P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
Today we look at when blessing leads to strife in Abram’s life.
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, as I enter into your presence, fill me with your Holy Spirit. Open my eyes to what you have for me in your Word. Speak truth into my life and give me life through it.
I choose to rejoice, with all God’s people, in the powerful promise that God gives us in James 1…
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
James 1:17
As you read the passages below, ask the Lord to cause a word or phrase to stand out to you.
So Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the Negeb.
Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold. And he journeyed on from the Negeb as far as Bethel to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai, to the place where he had made an altar at the first. And there Abram called upon the name of the Lord. And Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents, so that the land could not support both of them dwelling together; for their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together, and there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were dwelling in the land.
Genesis 13:1-7
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?”
So Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the Negeb.
Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold. And he journeyed on from the Negeb as far as Bethel to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai, to the place where he had made an altar at the first. And there Abram called upon the name of the Lord. And Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents, so that the land could not support both of them dwelling together; for their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together, and there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were dwelling in the land.
Genesis 13:1-7
After returning from Egypt, Abram continued to grow wealthy. He was very rich in livestock, silver, and gold. The land was fruitful and producing blessings, but Abram and Sarai still did not have a child. They were getting everything, but the one thing they wanted. Lot, Abram’s nephew, who embarked on this journey with them was also being blessed with an abundance of wealth. God blessed them with this great blessing, but it seems that greed overtook them. They each chose their wealth over each other. They could have downsized or compromised in one way or another, but they chose wealth over relationships. D.L. Moody once said, “We can stand affliction better than we can stand prosperity, for in prosperity we forget God.”
Lord, I ask that you show me where my earthly possessions fall on my list of loves. Show me if things and material goods have become an idol in my life.
Lord, in a world filled with darkness will you bring light? In a world filled with despair would you bring joy? In a world full of anxiety would you bring peace? In a world that desperately needs a movement of the Holy Spirit would you do what only you can do? Pour out your Spirit on us and lead us in your ways.
As I read the passage for the final time, I listen for 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?
So Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the Negeb.
Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold. And he journeyed on from the Negeb as far as Bethel to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai, to the place where he had made an altar at the first. And there Abram called upon the name of the Lord. And Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents, so that the land could not support both of them dwelling together; for their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together, and there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were dwelling in the land.
Genesis 13:1-7
Yielding Prayer
Lord, let me not forsake relationships for things. In a world where more is better and we can never have enough teach my heart the opposite. Show me and let me live in the expanse of enough. Not too much or not too little, but enough that you provide for me. Give me a heart of gratitude that fights against my idolatrous heart.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in Psalm 37…
Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Psalm 37:4
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.