Week 4 Day 1
I. Prayer to enter the Lord’s presence:
Be still for a moment. “Lord, I give the day that is now past to you. It is yours. I give the day that is to come to you; help me to see where you are working and to join you there. Speak to me during these moments. I commit them and myself to you.”
II. Prayer of Confession:
“Lord, you are faithful to forgive me and cleanse me of my sin when I confess it to you. I confess my sin(s) of ______________. Thank you for forgiveness.” (1 John 1:9)
III. Prayer of Thanksgiving:
Choose to be thankful, speak out loud of what God has done.
“Thank you, Father, for _________________. Fill my heart and my mouth with gratitude throughout this day.”
IV. Scripture Reflection
Read:
Day 1: Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as through something strange were happening to you. 1 Peter 4:12
Reflect:
Day 1: Trials, troubles, suffering are often a cause for people to lose confidence (faith) in God. There is tendency to believe that if God is good, powerful, and present then he will keep trouble from our lives. There is no biblical evidence for this belief in fact there is much evidence to the contrary. Sometimes people will take individual verses out of the larger context and come to unwarranted conclusions. This is unfortunate because it sets them up for disappointment and can drive them away from God. It is at the point of our deepest troubles that we most need to move toward God not away. It is very important that our understanding of Scriptures is in line with God’s intent for them.
Respond:
Day 1: Can you give God thanks in the midst of troubles in your life? Will you do that right now? If you feel you cannot you can at least cry out for him to sustain you and help you get to the place where you can thank him and trust him in everything.
V. Prayer for others:
Pray specifically for the concerns of your life and the lives of others.
VI. Prayer of commitment:
“Lord God, I commit to love you with all my heart and with all my soul and with all my strength and with all my mind and to love my neighbor as myself. Empower me today to love you and others with everything that I am.” (Luke 10:27)
This Month’s Scripture Memory:
Psalm 1:1 Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. 3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. 4 Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. 5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 6 For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.