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
You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.
Exodus 20:17
This is the tenth commandment, a commandment that goes for the heart. It addresses “coveting” which is a word that means to desire what is not legitimately ours to have. It is not enough to not steal or not commit adultery we are not to even have hearts that desire those things. This is a high bar. Way too high for humans to clear. That is why the Law cannot save us. We may be able to refrain from doing certain things but only God can change the heart such that it no longer desires the things that displease God. I understand that no human heart has reached a state of perfection. Nevertheless…this is the standard. We are to pursue hearts that are content with what God provides and to be full of him such that we are not drawn to anything he has not provided for us. The good news of the gospel is that we do not have to keep the law of Moses in order to become right with God. We do not have to have perfection in our hearts to please God. Christ alone had perfect desires to back up a perfect life and the “work” God requires of us now is to trust Christ to save us. God is pleased with us when we trust in Christ. So, does this law of Moses “apply” to me? Well, no, not if you mean that you have to keep it in order to please God or to have a relationship with God. But does this law describe God’s best for you? Yes. He wants us to have hearts that are fully satisfied with what he provides and therefore we are not interested in coveting what he does not choose to provide. This is to be the direction of our hearts over the course of our earthly lives. We should be becoming more and more content with what God provides.
Pray this verse, personalize it as you do. Pray it as a plea if it is not a current reality. It is not a verse for spiritual “superstars” it is a verse that describes what all of our hearts can become.
I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
Philippians 4:11-13
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 3:27
Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to act.