P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
We see today that when we humble ourselves we are met by the mighty and compassionate hand of God.
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
Jesus, you are King and at your feet I bow today. You deserve all the glory. In this time would you speak as I read your Word. Meet with me and transform me by the power of your Holy Spirit.
I choose to rejoice, with all God’s people, in the powerful promise that God gives us in Psalm 145…
The Lord is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
The Lord is good to all,
and his mercy is over all that he has made.
Psalm 145:8-9
As you read the passages below, ask the Lord to cause a word or phrase to stand out to you.
Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
1 Peter 5:6-7
As I reread the passage, I reflect on the questions, “How is my life touched by this word?” and “How does this passage connect with my life?”
Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
1 Peter 5:6-7
Humility comes when we realize and live knowing that God is God and we are not. We humble ourselves not for the sake of humility itself, but because there is one that is far greater and deserving of all the glory. This God who deserves all the glory does the crazy thing when he exalts us. Not only does he exalt us, but he cares for us in such a way that says cast all your anxieties onto me. God is so gracious.
Lord, show me who I am and let me see the love and care you have for me.
Lord, after our election last week we lift up this nation in prayer. We know that no election fixes all that is broken in our nation so we ask that you do what only you can do. For those elected officials we pray for their safety and wisdom. We ask that you would meet them and that they would come to know you. We pray for President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect Vance. We ask for their safety and we pray that you would draw them to yourself. Meet them and restore their souls. We lay our nation at your feet and ask that you bring revival.
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?
Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
1 Peter 5:6-7
Yielding Prayer
Lord, your love is extravagant. In obedience let me humble myself today. Give me a heart that cares about what you think above all the things of this earth. In faith let me cast all my anxieties upon you because you care about me and have all the power.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in James 4…
But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
James 4:6-10
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.