When the alarm rings and your day is about to begin, take those few minutes of early consciousness to pray for yourself. Often we leave prayer for desperate moments when we feel in over our heads. Sometimes we even hesitate praying for ourselves. Yet this is what Matthew 7:7 calls us to: “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.”
Here is a guide for those moments before you slip out of bed. It’s easy to remember and it’s a way to invite God to be at work in your life. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.
Use your own words to talk to God as you ask him to BLESS your body, labor, emotions, social life, and spiritual growth. Pray silently for yourself and one another. Then head to the shower knowing God has been invited into your day. Expect to see him work.
BODY
_Lord, thank you for my health. Thank you that you are my healer. Strengthen me physically today in the specific area of ____. I ask for your power to help me function. Bless me with an increased measure of health today. Help me to feel it, acknowledge it, and thank you when I notice it. Give me wisdom to be disciplined in managing my body, in what I eat and how I exercise. Protect me as I go about my day. Thank you that you are a shield around me. Thank you for life. Help me to embrace what I can do today in your strength.
LABOR
_Lord, thank you for the things I have to do today. Though some of them may not be what I choose, help me to focus on what is a good use of my time. You know where I work hard and where I slack off. Help me to pay attention to what is important, not just what is urgent. Please multiply my efforts today and help me to be productive. Thank you that my weak points are the very entry points of your strength. Fill me with your Spirit. Help me to consciously do what is in front of me in your name and in your strength, giving thanks to you for your presence with me. Please help me today to do ____.
EMOTIONS
Lord, thank you that I don’t need to be dragged by my emotions. You know how easy it is to slip into negativity or anxiousness when things around feel shaky. Thank you for promising to be my Rock. You give me a firm place to stand when I look to you for stability. Help me to cultivate a grateful heart, to see even the smallest of your blessings and let thanks arise within me. Thank you that when I offer my praise and thanks to you, even in moments when it feels hard to do, you use it as a door to come in and work on my behalf. Help me not to allow other people’s emotions dictate how I feel. Give me your peace today. May I trust you with what robs me of that peace. I give you my concerns about _____ and thank you that you are at work on my behalf. I choose to be thankful today.
SOCIAL LIFE
Lord, thank you for my family and friends. Help me to be a blessing to them. Please lead me into purposeful friendships with others who seek you, too. Give me strength to distance myself from social situations that could draw me away from you. Fill my lonely places with your presence. Please guide me into social settings where I can bless others and bring your love. Help me to limit social media so I have time for real face-to-face encounters. Show me the good in others that I may build up and encourage those around me. Lord, is there anything you would like to say to me about any specific relationship today?
SPIRITUAL GROWTH
_Lord, thank you that you are with me. Help me to trust and depend on you today. It’s easy to lean on my own understanding. Help me to sense your presence with me. Give me a stronger desire to read the Bible and to understand what you are saying to me. Show me what I need to cleanse from my heart and life today. I ask your forgiveness for ____. Give me a greater desire to take quiet moments to be aware of you in my day. Help me choose to interact with other believers and to keep your Word central in my life. Grow my faith as I trust you to BLESS me as I arise now into my day.
In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.
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