P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
We begin a new series this week titled “Next Gen”. Our mission here at Rio is to lead people in a growing relationship with Jesus Christ. We don’t just mean that for adults, but we mean it for our students and kids as well. We believe the Church has a great opportunity to reach the next generation with the hope of the gospel and we want to be a part of that.
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
Lord, your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. As I approach your throne this morning I ask that you give me life according to your word. Let me experience your presence as I read and meditate on the word you have for me today.
We choose to rejoice in the power of God’s Word, with all his people in Psalm 119:
Blessed are those whose way is blameless,
who walk in the law of the Lord!
Blessed are those who keep his testimonies,
who seek him with their whole heart,
who also do no wrong,
but walk in his ways!
You have commanded your precepts
to be kept diligently.
Oh that my ways may be steadfast
in keeping your statutes!
Then I shall not be put to shame,
having my eyes fixed on all your commandments.
I will praise you with an upright heart,
when I learn your righteous rules.
I will keep your statutes;
do not utterly forsake me!
Psalm 119:1-8
Today we are reflecting on the words of Scripture in 1 Timothy 4:6-16, where we read:
If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed. Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance. For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.
Command and teach these things. Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching. Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you. Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress. Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.
1 Timothy 4:6-16
Our focus this week is on the next generation(s) and the Bible. We see both of those things are on the heart of Paul as he writes to Timothy. He spends the first verses speaking of godliness. A godliness that is shaped in us by the Holy Spirit as we are trained in the words of faith and the good doctrine. We live in a world full of irreverent and silly myths and in that, we are to seek after and train ourselves to be godly. In order to be godly we need to know God. One of the ways he reveals himself to us is through his Word, the Bible.
The great opportunity with the next generation is exactly what Paul writes to Timothy in verse 12. This next generation has the ability to do wondrous things for the kingdom. The way that happens is if we devote ourselves to the Scripture and bring them along for the journey.
Lord, I ask that you open my eyes to the beauty of the Bible. Teach me what it looks like to devote my life to it.
God, revive our hearts through the reading of your Word. Raise up a generation whose hearts are on fire for your teachings. Show us your glory.
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.
If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed. Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance. For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.
Command and teach these things. Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching. Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you. Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress. Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.
1 Timothy 4:6-16
Yielding Prayer
Lord, I yield to your word. Truth is not what I make it, but it is how you created it to be. In a world that defies what you say give me an obedience to your Scriptures. Let me be a light in this dark world and form me more and more to your image each day.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in Isaiah 40:8:
The grass withers, the flower fades,
but the word of our God will stand forever.
Isaiah 40:8
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.