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: Proverbs Chapter 27
Reflect:
Proverbs 27:20
Death and Destruction are never satisfied,
and neither are human eyes.
The grave is always ready to receive and devour another body, it will never be full. “Death and destruction” are used as a metaphor to illustrate the emptiness found in the desires of the human heart. Left to our own, we will pursue all kinds of things in the hope of fulfilling the desires of our eyes. All of this pursuit is a vain attempt to capture happiness. Remember, Proverbs has made it clear: genuine happiness comes to those who love God and walk according to His wisdom. Our happiness—joy—is built on hope!
Psalm 46:1-3 (NIV) says, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. 2Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, 3 though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.” You see, we are blessed when we realize that our safety and protection is in the Lord alone; it’s not in the earthly, temporal things that the eye desires!
Psalm 16:1-2 (NIV) says, “Keep me safe, my God, for in you I take refuge. I say to the Lord, ‘You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.’” I love this Psalm! David is telling us that his confidence in this life and the next is in the Lord. He knows the Lord is the “best thing” of all and he values God above all. David knows that to run after other things (idols) will only bring about sorrow.
For the believer, the old hymn rings true:
My hope is built on nothing less
than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
but wholly lean on Jesus’ name.
When darkness veils his lovely face,
I rest on his unchanging grace;
in ev’ry high and stormy gale,
my anchor holds within the veil.
His oath, his covenant, his blood
support me in the whelming flood;
when all around my soul gives way,
he then is all my hope and stay.
When he shall come with trumpet sound,
O may I then in him be found,
dressed in his righteousness alone,
faultless to stand before the throne.
Refrain:
On Christ, the solid rock, I stand;
all other ground is sinking sand,
all other ground is sinking sand.
Respond:
Let your desire be on Christ alone. Decide to stand on the Rock. And when you’ve done all you can do to stand, stand firm in Christ!
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 Week’s Scripture Memory:
Proverbs 24:3-4
By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures.