P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
We end this week with a charge to action based on what we have studied this week.
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 are the God who hears, hear me now. You are the God who sees, see me now. You are the God who knows, know me at this moment. I enter your presence seeking a loving father, so open your arms wide and hold me close, allow me to feel the love you have for me during this time in your presence. Reveal what you have for me through your Word.
We choose to rejoice in the power of God’s Word, with all his people in Psalm 128:
Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord,
who walks in his ways!
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands;
you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you.
Your wife will be like a fruitful vine
within your house;
your children will be like olive shoots
around your table.
Behold, thus shall the man be blessed
who fears the Lord.
The Lord bless you from Zion!
May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life!
May you see your children’s children!
Peace be upon Israel!
Psalm 128:1-6
Today we are reflecting on the words of Scripture, where we read:
Now when the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to him, and he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them.
Luke 4:40
While he was saying these things to them, behold, a ruler came in and knelt before him, saying, “My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live.”
Matthew 9:18
Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.
James 5:14-15
And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”
Mark 2:5
Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.
Matthew 15:28
There is no equation to follow in order to garner God’s healing, let me make that clear from the outset. There are though commonalities that we see in Scripture. The common threads that we see are prayer, the laying of hands, anointing with oil, and faith. If the heart of God is to heal then we should continue to ask for it. If the history of God is one of healing then we should continue to cry out for it. Here at Rio, we abide by the Alpha adage,
“We used to not pray for anyone to be healed and no one was healed. Now we pray for everyone to be healed and sometimes God heals.”
We want to become a people of prayer and one of the aspects of prayer is intercessory prayer where we pray for those around us. We go to the throne of God in prayer and beseech the Lord to meet the needs of those we love. We see that God calls us to do that with one another when it comes to healing. We see Jesus all throughout his ministry laying hands on the sick. We see Peter and John in Acts 3 interceding for this man and he is healed. One of the astounding things we see in Scripture is when someone is healed because of someone else’s faith. We see it in Mark 2 with the paralytic. Jesus saw his friend’s faith and healed him. Wild! Maybe right now you find yourself in a place where you need healing. Will you ask for it? Not just between you and God, but will you come to the family that God has given you so that we can go to God on your behalf? Two great ways to do that are coming down front after one of the services on Sunday and letting our prayer team do exactly that for you. Maybe you are not ready for that. Our staff and anyone who joins us (all our welcome) pray for all of the prayer requests submitted every Tuesday morning. You can submit any prayer request you have by clicking here.
Maybe this week after learning about the gifts of the Spirit and seeing them in action in the Book of Acts, you feel led now to pray for others to be healed! The wonderful beauty of the power of the Spirit is all we have to do is start praying for people. In faith, we lay hands on those who are sick and ask the Lord to heal them and from there we leave it up to God and trust him with the result!
Lord, give me confidence that you are the God who heals even today. Show me where I need healing. Open my eyes to the sicknesses, the hurts, and the need for healing around me.
1)Do I need to pray for healing? Pray for it!
2)Who can I pray for that they might be healed? Pray for them! Then find them this week and lay hands on them and pray again!
Open your gates and step down, King of Glory. Show us your glory. Show us your mercy. Show us the freedom that you have for your people. Open our eyes to who you are and what you have for us. Pour out your Spirit. Wake us from our slumber and break us of the idols that we cling to. Draw us close to your all-consuming fire and let us burn for you and you alone.
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 when the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to him, and he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them.
Luke 4:40
While he was saying these things to them, behold, a ruler came in and knelt before him, saying, “My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live.”
Matthew 9:18
Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.
James 5:14-15
And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”
Mark 2:5
Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.
Matthew 15:28
Yielding Prayer
Lord, I submit my life to you. I submit that I can not do this on my own and I trust you with it all. Give me obedience to come to you in faith that I and those around me might be healed. Let me not despair, but give me the perseverance to continue in prayer even when hope seems lost. Would you make our church a house of prayer? Pour out your Spirit on us, please!
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in Exodus 15:26:
…for I am the Lord, your healer.
Exodus 15:26
Closing Prayer
Lord, let me remind myself of the truth that you have heard my prayers today. You have not rejected me in any way, shape, or form. You have not withheld your love from me, but your unfailing love engulfs me. Let me cling to those truths as I go from here. No matter what my day holds, those truths will remain. Make my day an offering to you, the God who deserves it all.
*The P.R.A.Y. acronym has been adapted from the Lectio 365 app.