P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
Today, we come before God asking him to anchor us so deeply in the truth of Christ that persuasive words and convincing lies cannot pull us away.
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, let me behold you today. By the power of the Holy Spirit, let me see you for who you are! You are the God who deserves all honor and glory forever. Open my eyes to your Word today.
I choose to rejoice, with all God’s people, in the powerful promise that God gives us in Psalm 119…
Forever, O Lord, your word
is firmly fixed in the heavens.
Your faithfulness endures to all generations;
you have established the earth, and it stands fast.
Psalm 119:89-90
As you read the passages below, ask the Lord to cause a word or phrase to stand out to you.
I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments. For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the firmness of your faith in Christ.
Colossians 2:4-5
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?”
I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments. For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the firmness of your faith in Christ.
Colossians 2:4-5
We live surrounded by voices competing for our trust, and not everything that sounds convincing is true. Paul rejoiced because the Colossians stood firm in their faith even as false teaching threatened to draw them away from Christ. We need the same kind of spiritual stability, because our hearts can easily be influenced by ideas that sound wise but move us away from Jesus. We stand firm not by becoming suspicious of everything, but by becoming deeply grounded in the truth God has revealed. The more clearly we know Christ, the more easily we can recognize what does not belong to him.
Lord, let me see you and your truth today. Fill me with your Spirit and let me not be deluded by plausible arguments.
Lord, revive our hearts with a fresh hunger for your truth. Give us discernment to recognize deception and courage to stand firmly upon your word. Make your church a people who know Christ deeply and refuse to be moved away from him.
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?
I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments. For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the firmness of your faith in Christ.
Colossians 2:4-5
Yielding Prayer
Father, I surrender my thoughts, assumptions, and beliefs to you. Correct whatever in me does not agree with your truth, and teach me to listen to your voice above every competing voice. Help me stand firmly in Christ today.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in John 8…
So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
John 8:31-32
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