P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
Paul ends this section with the promise we have been looking at all week!
Together we will pray (P.R.A.Y.) each day – ‘P’: Pausing to be still as we come into the presence of the Lord. ‘R’: Rejoicing as we remember who our God is and what He has done, and Reflecting on His word. ‘A’: Asking God to help us and others. And ‘Y’: yielding to His will in accordance with His word.
As I come before you to pray, I still my thoughts and quiet my mind. I seek to make you the center of my focus.
Prayer of Approach
Guide us, O God, by your Word, and Holy Spirit, that in your light we may see light, in your truth find freedom, and in your will discover peace; through Christ our Lord, Amen.
We choose to rejoice in the power of God’s Word, with all his people in Psalm 46:
God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way,
though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble at its swelling.
Psalm 46:1-3
Today we are reflecting on the words of Scripture in Galatians 5:1, where we read:
For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.
Galatians 5:1
Why did Christ set us free? So that we can walk in the freedom all of our days. Paul explicitly tells us not to run back into the yoke of slavery, because we need that reminder. It is so easy for us to find our value in our own performance. When we do that we are taking back on the yoke of the law. Paul wants us to leave that behind forever because that is what Christ died for.
Lord, I ask that you help me not return to slavery. Teach me what it looks like to live a life of freedom.
1)Why is it so easy to return to the slavery of the law in my life?
2)How would I describe the freedom of Christ?
3)Do I feel free? Why or why not?
4)What would it look like for me to be set free in my daily life?
Wake us up, Lord! Remind us to live aware, to redeem the time, to listen to your words, and to be willing to make a difference in the places you’ve called us to be. Thank you for your mighty power that acts on behalf of your children. Out of your kindness, please extend to us your grace and freedom. Cover us with your protection. Empower us with your strength. We ask for an awakening of your presence in our own lives and in the world around us, as never seen before. We pray for your help to be faithful to proclaim your name, and that all the enemy’s plans to silence the name of Jesus would be crushed.
As I read the passage again slowly, I listen for anything that You would say to me in it. Help me see how to position my life in order to yield to your word.
For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.
Galatians 5:1
Yielding Prayer
Lord, fill me with your Holy Spirit that I may experience this freedom that you paid for. Let me feel what it looks like to walk in your freedom. Free me from the sin that clings closely to me. Free me from any shame or weight that is holding me down. Free me from my desire to perform for your love. Seal in my heart today that I am valuable purely because you chose to love me.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in Galatians 5:1:
For freedom Christ has set us free
Galatians 5:1
Closing Prayer
Lord, enable me, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to love you today with all of my heart, soul, mind, and strength; and to serve you today, by loving and caring for others as I do my own self; and, to exalt you today, by telling the people in my world about the abundant and eternal life found only through faith in Jesus.
*The P.R.A.Y. acronym has been adapted from the Lectio 365 app.