P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
Today, we come before Jesus with open hearts, asking him to make us good soil for the word of his kingdom.
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, give me eyes to see and ears to hear what you have for me today. By the power of your Holy Spirit meet with me in this time.
I choose to rejoice, with all God’s people, in the powerful promise that God gives us in Psalm 119…
Your word is a lamp to my feet
and a light to my path.
Psalm 119:105
As you read the passages below, ask the Lord to cause a word or phrase to stand out to you.
That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear.”
Matthew 13:1-9
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?”
That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear.”
Matthew 13:1-9
Jesus teaches us that the same seed can fall on very different kinds of soil. The seed is good, but the condition of the heart matters. We are reminded that hearing God’s word is not passive; we must receive it, guard it, and allow it to bear fruit in us. Together, we ask the Lord to soften what is hard, deepen what is shallow, remove what is choking, and make our lives fruitful for his kingdom.
Lord, I ask that you till the soil of my heart and let me receive your Word joyfully.
Lord, revive us by your word. Break up the hard ground of our hearts, remove the thorns that distract us, and make us ready to receive all that you speak. Let your truth take root in us and produce lasting fruit for your glory.
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?
That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear.”
Matthew 13:1-9
Yielding Prayer
Lord, we yield our hearts to you today. Make us good soil. Teach us not only to hear your word, but to welcome it, obey it, and live by it.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in James 1…
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
James 1:22
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