P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
Today, we come to Jesus as needy disciples, ready to receive the kingdom he gives to the poor in spirit.
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, fill me with your Holy Spirit. Meet with me in this time. Enlighten not just my mind, but fill my heart with your truth. Transform me by the power of your Spirit more and more into your likeness.
I choose to rejoice, with all God’s people, in the powerful promise that God gives us in Psalm 34…
The Lord is near to the brokenhearted
and saves the crushed in spirit.
Psalm 34:18
As you read the passages below, ask the Lord to cause a word or phrase to stand out to you.
Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.
And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 5:1-3
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?”
Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.
And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 5:1-3
Jesus begins the Sermon on the Mount by calling his disciples to himself and teaching them what life in his kingdom looks like. His first word of blessing is not for the impressive, strong, or self-sufficient, but for the “poor in spirit.” To be poor in spirit is to come before God with empty hands, knowing I have no righteousness, wisdom, or strength apart from him. This is good news because the kingdom of heaven belongs not to those who pretend they have everything together, but to those who know they need mercy. Jesus invites me to stop hiding my need and to receive his grace.
Lord, I ask that you teach me what it means to be poor in spirit.
Lord, revive my heart by stripping away my pride and awakening fresh dependence on you. Teach me that the way up is down and the way to glory is through suffering.
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?
Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.
And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 5:1-3
Yielding Prayer
Father, I yield my pride, my self-reliance, and my desire to appear strong. Teach me to walk humbly before you today, trusting that your kingdom is given by grace and not earned by performance.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in Isaiah 57…
For thus says the One who is high and lifted up,
who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy:
“I dwell in the high and holy place,
and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit,
to revive the spirit of the lowly,
and to revive the heart of the contrite.
Isaiah 57:15
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