviction: that God honors bold, persistent, faith-filled prayer. Batterson draws on the ancient legend of Honi the Circle Maker — a first-century sage who drew a circle in the sand, stood inside it, and refused to leave until God sent rain — to invite readers into a new posture of prayer. The book combines true stories of answered prayer submitted by readers of The Circle Maker, brief daily devotionals, key scriptures, and prayer prompts across forty days, organized around the idea that the size of your prayer circle reveals the size of your God. Its thesis is straightforward and challenging: most of us pray too small, too safe, and too seldom — and God is calling us to something bolder.
This study guide is designed for use over approximately nine weeks, moving through the book's major thematic sections one at a time. Each week, you are encouraged to read the assigned portion of Draw the Circle before your group meets or before you sit down to journal. As you read, underline phrases that arrest you, note the stories that resonate, and write down any specific prayers the devotionals stir in you. When you gather with your group (or settle into your own reflection time), work through the questions at your own pace — some will ask what the text actually says, some will press you personally, and some will invite you to think theologically about what prayer is and why it matters.
By the end of this guide, you will have completed Batterson's 40-day prayer challenge, built a set of new prayer habits, and accumulated your own record of prayers prayed and answers received. More than information about prayer, the goal is transformation through prayer — a deeper, more persistent, more expectant walk with the God who, as Batterson reminds us again and again, is able to do "immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine" (Ephesians 3:20).
10-Week Schedule
- Week 1Introduction — The Legend of the Circle Maker7 questions
- Week 2Days 1–8 — Pray Through8 questions
- Week 3Days 9–16 — Think Long8 questions
- Week 4Days 17–24 — Pray Hard8 questions
- Week 5Days 25–32 — Pray Circles Around Your Family7 questions
- Week 6Days 33–40 — Pray the Word8 questions
- Week 7Review & Reflection — A Lifetime of Watching God Work8 questions
Week 1: Introduction — The Legend of the Circle Maker
Free sampleRead the Introduction of Draw the Circle. Key Scripture: Ephesians 3:20–21; also Honi the Circle Maker's story from the Talmud (referenced in the introduction).
1.Batterson opens with the ancient legend of Honi, who drew a circle in the sand and prayed persistently for rain until it came. What about that image strikes you most — Honi's boldness, his desperation, or his willingness to hold God to His promises?
a.What does drawing a literal circle symbolize about how Honi approached prayer?
b.Is there a situation in your life right now that calls for that kind of persistent, immovable prayer?
2.Batterson argues that 'the greatest tragedy in life is the prayers that go unanswered because they were never prayed.' How does that statement land on you? Does it motivate or convict you — or both?
3.The anchor verse for the entire book is Ephesians 3:20 — that God is able to do 'immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine.' In your honest experience, do you pray as though you actually believe that? What tends to cap the ceiling of your prayers?
4.Batterson introduces the idea that the size of your prayers reflects the size of your God. What has shaped your picture of God's size and willingness to act? Family background, past disappointments, theological training, or something else?
5.The 40-day structure of this book mirrors other significant 40-day periods in Scripture — Moses on Sinai, Israel in the wilderness, Jesus in the desert. Why do you think Batterson chose this framework? What does a defined, committed season of prayer do that random or occasional prayer does not?
6.What is one specific, bold prayer — something that would require a miracle — that you want to bring into this 40-day challenge? Write it down. What would it mean for your faith if God answered it?
7.How does the image of 'drawing a circle' connect to the way Jesus prayed in Gethsemane — persistent, honest, surrendered, yet trusting? What can Honi's posture teach us about how Jesus invites his followers to pray?
Week 2: Days 1–8 — Pray Through
Read Days 1–8 of Draw the Circle. Key Scriptures: Luke 18:1–8 (the persistent widow); Genesis 32:24–28 (Jacob wrestling with God); Matthew 7:7–8.
1.Batterson often repeats the phrase 'pray through.' What does he mean by it? How is praying through different from simply repeating the same words over and over?
Week 3: Days 9–16 — Think Long
Read Days 9–16 of Draw the Circle. Key Scriptures: Habakkuk 2:2–3; Proverbs 13:12; Psalm 37:4.
1.Batterson encourages readers to write down their prayers and visions, citing Habakkuk 2:2: 'Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets.' Why does the act of writing a prayer down change its weight and your commitment to it?
Week 4: Days 17–24 — Pray Hard
Read Days 17–24 of Draw the Circle. Key Scriptures: James 5:16–18; 1 Kings 18:41–45 (Elijah praying for rain); Romans 8:26–27.
1.James 5:16 says 'the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective,' and then holds up Elijah as an example. What is surprising about using Elijah as a model, given that James calls him 'a human being, even as we are'? What does that remind you about who God uses in prayer?
Week 5: Days 25–32 — Pray Circles Around Your Family
Read Days 25–32 of Draw the Circle. Key Scriptures: Job 1:5 (Job's intercessory prayers for his children); Deuteronomy 6:4–9; Ephesians 6:18.
1.Batterson points to Job, who rose early every morning to offer sacrifices and pray for his children 'just in case they had sinned' (Job 1:5). What does that image of a father praying proactively and protectively for his children stir in you — whether you are a parent or not?
Week 6: Days 33–40 — Pray the Word
Read Days 33–40 of Draw the Circle. Key Scriptures: Hebrews 4:12; Psalm 119:105; Isaiah 55:10–11.
1.Batterson teaches that praying Scripture — literally taking a Bible passage and turning it into a prayer — is one of the most powerful forms of prayer. Have you tried this? What happens to your confidence in prayer when your words are rooted in God's own words?
Week 7: Review & Reflection — A Lifetime of Watching God Work
Review your prayer journal, personal notes, and any passages or stories from Draw the Circle that most impacted you across the 40 days.
1.Which week or theme from Draw the Circle — Pray Through, Think Long, Pray Hard, Pray Circles Around Your Family, or Pray the Word — had the most impact on you, and why?
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Frequently Asked Questions
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This study guide covers Draw the Circle in 10 weeks, with chapter-by-chapter discussion questions, reading references, and closing prayers for each session.
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The complete guide includes 54 discussion questions across 10 weeks — an average of 8 questions per week, designed for group conversation.
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