21 Days of Prayer ChallengeSample

Day 17: How do I Pray for Priorities?

From Pastor Roger Theimer

Let me put some words in God's mouth and ask that you would hear them as a direct question from God to you. How would you answer if God were to say to you the following?

"Go ahead. Ask me. What do you want me to do for you?"

In this scenario, let's say you can't answer what you would want God to do for others, only yourself.

Is the question more complicated than you thought? Would you ask for stuff? Money? Health? Achievement? There's nothing wrong with asking for these things but placing them in a position of utmost importance will always disappoint. They are never enough to build a fulfilling identity or fashion your purpose. Wrong priorities. What priorities would you ask for?

Jesus taught us to Pray for Priorities, that is, kingdom priorities. So we pause on the pathway to pray, "Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." How would you pray that His kingdom would come into your life? What would your life look like if it were filled with Christ ruling your desires and thoughts?

Pray for spiritual priorities. For example, pray to become more Christ-like. Pray to live out confidently and joyfully the grace given you through Jesus. Pray to better grasp the depth of His love displayed on the cross. Pray to become more like Jesus not by merely focusing on what you need to improve about yourself but by loving him more! Clare of Assisi said, "We become what we love and who we love shapes what we become. If we love things, we become a thing. If we love nothing, we become nothing." As we love Christ, we are shaped by that love. That's a priority worth praying for!

As you daily read the Bible, be watching for different spiritual priorities. Write them on your journal page to remember to pray for them. Remember to pray that His kingdom would come to others through you. You are making yourself available to Him for His purposes.

Return to the opening question. Instead of hearing God say, "Go ahead. Ask me. What do you want me to do for you?" Now you say it. "God, go ahead. Ask me. What do you want me to do for You?!" This will shape you more into the likeness of Christ!

Day 17 Challenge: Use your journal. Pray for spiritual priorities that shape you more in the likeness of Christ. Is there a characteristic the Holy Spirit is developing in you today? What are your Bible readings saying to you? Are there kingdom priorities that you can intercede for in others?

Prayer Prompt: For clarity on your purpose in this world