P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
We see Jesus and his power over all things spiritual.
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. I seek to hear you today, so speak for I am listening. I bow my heart and put aside distractions. In this time, I seek you and you alone.
I choose to rejoice, with all God’s people, in the powerful promise that God gives us in Psalm 119…
Open my eyes, that I may behold
wondrous things out of your law.
Psalm 119:18
As you read the passages below, ask the Lord to cause a word or phrase to stand out to you.
And when he came to the other side, to the country of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one could pass that way. And behold, they cried out, “What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?” Now a herd of many pigs was feeding at some distance from them. And the demons begged him, saying, “If you cast us out, send us away into the herd of pigs.” And he said to them, “Go.” So they came out and went into the pigs, and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the waters. The herdsmen fled, and going into the city they told everything, especially what had happened to the demon-possessed men. And behold, all the city came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their region.
Matthew 8:28-34
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?”
And when he came to the other side, to the country of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one could pass that way. And behold, they cried out, “What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?” Now a herd of many pigs was feeding at some distance from them. And the demons begged him, saying, “If you cast us out, send us away into the herd of pigs.” And he said to them, “Go.” So they came out and went into the pigs, and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the waters. The herdsmen fled, and going into the city they told everything, especially what had happened to the demon-possessed men. And behold, all the city came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their region.
Matthew 8:28-34
Jesus confronts a terrifying reality—violent demonic oppression—and his authority is unmistakable. With a word, he frees the possessed men, revealing that no darkness can stand against him. Yet the townspeople respond not with worship, but with fear. Troubled more by the loss of their pigs than the restoration of two broken lives, they ask Jesus to leave. This passage exposes a sobering truth: it is possible to witness the power of Christ and still resist his presence when it disrupts comfort, control, or economic security. True obedience welcomes Jesus not only for his miracles, but for his lordship—even when it costs us something.
Lord, I ask to see your power. Bring freedom to my life where there is oppression.
Lord God, we confess that we have grown comfortable where we should have been hungry, and distracted where we should have been devoted. Breathe again on dry places in our hearts. Revive our hearts and make us alive for you and your glory!
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?
And when he came to the other side, to the country of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one could pass that way. And behold, they cried out, “What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?” Now a herd of many pigs was feeding at some distance from them. And the demons begged him, saying, “If you cast us out, send us away into the herd of pigs.” And he said to them, “Go.” So they came out and went into the pigs, and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the waters. The herdsmen fled, and going into the city they told everything, especially what had happened to the demon-possessed men. And behold, all the city came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their region.
Matthew 8:28-34
Yielding Prayer
Lord Jesus, you are sovereign over every power and every fear. Forgive me for the times I have valued comfort, control, or security more than your presence and authority in my life. I do not want to ask you to keep your distance when your will challenges me. I yield my heart, my plans, and my possessions to you. Drive out whatever does not belong, and reign fully as Lord. I choose to trust you and obey you, even when it costs me, because your freedom is better than anything I could lose.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in John 6…
Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.
John 6:35-37
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