P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
Today we see who it is that gives the gifts and why they are given to God’s people.
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, your word promises that if I draw near to you, you will draw near to me (James 4:8). I believe your word and claim your promise now as I spend this time with you. May your Holy Spirit draw close and fill me anew today in a way that I have not experienced before. Grow your fruit in me today Holy Spirit. Let me hear your voice, that I may receive and act upon the things you give me.
-Mark Rosewell
We choose to rejoice in the power of God’s Word, with all his people in Psalm 107:
Some wandered in desert wastes,
finding no way to a city to dwell in;
hungry and thirsty,
their soul fainted within them.
Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.
He led them by a straight way
till they reached a city to dwell in.
Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works to the children of man!
For he satisfies the longing soul,
and the hungry soul he fills with good things.
Psalm 107:4-9
Today we are reflecting on the words of Scripture in 1 Corinthians 12, where we read:
Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.
1 Corinthians 12:4-7
Paul shows us the need for diversity in the church when it comes to the Holy Spirit in our lives. He tells us up front before he even tells us about the specific gifts how we are to be prepared for them. He is managing our expectations in all of this. He tells us the gifts will look different in variety, but they come from the same Spirit. The acts of service will look different, but they will be done under the same banner of Jesus as our Lord. Our activities and the way these play out will look different, but the same God empowers them all. It is easy in these discussions to get lost in all the variety, where jealousy and misunderstanding have the ability to creep in. Paul keeps us drawing us back to the truth that all of this will come from the same God who has purposefully given things to each of us differently. The purpose of the gifts as manifestations of the Spirit is for the common good. The spiritual gifts are given to build up not tear down. The spiritual gifts are given to help and not hurt. They are given to us as the children of God to pursue and lift up the common good of all. That is the beauty of what a gift is in its nature. A gift is meant for good and not evil, and that applies to the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus, you are drawing me into your goodness today. Your desire for your children is that we would seek after the common good of each other and the church. Keep my heart from jealousy and disdain when it comes to the differences in your Spirit. Draw me to unity in all of this.
1)Why does variety often lead to division?
2)Why is it easy for me to major in the differences I have with people and minor in the similarities?
3)How would I define the common good?
4)What does it look like for me to seek the common good with what the Spirit has given me?
Lord, would you humble your people at your feet? Open our eyes and show us that it is in you alone that we find life. This world has nothing for us. Break us of our desire for the mute and lifeless idols of this world. Give us a longing for more. Give us a desire to have whatever it is you want to give us. Pour out your Spirit in a supernatural way during this season of time as we seek your face. To you alone be all glory and honor.
As I read the passage again slowly, I listen for anything that You would say to me in it. Help me see how to position my life in order to yield to your word.
Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.
1 Corinthians 12:4-7
Yielding Prayer
Jesus, I surrender to what you have for me. I yield in obedience to the guide you have placed in my life in the Holy Spirit. Let me chase after you in the Holy Spirit’s power in my life. Give me a desire for more of you in all of this. Give me eyes to see people today as you see them. Give me the heart of an encourager to lift up and not tear down. Show me more of your glory as I seek you in my day-to-day life.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in Ephesians 3:
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Ephesians 3:14-21
Closing Prayer
Holy Spirit, may I display your fruit today to everyone that I meet. Help me to love more; to radiate joy and peace; to be patient in trying situations; to be kind and good when my natural reaction may be to lash out; as you have been gentle and faithful to me Lord, help me to be so to others today. Grant me the self-control I will need to triumph for your kingdom today, bringing glory to the name of Jesus
*The P.R.A.Y. acronym has been adapted from the Lectio 365 app.