Week 6: Chapter 5 — Pray Hard

1.Jesus' parable of the friend at midnight (Luke 11) hinges on the word "shamelessness" or "boldness" (Greek: anaideia). Batterson emphasizes this word. What does it mean to approach God with holy shamelessness, and does that feel comfortable or uncomfortable to you?

2.Batterson writes that "the intensity of the prayer is often commensurate with the importance of the answer." Do you agree? What keeps most Christians from praying with that kind of intensity?

3.James 5:17 describes Elijah as a man "just like us" who prayed fervently and saw dramatic results. What is the significance of the Holy Spirit reminding us of Elijah's ordinariness — and what does that say about our own potential in prayer?