P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
We end the week resting in the hope of the everlasting Scriptures.
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, as I enter into your presence today I desire you to speak because your servant is listening.
We choose to rejoice in the power of God’s Word, with all his people in Psalm 113:4-9:
The Lord is high above all nations,
and his glory above the heavens!
Who is like the Lord our God,
who is seated on high,
who looks far down
on the heavens and the earth?
He raises the poor from the dust
and lifts the needy from the ash heap,
to make them sit with princes,
with the princes of his people.
He gives the barren woman a home,
making her the joyous mother of children.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 113:4-9
As I read the passage, I am asking the Lord to reveal a word or phrase that stands out to me.
The grass withers, the flower fades,
but the word of our God will stand forever.
Isaiah 40:8
“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it
Isaiah 55:10-11
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
As I reread the passage, I am reflecting on the questions, “How is my life touched by this word?” and “How does this passage connect with my life?”
The grass withers, the flower fades,
but the word of our God will stand forever.
Isaiah 40:8
“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it
Isaiah 55:10-11
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
We have a great hope in the Scriptures because they come from God. As wild as that may sound it is a great truth to stake our lives on. In a world where fads and moments come and go the Word of the Lord stands forever. It is a Word that is powerful and accomplishes what the Lord desires for it to. It is a Word that can be trusted and it is worth giving our lives to till the day we die. Rest in the great hope that there is a God who speaks to us today. A God whose Words can be trusted and obeyed.
Lord, I ask that you would renew my love and desire for the Scriptures this morning. Let me see the beauty of this great gift from you.
Let’s pray. O God, O God, you know, the world is spinning on. Time is getting less and running out. Children are becoming youth, and youth becoming middle-aged, and middle-aged are getting old and dying. And you have said redeem the time for the days are evil. Lord, please don’t let us fail here. Lord, you do want us to be revived again. You do want to revive your people, Lord, individual people. And then, if the number of individual people can band together, then the church has been revived. God, revive your people. Grant, Lord, to help.
– A.W. Tozer
As I read the passage for the final time, I listen for how the Lord is inviting me to respond to him. Where in my life do I need to yield in obedience to what he has for me?
The grass withers, the flower fades,
but the word of our God will stand forever.
Isaiah 40:8
“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it
Isaiah 55:10-11
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
Yielding Prayer
Lord, I yield in obedience to your Scriptures. I come under its rule. Where the Scriptures and I come into disagreement give me humility to know that you are God and I am not. Fill me with a great hope because I have unlimited access to your Words. Let my life fall at your feet today.
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.