P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
As we continue our focus on the gospel this week, we turn to God’s work of restoration.
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, I cry out with the saints and the angels, “Our God is an awesome God. He reigns from heaven above with wisdom, power, and love. There is none like you.” Pour out your Spirit now and transform me as I behold your glory.
I choose to rejoice, with all God’s people, in the powerful promise that God gives us in Ephesians 2…
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
Ephesians 2:8-9
As you read the passages below, ask the Lord to cause a word or phrase to stand out to you.
And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
Colossians 1:9-20
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?”
And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
Colossians 1:9-20
We begin the week thinking about the preeminence of Jesus and just how amazing he is. Jesus is the image of the invisible God who came and met with a sinful and broken humanity. Everything we see was created in, through, and for him. He is before all things, and he holds all things together. That is the description of the God we worship. We live in a world that preoccupies us with chaos and fills us with anxiety and fear. God’s people can take a breath and a step back and say, “I trust Jesus.” The same Jesus who holds all things together holds me in the palm of his hands.
Jesus, I praise you and trust you today. I trust you with it all. All the good things and all the scary things I lay at your feet.
Lord, we come before you with humble hearts, longing for your presence to fill us once again. We confess our complacency and ask that you awaken our spirits. Breathe new life into dry bones and stir our hearts with holy fire. Let your truth pierce through every shadow and your mercy flow like a river. Revive us, God—not just for our sake, but so the world may see your glory through us. Let your kingdom come and your will be done, in us and through us.
As I read the passage for the final time, I listen to 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?
And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
Colossians 1:9-20
Yielding Prayer
Lord, I bow down at your feet and relinquish all my perceived power to you. You are the God above all things, and forgive me when I try to place myself in that position. In obedience, I go with you today. Wherever you take me, whatever conversations I have will belong to you and you alone. Fill me with your Spirit.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in John 6…
All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.
John 6:37
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.