P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
We begin a new series this week titled “Acts of the Holy Spirit”. We will have a front-row seat to the power of the Holy Spirit in the early church. One that we hope and pray will lead us to trust and act in the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives today.
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
Abba, Father as you welcome me into this time with you, accept my praise and adoration as a love offering. Fine-tune my hearing by the power of your Spirit that I might hear what you have to say to me. Still, my voice so that I may give you room to share what is on your heart for me, and fill my heart with the joy that comes from being so close to you.
We choose to rejoice in the power of God’s Word, with all his people in Psalm 25:
To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
O my God, in you I trust;
let me not be put to shame;
let not my enemies exult over me.
Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame;
they shall be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous.
Psalm 25:1-3
Today we are reflecting on the words of Scripture in Acts 1, where we read:
In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.
And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”
Acts 1:1-11
The Book of Acts picks up right where Luke left off in his gospel. Jesus has been preparing his disciples for his death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. When he ascends he leaves them with a promise and a mission. The two cannot be separated from each other. He commands them to stay in Jerusalem and wait for the coming of the Holy Spirit, that’s the promise. The mission is to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. This mission is massive, but the promise of the Holy Spirit is also massive. Jesus knows that his disciples then and his disciples now lack the power to fulfill this mission on their own. Jesus made it very clear in John 15 that it goes even further than that. We can do nothing without being connected to him and the Holy Spirit connects us with him. This connection is one that brings power. Look at verse 8 again. We will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon us. He is the source of power in us. His power is what sustains us on the mission of spreading the gospel. Our sin lies to us though. Our sin makes us doubt the power of the Spirit and that causes us to believe that we have the power to do it on our own. We believe the lie that we are enough just by ourselves. This isn’t demeaning to us as people either. God is gifting us his miraculous power through the Holy Spirit. It is beautiful that God wants to make us a part of his mission and he provides us with the means to accomplish this mission with his Holy Spirit that is living and active in us.
Lord, pour out your Spirit in power on me. I want the power that can only come from the Holy Spirit. I want to be a part of your mission of taking the eternal life-giving message to the world, so empower me in your Spirit to do it.
1)Where do I believe that I can be my own source of power?
2)Where do I go looking to be empowered?
3)What does the power of the Holy Spirit look like?
4)Will I seek and trust in the power of the Spirit in my life today?
We join with the Sons of Korah praying a prayer of revival from Psalm 85:
Lord, you were favorable to your land;
you restored the fortunes of Jacob.
You forgave the iniquity of your people;
you covered all their sin.
You withdrew all your wrath;
you turned from your hot anger.
Restore us again, O God of our salvation,
and put away your indignation toward us!
Will you be angry with us forever?
Will you prolong your anger to all generations?
Will you not revive us again,
that your people may rejoice in you?
Show us your steadfast love, O Lord,
and grant us your salvation
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.
In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.
And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”
Acts 1:1-11
Yielding Prayer
Lord, I bow before your feet in humility. I understand that I have a lack of trust in you and in the power you want to fill me with. Break me of my desire to be empowered by anything that is not from you. Pour out your Spirit in power in my life. Make me a missionary of your gospel in my daily life today. Let me be a part of your story going out into my home, my workplace, my family, my friends, and everyone I will come into contact with today.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in Acts 1:8:
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth
Acts 1:8
Closing Prayer
Lord, the full meaning of the word “Abba” is “Father, I will obey you” and that is what I desire to do as I go about my day now. Fill me with your Spirit that I may receive and use the gifts that you have made available to me. Grant me opportunities this day to glorify your Son by my obedience to your commands. And let me see some fruit today to encourage my faith and diminish my unbelief.
*The P.R.A.Y. acronym has been adapted from the Lectio 365 app.