P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
We come to the cultural mandate 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
Lord, as I approach you today, I remind myself that you are the Creator of everything. You spoke, and everything came into existence. You formed Adam from the dust and animated his body with your breath. I ask that you do the same with me through your Word and prayer today. Animate my soul by the power of your Holy Spirit.
I choose to rejoice, with all God’s people, in the powerful promise that God gives us in Psalm 8…
Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.
You have given him dominion over the works of your hands;
you have put all things under his feet,
all sheep and oxen,
and also the beasts of the field,
the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea,
whatever passes along the paths of the seas.
O Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
Psalm 8:5-9
As you read the passages below, ask the Lord to cause a word or phrase to stand out to you.
And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
Genesis 1:26-31
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?”
And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
Genesis 1:26-31
This passage has become known as the cultural mandate. It answers the question “What do we do now?” We have been created, but for what? The first thing God points to is to be fruitful and multiply. Have babies! Be a partner in bringing more of the image of God into this world. Adam and Eve also had a responsibility. They didn’t just hang out in the Garden of Eden. They were told to fill the earth, subdue it, and have dominion over it. Basically, they were to go into the world and make all of it like the Garden of Eden. Edenify the world! We know they never get to that part, but that was the mission. They had work to do. This is important. Work was founded before the fall. Sin does not cause our work, yet it quickly intertwines itself with our work. We have to know the difference in this life.
Lord, I ask that you show me what you have called me to. Show me why you have placed me on this earth at this time in history. Show me what I am to do to bring about Eden in my world.
Lord, you are the God of all creation. You made this world and you made it good, until sin entered in through the disobedience of man. I ask that you would revive us. Pour out your Holy Spirit in a supernatural way. Create in us anew again.
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?
And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
Genesis 1:26-31
Yielding Prayer
Lord, you have a call for me. You desire for me to enter into this life and bring your glory into my everyday. Forgive me for the time I waste. Forgive me for my attitude at times about what you have called me to. Fill me with purpose here on this earth. Let me know that what I do on this earth has the ability to affect eternity.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in Revelation 21…
And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
Revelation 21:5
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.