Thursday - Don't Lose Heart (Faith)

Welcome to Daily Prayer.

We're in a three-week series called "Don't Lose Heart," focused on cultivating a life of faith, hope, and love.

Today, we're asking the Lord to give us an eternal perspective.

As we begin our prayer now, let's quiet our hearts and minds before the Lord.

Lord, we fix our eyes on you. We give you our hearts, our focus and attention. We set aside all the things that are calling for our attention right now, and we fix our gaze on you.

A reading from Psalm 116:6-13,

"The Lord protects those of childlike faith. I was facing death, and he saved me. Let my soul be at rest again, for the Lord has been good to me. He has saved me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, and so I walk in the Lord's presence as I live here on Earth. I believed in you, so I said, 'I'm deeply troubled, Lord.' In my anxiety, I cried out to you, 'These people are all liars.' Lord, what can I offer you for all that you've done for me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and praise the Lord's name for saving me."

Oh Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.

A scripture reading from 2 Corinthians 4:13–18:

"It is written: 'I believed; therefore I have spoken.' Since we have that same spirit of faith, we also believe and therefore speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you to himself. All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God. Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."

A Prayer of Adoration:

Lord, we rejoice that you are the resurrection and the life. You have caused your light to shine in our hearts. You have given us your Spirit to bring us through death to everlasting life. You renew us daily as we trust in you. Father, you turn our troubles into glory, and for that, I adore you.

A Prayer of Confession:

Lord, I confess there are times when I've spoken in unbelief. My eyes have been focused on my circumstances and difficulty.

I've allowed discouragement and despair to fill my heart and mind.

Lord, today I repent of my shortsightedness and my unrenewed mind.

I turn to you. I embrace your Word and promises to transform my vision.

A Prayer of Trust:

Lord, I trust that no difficulty in this life is wasted for those who trust in you. In the end, I will behold your glory. So, we live by faith and not by sight. Even as our bodies are wasting away, there is new mercy and spiritual renewal available every day.

Lord, just as Paul believed, we trust that we will share in your triumphant resurrection, that our lives can cause your grace to reach other people, and that we will receive an eternal glory that is so much greater than our current suffering. You are worthy of our trust, and we choose to fix our gaze on you.

A Prayer of Intercession:

Lord, would you give us an eternal perspective?

Help us to see things like you do.

Lord, we pray for those in our community who are battling sickness and disease. We pray for your healing and your presence. May they not lose heart. Cause your grace to flow to them and through them. Would you cause those who don't know you to see the light and trust in Christ?

Lord, I pray that you'd give us grace to stand and to fix our gaze on you. Give us faith eyes. For those who are fasting this week, give them a hungry heart for you. Give us that spirit of faith where we can speak and believe. May your resurrection power show up in the midst of all the places that we've surrendered to you. In every place of difficulty, would you meet us, Lord

As we listen to the passage again, let's listen for a word or phrase that the Holy Spirit may want to say to us from today's verses.

"It is written: 'I believed; therefore I have spoken.' Since we have that same spirit of faith, we also believe and therefore speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you to himself. All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God. Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."

A Closing Prayer:

Lord, cause us to abound in faith, hope, and love. Today we choose to lift up our heads and trust in you. Lord, help us to fix our gaze on your eternal kingdom and all the good that will come with it. We know the best is yet to come. We pray in the name of Jesus, Amen.