Part 1: Authentic Prayer

Self-Paced Retreats

This is Part 1 of our Let the Thirsty Come retreat series, which highlights different aspects of spending extended quality time with God. In this first retreat, we focus especially on the theme of authentic prayer – fully and honestly engaging with God, bringing all of ourselves and all of our lives.

The following video devotional, based on Luke 15, looks at how our understanding of God as our Father can significantly impact the way we come to him in prayer.

Discussion and Reflection Questions

  1. When you consider bringing your life honestly before God without any hiding, how do you typically picture God’s attitude or face toward you?
  2. Both sons in today’s passage believed lies about who their father was. Their picture of their father was skewed. Which of the two sons do you personally relate to more? How is your picture of God in any way similar to their view of their father?
  3. What parts of the prodigal son story challenge or encourage you personally to see God your Father differently?

    Retreat Activities

    This retreat consists of 4 sections: Reflection, Scripture Meditation, Prayer and Rest. In each section, you will do a short transition activity and a main activity. You are given a few choices for each section’s main activity. Below, you will also find examples of how you might structure your retreat. As with all of our retreat recommendations, the time frames given are only general guidelines. Do not be concerned if it takes you slightly longer or shorter to complete an activity or series of activities. Also, if you choose to do this retreat in a single block of 2 or 3 hours, make sure that you are including sufficient opportunities for breaks and rest. Some ideas for how to break up your retreat time can be found here: Ideas for Rest. If you finish the recommended activities, you may find it helpful to look at the post When You Have Extra Time.

    Reflection

    The purpose of this first section is to honestly bring your life and current situation before God in prayer. We recommend starting with a transition activity before jumping into the main activity.

    Transition Activity

    Opening Prayer– pray through one of the following:
    “Meeting God”, from The Valley of Vision
    “A prayer of trust and surrender” – Prayers of the Saints

    Main Activity (choose 1)

    My Life Backpack – this is a more in-depth reflection activity that helps you think through what is currently going on in your life and how you feel about it. The strength of this activity is in helping you visualize what’s going on in your life through the metaphor of a backpack.

    Personal Reflection Questions – this activity consists of a few questions that help you think through what is at the forefront of your mind and heart right now, and bring these to God in prayer. Because it is a less detailed reflection, you may find that you can repeat this activity more often from one spiritual retreat to the next. 

    Scripture Meditation

    After our time of reflection, our next emphasis is to dwell deeply on the Word of God – one of our biggest needs is for him to speak into our lives as we bring them honestly before him. The section consists of an optional transition activity, a main Scripture meditation activity, and a response.

    Transition Activity

    Ideas for Rest (optional) – take a few minutes to take a break before starting the next main activity. As the previous section was very focused on journaling and reflection, you may find it helpful to get outside or do something a little more active.

    Main Activity (choose 1)

    Sitting with a Text – this activity works well for almost any short passage of Scripture. Remember to take your time and don’t rush as you work through the steps of this Scripture meditation activity.

    Walking with a Text – this is my personal favorite of the meditation activities and works well for passages that you can meditate on line-by-line or phrase-by-phrase. As it is active by nature, you may find it a fruitful way to add some variety to your time of retreat, while still engaging deeply with God.

    Possible Scriptures for Meditation:

    • Hebrews 4:14-16 – let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace
    • Luke 15:11-32 – the prodigal son
    • Matthew 7:7-11 – how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him
    • Jeremiah 9:23-24 – let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me
    • Jeremiah 29:11-13 – you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you

    Response Activity

    Pause – Take a few minutes to pause and rest after your time of Scripture meditation.

    Prayer

    Scripture is full of rich examples of men and women pouring out their hearts to God in prayer. In this final activity, we choose a passage of Scripture to guide our own prayers to God.

    Main Activity (choose 1)

    Prayers in Scripture – this activity can be done seated or walking; it can be an internal prayer, out-loud prayer, or journaled prayer. If you do not normally pray out loud or journal your prayers, we encourage you to try one of these possibilities, as they can be very helpful.

    Praying the Psalms – because the Psalms cover such a wide array of emotions and situations, they can be very helpful templates for expressing our own prayers and emotions to God.

    Rest

    With the remaining retreat time, choose activities that help you look to Christ and rest in your good Father.

    Main Activity (choose any)

    Journal – take some time to journal your thoughts, reflections, or prayers. Is there anything that you want to remember or hold onto from this time spent with God? 

    Ideas for Rest – take a break with your heart set upon the Lord. After a lot of internal processing you may find it helpful to go for a walk or do something active. 

    Read a Devotional Chapter – If you read a devotional chapter, we recommend that you only read one. It is probably better to dwell deeply on one chapter, to pray about it and journal about it, rather than try to cover a lot of content. Possible chapters:
    Gentle and Lowly by Dane Ortlund – Chapter 17, “His Ways Are Not Our Ways” 
    The Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer – Chapter 16, “The Goodness of God” 

    When You Have Extra Time (optional) – feel free to add some of these ideas to your retreat as closing activities.

    Closing prayer – take a few minutes to close your retreat time in prayer to your good Father.

    Example Retreats

    These activities can be done in two short, 1-hour retreats, or as a single 2- to 3-hour retreat. All of the following are just suggestions – change them and customize them with activities you find most helpful.

    Short Retreat, Part 1

    Short Retreat, Part 2

    Two to Three-hour Retreat

    Tips and Reminders

    Key Attitude – Come to God in faith and hope

    Trust the work of our good Father and commit all outcomes into his hands. This attitude flows from the conviction that God is good, that he knows exactly what we need, and that he is working powerfully in the lives of His children. We do not change ourselves by our own strength. We also don’t change ourselves by having the right methodology in our devotions. Meditation, prayer, and other spiritual disciplines are not just intellectual or emotional exercises. 

    Rather, let us come, looking to God to work by the power of his Spirit indwelling his children. What we need is a work of grace, and it is a work that God promises to do and delights to do as his children drawn near in hopeful, trusting obedience.

    Bring everything to your good Father

    In this retreat, we are especially focusing on honestly talking to God about how we are really doing. As a helpful reference point for this, think about how the Psalms speak honestly to God in every type of situation and emotion. It may take some intentionality on our part to bring to our Father all of ourselves and all of our lives. Are we intentionally talking to God about:

    • what we are thinking about?
    • how we are feeling?
    • circumstances we find ourselves in?

    As we honestly engage with God, keep in the forefront of your mind the Father’s heart attitude toward you – he is unfailing in love, and the Father of mercies.

    Be intentional with logistics

    Before your retreat time, consider what will help you to create the time and space conducive to honestly engaging with God. Will this be indoors or outdoors? (A quick check of the weather forecast might be helpful.) At home or somewhere else? What will help you step aside from other responsibilities or distractions and give your full self to time with your good Father?

    Scroll to top