P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
Today, our focus is on bitterness.
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 promise that when I draw near to you that you will draw near to me. I call on that promise now. As I enter into your Word fill me with your Holy Spirit and give me insight into what you have for me today.
I choose to rejoice, with all God’s people, in the powerful promise that God gives us in Psalm 86…
Incline your ear, O Lord, and answer me,
for I am poor and needy.
Preserve my life, for I am godly;
save your servant, who trusts in you—you are my God.
Be gracious to me, O Lord,
for to you do I cry all the day.
Gladden the soul of your servant,
for to you, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving,
abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you.
Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer;
listen to my plea for grace.
In the day of my trouble I call upon you,
for you answer me.
Psalm 86:1-7
As you read the passages below, ask the Lord to cause a word or phrase to stand out to you.
The heart knows its own bitterness,
and no stranger shares its joy.
Proverbs 14:10
Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed. Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled;
Hebrews 12:12-15
Whoever covers an offense seeks love,
but he who repeats a matter separates close friends.
Proverbs 17:9
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?”
The heart knows its own bitterness,
and no stranger shares its joy.
Proverbs 14:10
Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed. Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled;
Hebrews 12:12-15
Whoever covers an offense seeks love,
but he who repeats a matter separates close friends.
Proverbs 17:9
The Bible is honest with us when it talks to us about bitterness in our lives. Just like Proverbs 14:10 says, our hearts know our own bitterness. It wouldn’t take a long series of questions for any of us to find our way to the bitterness in our hearts. Just like Hebrews says, we need to be on watch for the root of bitterness that springs up and causes trouble. We will get to the solution of bitterness tomorrow, but today, our focus is on what allows bitterness to keep going in our lives. Proverbs 17:9 tells us. It is the repeating of a matter that allows bitterness to go on and on and on. There are three ways we “repeat a matter.” The first is that we repeat the matter in our own minds and hearts. We are constantly reminding ourselves of the hurt or harm that someone has caused us. Each time we do, bitterness grows. We often continue repeating the matter with the guilty party themselves. We remind the person of what they have done to us, and we never let them off the hook. The last way that we repeat a matter is with other people. This one can be boiled down to the word gossip. We repeat the matter by spreading gossip about it. By telling other parties that are not involved in all that took place. What happens each time we allow our hearts to repeat the matter? Bitterness grows.
Lord, show me and bring my bitterness to the surface.
Lord, I repent of all bitterness that has accumulated in my heart. I repent of the lack of forgiveness that I have clung to. I repent for the anger and hatred that has arisen due to unchecked bitterness in my heart. Let me follow in your footsteps and let forgiveness be my first thought and not my last resort.
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?
The heart knows its own bitterness,
and no stranger shares its joy.
Proverbs 14:10
Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed. Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled;
Hebrews 12:12-15
Whoever covers an offense seeks love,
but he who repeats a matter separates close friends.
Proverbs 17:9
Yielding Prayer
Lord, in obedience, I scour my heart for anything that is not of you. Let me do the difficult work now of seeing where I am at fault when it comes to bitterness. Fill me with your Spirit now.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in Matthew 6…
For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Matthew 6:14-15
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.