Close

How to Know God

Do you ever wonder what Christians believe? Who Jesus is, what he did and why it matters? Get answers to these questions and more.

Spiritual Growth

Take the next step in your faith journey with resources on prayer, devotionals and other tools for personal and spiritual growth.

Life & Relationships

Explore resources to help you live out your life and relationships in a way that honors God.

Bible Studies

Find resources for personal or group Bible study.

Share the Gospel

Learn to develop your skills, desire and ability to join others on their spiritual journeys and take them closer to Jesus.

Help Others Grow

Help others in their faith journey through discipleship and mentoring.

Leadership Training

Develop your leadership skills and learn how to launch a ministry wherever you are.

Video

Browse videos designed to help you grow spiritually, share your faith, and lead others well.

Language Resources

View our top Cru resources in more than 20 languages.

Quizzes & Assessments

Have some fun taking various quizzes and assessments to learn about yourself and others.

Campus

Helping students know Jesus, grow in their faith and go to the world to tell others.

City

Reflecting Jesus together for the good of the city.

Inner City

Partnering with urban churches to meet physical and spiritual needs.

Athletes

Striving to see Christ-followers on every team, in every sport and in every nation.

Families

Equipping families with practical approaches to parenting and marriage.

High School

Reaching students and faculty in middle and high school.

Military

Bringing hope and resources to military families worldwide.

Locate Cru Near You

Explore Cru's global presence and discover how you can get involved in communities worldwide.

Events

Whether you're interested in conferences or local gatherings, there's an opportunity for you. Explore upcoming events and find your place to serve and grow.

Mission Trips

Explore domestic and global mission trips with Cru—serve, grow, and make an eternal impact. Opportunities for students, families, and professionals.

Internships

Explore Cru's internship opportunities—serve globally or locally, develop your skills, and make an eternal impact. Apply today!

Careers

Explore full- and part-time ministry careers with Cru—use your skills to impact eternity. Apply today!

Volunteer

Explore volunteer opportunities with Cru and use your skills to impact lives for eternity.

International

Explore global mission opportunities with Cru—serve, grow, and make an eternal impact.

What We Do

How we seek to journey together with everyone towards a relationship with Jesus.

Donor Relations

Answers to questions on donations, financial policies, Cru’s annual report and more.

Our Leadership

Learn about Cru's global leadership team.

Cru Partnerships

When the global church comes together then powerful things can happen.

Storylines

Showing God in action in and through His people.

Press

Access Cru's latest news releases, media contacts, and background information on our global ministries and leadership.

0

How to Pray and Worship

Connect

Have you ever seen God answer prayer? If so, what did God do?

Cultivate

Summary: Prayer is an ongoing dialogue with God and a natural response to his work in our lives. The ACTS model of prayer is an easy and effective guide to an individual or corporate time in prayer. ACTS stands for Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving and Supplication.

Read Matthew 6:9-13. (this is Jesus speaking)

“This, then, is how you should pray:
“ ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’ ”

Practice: As a group, read and discuss each of the four sections that follow, and pause to pray after each section.

<strong>Adoration</strong>

Adoration is another word for worship or praise. In adoration we communicate to God how great he is. It’s about recognizing God’s character.

  • How merciful God is.
  • How Loving God is.
  • How God knows everything.
  • How faithful God is.
  • How God can’t ever change.

Discuss: Which of God’s character qualities are brought out in Jesus’ prayer?

Pray: Take some time to praise God for these character qualities as a group.

<strong>Confession</strong>

Confession means to agree with. It is agreeing with God that you have sinned and agreeing with God that he has forgiven your sin. Confession is about honesty, humility and faith.

  • Confess sin that we willfully chose to do.
  • Confess sin where we knew what was right, but chose not to do it.
  • Confess the things we desire more than God.
  • Confess wrong motives and thoughts we are aware of.

Discuss: Where do you see confession in Jesus’ prayer?

Pray: Take some time now to privately confess your sins to God.

<strong>Thanksgiving</strong>

Read 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18.

“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

As adoration is worshiping God for who he is, thanksgiving is thanking God for what he has done, is doing and will do.

  • We can thank God for the good things in our lives.
  • We can thank God for the difficult things as well.
  • We can thank God for answered prayer.
  • We can thank God for the things we don’t understand.
  • We can thank God for being good to fulfill His many wonderful promises.
  • We can thank God for the little things and for the big things.

Discuss: Where do you see thanksgiving in 1 Thessalonians 5:6-8?

Pray: Take some time to thank God for his good work in the world and in our lives.

<strong>Supplication</strong>

Read 1 John 5:14-15.

“This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.”

Supplication means to earnestly and humbly ask for something. The Bible tells us to pray for a wide range of things. The following are just a few ideas.

  • Pray for your motivations and desires to be aligned with God’s.
  • Pray for endurance and perseverance in the midst of difficulties.
  • Pray that those who don’t know God would have eyes to see who God really is.
  • Pray for those we are seeking to help grow spiritually.
  • Pray for protection against the spiritual forces of evil.
  • Pray for specific things which are troubling you or are tempting you to worry.
  • Pray for wisdom.

Discuss: What types to things do you usually pray for?

Pray: Take some time to make your requests known to God.

Discuss:
  • Which of the four section are the easiest and most difficult for you to pray? Why do you think that is?
  • How can we spend more time talking to God, both individually and together?

Pray: In light of what we’ve discussed, how can we pray for each other right now?

Care

Since we last met, what happened as a result of expressing Christ’s love to others?

How can you, or we, express Christ’s love to others by persistently praying for them this week? (Ask God to bring someone to mind.)

All Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

Since 1951, Cru has helped individuals who grapple with integrating faith into daily life by offering practical steps and community support. As a result, countless people in over 190 countries have been empowered to move from passive belief to active faith.