Week 33 Day 5
Pray:
Ask God to reorient you to Himself. Confess any known sin. Thank Him for His forgiveness. Be still and reflect on Jesus and His sacrifice for you. Ask the Holy Spirit to open your heart and mind to God’s Word. Pray for others in your life that they, too, would know and love God today.
Read:
Eph. 6:10-18 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
Reflect:
Now you can understand what it means to “pray in the Spirit.” It is not mere words. It is not some emotional state you work yourself into you. It is to pray in the realm of the Holy Spirit’s power and will. This is a function of being “within” the realm of his power and his will in your life. The realm of God’s power in and through your life is the realm of his will for your life. A life of ongoing surrender is essential to a life of praying in the Spirit. Every prayer should originate from a heart that is oriented fully to God. Not that our hearts are ever going to be fully surrendered or fully in sync with him, but our hearts can and should be oriented his direction. A life of perfection in direction, not perfection in every action is the life of conversational relationship with God. This is not merely clever words, it is intentional actions that flow from a life of faith. When we “mess up,” we must learn to quickly “fess up” and then move on. We must not deny our sins or avoid facing them. Neither can we allow our sins to compound by staying on the ground after we have fallen. God has said that if you will confess your sins, he is faithful and will forgive you and cleanse you from them (1 John 1:9). It is essential that you take him up on his offer: “if you confess.” And you must believe him when he says you “will be cleansed.” Do you have important things in your life that you are pouring out to God in prayer? Have you considered your heart? Is it surrendered to him? Are you harboring unconfessed sin? Do you understand that our sin can hinder our prayers? It’s not because God is petty; it is because he is great. How would we expect such a God to continually support and empower our lives if they are going in a direction away from him? How could he possibly be good and do such a thing? This is imminently practical; it shows up in the most basic of relationships, like a marriage. “Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers” (1 Peter 3:7). Do you know that if a husband is inconsiderate to his spouse, it can hinder his prayers? This is but one example, there are many more. God desires to empower a life lived in his direction. He loves us too much to do otherwise. “Pray in the spirit on all occasions” by living in the realm of the Spirit’s power and will on all occasions. Close the gap, continually. Mess up, fess up, and then move on.
Pray:
(Personalize this prayer today; make it specific to the circumstances that face you.)
Ask God to lead you through His Spirit as you go through your day. Ask Him to bring to mind the truth of the gospel and its implications for what you will encounter today. Tell Him “Yes” to His will and ask Him for His power and protection to live this “yes.” Ask God to create and reveal opportunities to proclaim the good news today.