P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
Today we remember that in the family of God, every follower of Jesus, married or single, young or old, is given dignity, purpose, relationships, and a place to belong.
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, you are God, and I am not! I sit humbly before you and ask you to speak to me through the power of your Word. Show me favor and pour out your Spirit on me as I enter into this time.
I choose to rejoice, with all God’s people, in the powerful promise that God gives us in Psalm 113…
The Lord is high above all nations,
and his glory above the heavens!
Who is like the Lord our God,
who is seated on high,
who looks far down
on the heavens and the earth?
Psalm 113:4-6
As you read the passages below, ask the Lord to cause a word or phrase to stand out to you.
I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord. But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife, and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband. I say this for your own benefit, not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord.
1 Corinthians 7:32-35
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 want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord. But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife, and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband. I say this for your own benefit, not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord.
1 Corinthians 7:32-35
Scripture celebrates marriage and family, but it never teaches that marriage is necessary for a meaningful or complete Christian life. Jesus himself lived a fully human, perfectly faithful life without marrying, and Paul describes singleness as a unique opportunity for undivided devotion to the Lord. The church therefore must never function merely as a collection of biological families. It is a spiritual family in which married people, single people, children, widows, older adults, and those without children all belong to one another. When the church lives this way, no believer needs to stand outside looking in; through Jesus, we have received a family that reaches beyond every earthly season and ultimately into eternity.
Lord, I ask that you show me what undivided devotion looks like to you in this season of my life.
Lord, revive your church until we become a true family for everyone who belongs to Jesus. Give every generation and every season of life meaningful relationships, purpose, and a place to serve.
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 want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord. But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife, and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband. I say this for your own benefit, not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord.
1 Corinthians 7:32-35
Yielding Prayer
Father, I give you my current season of life. Whether married or single, young or old, surrounded by biological family or longing for deeper relationships, teach me to receive my identity and belonging from Jesus and to give myself faithfully to your people.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in Isaiah 56…
I will give in my house and within my walls
a monument and a name
better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name
that shall not be cut off.
Isaiah 56:5
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