Some of the both the requests we ask the most and the deepest longings that we pray are met only with silence?Why is this?Pastor Ryan gives us 3 possibilities from the details of Jesus' two parables on Prayer - The friend at midnight (Luke 13: 5-13) & The Persistent widow (Luke 18:1-8).

SCC's 2nd Annual Testiomonies of Thanksgiving Service: Reflect 2011.First we let God speak to us. Psalm 107 testifies God's calling upon people from all different kinds of places & contexts of life to gather together and "say so." "Let the redeemed of the Lord say so" (Psalm 107:2).Second, the people of SCC "say so" - speaking testimonies of thanksgiving to God and to one another. A time to encourage & be encouraged. *Apologies for final 2 testimonies getting 'cut off' by the audio.

Nothing out of the ordinary, cautiously give God a wide margin for error, enough for someone to stay afloat. Do these things characterize life-giving prayer? Nevertheless they constitute the prayer strategy of so many of us.Jesus combats this kind of prayer as seen here in Luke 22: 31-34. We can too.

From Ecclesiastes 5: 1-7, Pastor Ryan sets out & explains King Solomon's wise positional plan for hearing & discerning what God says.

During the month of November (and this last Sunday of Oct) we'll be examining our last section of prayer case studies: "Praying Obsticles into Opportunities." What we often consider as obstacles in prayer are, when seen from a biblical perspective, actually opportunites to further deepen our prayer lives.Here we deal with the potential obstacle of cynicism: Prayer doesn't really make a difference. Pastor Ryan leads us through Philippians 1:3-11 to show us how genuine prayer for someone always makes a difference - just not necessarily in the person we were expecting.

When you set out with others to do something really Big for God, what should you expect?If the account of Nehemiah (Neh. 4:1-15) is any indication, we might expect to (1) Receive a task & a team; (2) Get to Work; (3) Encounter Opposition; (4) Overcome.And as Pastor Ryan explains, the key to overcome is inseperable bond between both work and prayer.

We transition in mid-October from the soothing comforts of personal prayer to the jungles of praying with and for others.We start with the example of Moses, whose hallmark of godliness and leadership was faithful intercessory prayer for others. Learn 7 lessons about intercessory prayer for others from Numbers 14:1-25.

Jesus was clearly concerned with Prayer in Real Time & in Real Places. So before issuing out the glorious & laborious of the more famous Lord's Prayer, He gives his disciples a couple wise tips for communion with the Father & for making sure it lasts (Matthew 6:5-8).Looking at this passage, Pastor Ryan offers a plan to put to paper & then how we can begin working that plan.

The Prayer for Wisdom is a popular prayer. But what are we really praying for when we ask God to grant us wisdom?Pastor Ryan examines 1 Samuel 1:1-20. Hannah's prayer is a prayer for wisdom which allows her to both avoid potential idols and receive a concrete answer to prayer. It's the kind of thing God wants to do in our lives as well.

It's not a new message. But then again, God typically wants to do new things within us using what's old. King Josiah stumbled upon God's Word - which had been absent from popular culture for 57 years. Not "knowing any better," he uses it as a guide for prayer - Reading it & responding to God. Learn how we might do the same.