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 10
Reflect:
Proverbs 10:30
30 The righteous will never be shaken,
but the wicked will not remain on the earth.
“The righteous will never be shaken.” This verse is such an encouragement to me. Knowing those who put their faith in God will never be shaken is something that should fill us with joy and confidence as we walked down wisdom’s path.
I’m reminded of Moses’ words of encouragement to Joshua and the Israelites to be strong and courageous as they prepared to enter the promised land. Moses wanted them to know that God would never leave nor forsake them! God promised them a great reward if they commit themselves to doing what was right. Think about that: Moses is commanding the Israelites to place their trust in God despite what their circumstances looked like. That command rings true just as much today as it did back then. We can know with certainty that the Lord God is our helper, we have no reason to be afraid of anything that comes our way! (see Deuteronomy 31:1-8; Hebrews 13:5-6)
Paul understood this better than anyone. Look at what he wrote:
“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.” (2 Corinthians 4:7-10 NIV)
Yes, our bodies are weak and frail, and they’re subject to sin and suffering. But the good news is that God will never abandon us. Jesus Christ has defeated death and offers us righteousness and eternal life! Through our faith in Jesus, we are made righteous—a righteousness that will never be taken away.
Respond:
Take time and think about the work of Christ on your behalf. Let the following verses speak to your heart and fill you with encouragement.
- “It is God who has made you part of Christ Jesus. And Christ has become for us wisdom from God. He is the reason we are right with God and pure enough to be in his presence. Christ is the one who set us free from sin.” (1 Corinthians 1:30 ERV)
- “For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: ‘The righteous will live by faith.’” (Romans 1:17 NIV)
- “He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21 CSB)
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 26:27
Whoever digs a pit will fall into it; if someone rolls a stone, it will roll back on them.