Welcome back to our exploration of prayer! Last week, we committed ourselves to deepening our prayer lives together. Today, we'll introduce a rhythmic framework—P.R.A.Y.—to infuse our prayer lives with depth, vitality, and intimacy with God.
P.R.A.Y. stands for:
P - Pause: Amidst the chaos of our lives, the call to pause echoes throughout the Lord's Prayer. The Lord’s prayer is actually an invitation to stillness. The stillness that comes through working through a familiar rhythm together with Him. As we build the rhythm of the Lord’s prayer into our lives, we will experience a quieting of our hearts and minds, and a created space for communion with the Lord as a result. The rest and encounter that comes through holy rhythm. In this rhythm, we can more and more easily pause to align our spirits to listen to God's clear but often quiet whispers, cultivating a sacred silence where our souls can truly encounter Him.
Rejoice: The posture of rejoicing woven within the Lord's Prayer reminds us of the importance of rejoicing in God's character, unrivalled and holy! To rejoice is to welcome, enjoy, and so be made glad. Welcome and enjoy His character, His goodness, and His faithfulness – as Jesus embeds the reality of who the Father is in His prayer teaching. Rejoicing in God gladdens our spirits, lifting our eye to behold His sovereign power and magnificent will – and thus buttresses all our petitions.
Ask: Petition, intercession, and perseverance—these postures are encapsulated within the simple word, "Ask." Here, in the rhythm of P.R.A.Y., we bring our needs, desires, and concerns for us and our world before God. It's a humble recognition of our dependence on Him, laying our hearts bare and seeking His guidance, provision, and intervention – for us and the nations!
Yield: Yielding encompasses contemplation, listening, confession, and spiritual warfare—the posture of surrendering to God's will and seeking it to be done on ours and others behalf. It's a posture of openness, where we surrender our desires in trust, allowing the Holy Spirit to align them with His kingdom purposes. It involves listening attentively, confessing our sins of omission and commission, and acknowledging our need for His divine intervention in spiritual battles.
This rhythmic dance of P.R.A.Y. isn't a rigid formula but a flowing, adaptable framework that accommodates the ebb and flow of our lives. It's like a trekking pole that grounds us during the journey through sometimes uneven and tumultuous territory of life – grounding us in our ever-present God. P.R.A.Y offers us structure without stifling spontaneity, fostering a dynamic and authentic conversation with God and King.
As we embrace the rhythm of P.R.A.Y., let's allow its flavor to steep deep into our hearts.
Whether in solitary moments or gathered in community, P.R.A.Y. invites us to engage in a conversation with God that's vibrant, authentic, and transformative. It's an invitation to infuse our prayers with true intentionality, allowing each step of our praying, and thus our lives —each pause, each rejoicing, each asking, and each yielding—to deepen our communion with Him.
Join us next week as we deepen our walk into the heart of prayer by exploring the Lord's Prayer and the profound postures it unveils for our communion with God.Â
C3 Wenty leader Russell Carroll looks at the Ask element of todays blog.