P.R.A.Y
PAUSE
REJOICE & REFLECT
ASK
YIELD
Personal Worship
Today we are reminded that God does not measure our generosity merely by the size of our gift but by the heart from which it is given.
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 Good Father who hears your children and desires to draw near to them. I thank you for who you are. Meet with me now, fill me with your Spirit, and reveal to me what you want today.
I choose to rejoice, with all God’s people, in the powerful promise that God gives us in Psalm 54…
With a freewill offering I will sacrifice to you;
I will give thanks to your name, O Lord, for it is good.
For he has delivered me from every trouble,
and my eye has looked in triumph on my enemies.
Psalm 54:6-7
As you read the passages below, ask the Lord to cause a word or phrase to stand out to you.
And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
Mark 12:41-44
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 he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
Mark 12:41-44
Jesus watches people place their offerings into the temple treasury and draws attention to someone everyone else could easily overlook. The widow’s gift was financially small, yet Jesus saw the extraordinary trust behind it. God sees more than the amount we give; he sees our motives, sacrifice, faith, and dependence upon him. Generosity is not reserved for people who have an abundance of resources. Whatever God has entrusted to us can become an act of worship when we place it before him with faith.
Lord, I ask for a heart and motives that match your character. Show me what it looks like for you to be my first love.
Father, revive sincere worship within me. Remove pride, comparison, and selfishness from my giving, and give me a heart that desires to honor you whether anyone else notices or not.
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 he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
Mark 12:41-44
Yielding Prayer
Lord, you see my heart completely. Teach me to give with sincerity, faith, and trust. I surrender my desire for recognition and offer what you have entrusted to me for your glory alone.
Yielding Promise
And now, as I move into the day ahead, the Lord who loves me reminds me in Hebrews 6…
For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do.
Hebrews 6:10
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