P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
Today we look at one of the two things that always precedes revival: repentance.
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
Heavenly Father, you promise that when I seek you with all my heart, I will find you. I offer my soul to you this morning. Would you teach me more of what it looks like to seek you this way, so that I might find you in my every place of need. (Jeremiah 29:13)
We choose to rejoice in the power of God’s Word, with all his people in Psalm 37:
The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
when he delights in his way;
though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,
for the Lord upholds his hand.
Psalm 37:23-24
Today we are reflecting on the words of Scripture in Isaiah, where we read:
“Cry aloud; do not hold back;
lift up your voice like a trumpet;
declare to my people their transgression,
to the house of Jacob their sins.
Yet they seek me daily
and delight to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that did righteousness
and did not forsake the judgment of their God;
they ask of me righteous judgments;
they delight to draw near to God.
‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not?
Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’
Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,[a]
and oppress all your workers.
Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight
and to hit with a wicked fist.
Fasting like yours this day
will not make your voice to be heard on high.
Is such the fast that I choose,
a day for a person to humble himself?
Is it to bow down his head like a reed,
and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?
Will you call this a fast,
and a day acceptable to the Lord?
“Is not this the fast that I choose:
to loose the bonds of wickedness,
to undo the straps of the yoke,
to let the oppressed[b] go free,
and to break every yoke?
Is it not to share your bread with the hungry
and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover him,
and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
Then shall your light break forth like the dawn,
and your healing shall spring up speedily;
your righteousness shall go before you;
the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’
Isaiah 58:1-9(a)
Though we cannot bring revival, we can examine ourselves personally and corporately for the kinds of things that God, in his word, tells us that he will not bless with his reviving presence. That is to say, we can examine ourselves for the kind of “faith” that God says is no faith at all and, therefore, looks at and says, “Nope! I will not be a part of that!” We see an example of that kind of “faith” here. Through Isaiah, God calls his people to repentance, even though, as God himself says, they seek him daily and delight to know his ways. To put that in our terms: they pray (and fast!), do personal worship, come to church weekly (in person), are in a community group, attend one of our learning groups, volunteer at the church and in the community, etc. That is to say, they Gather, Connect, Grow and Serve. As a result, outwardly, they are very religious; but it’s not sincere. It’s not done in authentic pursuit of the presence of God! Rather, it’s done in an attempt to obligate God to do for them what they want God to do for them (“Lord, look at all of the things I’ve done for you, now please do this for me”). And here’s the evidence of their insincerity: notwithstanding all of their religiosity, they oppress their workers, quarrel and fight, ignore the plight of the poor, etc. So, God, here, calls them to repent of this wickedness and to prove the authenticity of their repentance by the way that they then begin to live (to repent means to turn from something and to then walk in a different direction or way). When you do that, God says, you shall cry out for me and I will say: “Here I am!” And, as we’ve already seen, the goal of repentance is the presence of God (his: “here I am”) revealed to the nations through his people. Who (and what) we need is him! So, let’s prepare the way through repentance!
Lord, as David prayed, “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalm 139:23-24) Do this, Lord, that my heart, mind and life might be made fit for your reviving presence.
1)Do any of the sins that Isaiah enumerates in this passage resonate with you? If so, why is that?
2)Are there ways in which your religious activity is insincere (done more from a motive to get God to do things for you, than from a sincere love for him and desire to worship him)?
3)Are you oppressing anyone or refusing justice to anyone?
4)What must you turn from, in order to turn towards Jesus and welcome his reviving presence?
Dear Lord, our world is so broken. So many are hurting and in despair and darkness. Break our hearts for it so that we do not cease crying out fervently to you for mercy. We don’t have answers or solutions, we can’t fix what is broken. In humility, we come to you in our need. You are our hope! A word from you can change everything. Come and grant us grace, awaken your slumbering church, we pray and be glorified again here on the earth!
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.
“Cry aloud; do not hold back;
lift up your voice like a trumpet;
declare to my people their transgression,
to the house of Jacob their sins.
Yet they seek me daily
and delight to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that did righteousness
and did not forsake the judgment of their God;
they ask of me righteous judgments;
they delight to draw near to God.
‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not?
Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’
Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,[a]
and oppress all your workers.
Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight
and to hit with a wicked fist.
Fasting like yours this day
will not make your voice to be heard on high.
Is such the fast that I choose,
a day for a person to humble himself?
Is it to bow down his head like a reed,
and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?
Will you call this a fast,
and a day acceptable to the Lord?
“Is not this the fast that I choose:
to loose the bonds of wickedness,
to undo the straps of the yoke,
to let the oppressed[b] go free,
and to break every yoke?
Is it not to share your bread with the hungry
and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover him,
and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
Then shall your light break forth like the dawn,
and your healing shall spring up speedily;
your righteousness shall go before you;
the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’
Isaiah 58:1-9(a)
Yielding Prayer
Lord, forgive me for so often not even seeing the need around me as I am consumed with my life, my family and friends and my agenda! Show me the oppressed that you would have me fight for, the hungry I should feed. Open my eyes to the need around me! Move me from a person who “guards” their life to one who pours out graciously and abundantly as You lead! Forgive me for forgetting Your Kingdom and teach me Lord to put it first, above my own.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in 1 John:
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:9
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.
*The P.R.A.Y. acronym has been adapted from the Lectio 365 app.