Week 52 Day 3
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
What does the worker gain from his toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on men. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. Ecc. 3:9-11
Reflect
Here the human dilemma, or “burden” is described. First, God has purpose in everything and he can see it clearly. Second, God has put a need for purpose inside us… “eternity in our hearts.” Third, we can’t fathom, or get our minds around all that God is up to. So, back to verse 9 “What does the worker gain from his toil?”, in other words, “What is the point?” Without the gospel lens…there is no point, it all appears to be pointless. However, we view all of life through the lens of what God has done in Christ Jesus. We don’t need to see everything made “beautiful” to believe that in fact it will be some day.
Respond
Your heart is hard-wired for eternity…for purpose. This purpose is God. All our searching for meaning is a search for God. God alone is eternal. What have you tried to derive meaning from this past year? How did it work? How did it fail to work? How did this search for meaning reveal your heart’s desire for God?
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:
Isaiah 53:4-6
Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid him the iniquity of us all.