• Welcome everyone and particularly any newcomers this week.
• Remind each other of the vision of CIS and the purpose of the weekly group meeting. (Consider using CIS videos and resources to keep this fresh each week).

1. In pairs look back on your week of sport and discuss how last week’s group meeting helped you. Follow up with anything people asked for prayer about.
2. In pairs share prayer points for the week of sport ahead and spend time praying for each other.

Some weeks pray more widely for other clubs and teams in your university which are not represented in the group. Alternatively, you can also use the CIS prayer diary to pray for the whole mission of CIS.

You might also want to use this slot to discuss and plan your evangelistic event for the term and pray specifically about it.

Week 15 | Praying for all sportspeople

Introduction

As we continue to reach the world of sport for Christ this session will help us to see the importance of prayer in God’s great salvation plan.

Read

Read 1 Timothy 2:1-6

Reflect

How does Paul link our prayers with God’s plans in this verse?

Explain

Before we can think how to pray, we first need to remind ourselves to whom we pray. We pray to the God who is both Saviour and Mediator, the God who is both powerful and caring. Through the “ransom” payment of his son Jesus Christ, God has made a way for us to have a relationship with him, and he wants all people, including those in our sports clubs and teams to come to a knowledge of the truth and be a part of his family.

So, when we pray, we can be confident that God wants to hear from us. He wants us to present our requests, hopes, challenges and joys to him. When things are going well, or when things are hard going, God wants to hear from us. God also wants us to be regularly praying for other people. The Sovereign God brings about his purposes through the prayers of his people. If we want him to be bringing our sports friends into his family, then we need to be praying that he will do just that.

Discuss

1. How does seeing God as Saviour and Mediator encourage you to pray?
2. What prevents you from praying for certain people in your sports club? How can you faithfully pray for them all?
3. What three sports friends can you commit to praying for? (Why not write them down somewhere you can refer to daily)

Pray

• Praise God for his heart towards all people
• Thank God that he wants to hear from us and that he has the power to answer our prayers.
• Pray for 3 friends in your club to come to a knowledge of the truth.

Update everyone on the key messages for the week. These might include:

• Sharing the student sign up link
• Promoting your evangelistic event for the term
• Plugging Sports Plus leader applications

Share these resources with your group at the end or immediately after the meeting to encourage them.

Listen

'I got to pray with my crew before we raced' | The trainee vicar who rowed The Boat Race

Watch

How do I pray for my sports friends? | Three tips to help you pray for your teammates

Read

How do I pray effectively for my sports friends?