Pray with Me? #1 (Adoration)

Kyle Bartholic   -   January 7, 2022

One of the key markers in the early church is its commitment to prayer. They praised God in good times, they pleaded with God in tough times, and they supported each other by lifting the brothers and sisters up in earnest prayer. The neat thing in Luke’s writing is that he doesn’t hide their resiliency for prayer; he puts it right out there. Consider his note about when the church 10+ years into following Jesus was again facing distinct persecution from Herod; what did they do? Pray.

 

“So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church.” – Acts 12:5

 

Let’s be like the early church and have a resilient commitment to prayer this coming year. So, will you pray with me? Over the next four Fridays, I am going to explore a prayer method or formula called ACTS (adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication). Why? Well, because we believe that as disciples (followers) of Jesus, we should experience the power and presence of God’s Spirit consistently. And, one way we can do that is through prayer. ACTS is a prayer formula that can help us stay focused in our prayer time. It can also help us to intentionally experience God’s presence in ways we haven’t before.

 

Adoration (adore) –  to worship or honor God as divine

 

Prayers of adoration are prayers that focus on honoring God and all his majesty. These prayers rightly put God on the throne as the Sovereign King of the universe. So, how do we go about adoring God in our prayers?

  1. Don’t feel like you have to come up with your own material.
    1. Job chapters 38-42 are chocked full of statements of God’s majesty. Pray through a few verses each day by reading them and then praising God for the attributes or actions described in Job.
    2. You can also look to Isaiah 60:1-5; Psalms 95-100, 104).
  2. Set an intentional time to pray.
    1. This does not need to be long. If you are just starting a prayer journey, begin by focusing on adoration for 5 minutes at a time. If you are trying to grow your discipline of prayer, add short, focused times of adoration to your established rhythms. The goal is growth and enjoyment of presence, not perfection.
    2. I love to use my phone to schedule times to pray throughout my day. It will vibrate and remind me of my appointed times. Frankly, this helps me to remember in the buzz and busyness of the day. Don’t be above using visual reminds to help you pray.
  3. Pray – Let God’s Spirit flow through you.
    1. No matter where you are at in your prayer journey, the biggest hurdle is not having the intention to pray; it is the action of praying. Don’t be discouraged; just pray. Short or long, focused or distracted, or eager or hesitant… your Father in Heaven wants to hear from you and be present to you. He delights in you drawing near to him!

 

A prayer of adoration for God’s faithful presence:

I will adore you, O LORD, for you have drawn me up.

and have not let my foes rejoice over me.

O LORD my God, I cried to you for help,

and you have healed me. . . .

Sing praises to the LORD, O you his saints,

and give thanks to his holy name.

For his anger is but for a moment,

and his favor is for a lifetime.

Weeping may tarry for the night,

but joy comes with the morning.

– Psalm 30:1–2, 4–5