P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
We meditate on the miraculous deliverance that God brings through a serpent on a bronze pole.
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 this time, I ask that you fill me with your Spirit. Let me set all distractions aside. Let this time not be dictated by my agenda, but by yours. Meet with me and speak to me through your Word and prayer.
I choose to rejoice, with all God’s people, in the powerful promise that God gives us in Psalm 145…
The Lord is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
He fulfills the desire of those who fear him;
he also hears their cry and saves them.
The Lord preserves all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.
Psalm 145:18-20
As you read the passages below, ask the Lord to cause a word or phrase to stand out to you.
From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way. And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” Then the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against you. Pray to the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. And the Lord said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.
Numbers 21:4-9
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?”
From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way. And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” Then the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against you. Pray to the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. And the Lord said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.
Numbers 21:4-9
This passage is wild, and it confronts us with the tension between human rebellion and God’s mercy. The people grow impatient, grumbling against God and Moses, forgetting the faithfulness that had carried them this far. Their complaint reveals hearts drifting from trust. Yet even when judgment comes in the form of fiery serpents, God provides a surprising path to life: a bronze serpent lifted on a pole. Healing does not come through human effort, medicine, or merit—but through looking in faith to what God has provided. This moment foreshadows Christ Himself, lifted up so that all who look to Him may live. The passage invites us to acknowledge the deadly poison of sin in our lives, but also to lift our eyes toward God’s gracious provision. Where we deserve judgment, He offers healing. Where we have been bitten, He offers life. It is only through faith in God’s work on our behalf that we receive our miraculous deliverance.
Lord, I ask that you give me faith to fix my eyes on you. Wherever I am distracted, would you show me? Bring me back to you.
Lord Jesus, in this Advent season of longing and light, awaken our hearts again. Stir in us a holy hunger for your presence. Revive what has grown weary, rekindle what has grown dim, and breathe new life into every place that has settled for less than your fullness. As we wait for your coming, come now—into our homes, our churches, our city, and our own hearts. Make room in us for your Spirit to move in power. Let your hope rise, your joy break in, your peace settle over us, and your love shine through us like a new dawn. Revive us, O Lord. We are waiting for you.
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?
From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way. And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” Then the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against you. Pray to the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. And the Lord said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.
Numbers 21:4-9
Yielding Prayer
Merciful Father, I confess how quickly my heart can grow impatient and forget your faithfulness. Forgive my grumbling and my attempts to fix myself without turning to you. Today I lift my eyes to the One you have provided—Jesus, my healer and Savior. Teach me to trust your wisdom even when your solutions are not what I expect. I yield my fears, my frustrations, and my wounds to you. Help me walk in humble obedience, looking to Christ for life in every situation.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in Romans 8…
Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.
Romans 8:26
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