A Prayer to Seek to Reflect This Winter Season - Your Daily Prayer - December 28

When I think about reflecting on the goodness, majesty, and holiness of Christ, I cannot help but go to Luke 2:19. Mary was given the great privilege of being His mother on earth. Early on in Jesus’ life when He was just a little baby, Mary was given the gift of being in awe of the Savior that she birthed. Instead of going around bragging about her greatest honor, she instead treasured this joy in her heart. She reflected on the greatness and the love that was given to her by God Himself to carry Him in her womb and bring Him into the world. 

Mary reminds us that we need to seek to reflect on Jesus every day this winter season. It is easy to just hyper-focus on the coming of Christ at Christmas and then “move on” when December 26th comes. However, we are called to seek Jesus every day. What do you tend to ponder during the winter? Are you thinking about the difficulties of sickness and cold weather? Are you wrestling with the emotions of winter blues? Are you pondering all of the holidays and the fun winter sports activities? Maybe you are awaiting the very first snowfall? Whether you are reflecting on the positive aspects this season or the negative, we are all called to come before God with gratitude and seek Him first. Matthew 6:33 teaches us to seek first the kingdom of God. May our hearts, minds, and all of who we are love and delight in Him. May we pursue Him boldly and confidently that He who promised is faithful.

Today, as we pray, may we have hearts like Mary, who pondered and adored her Savior within her heart. She reflected with wonder and awe. She worshiped her Living God. Lay down whatever is hindering you from looking to Christ today. Tell him about the barriers that are in your way from praying, and let’s begin to pursue Him together now.

Let's Pray:

Dear Savior of the World,
Thank You for your coming, death, and resurrection. Thank You for helping us to focus our hearts and minds on you. We are distracted, we are in the midst of a season that many struggle with the colder weather and sicknesses. Would you remind us that in these times of physically slowing down or being inside, we are invited to connect with You in a relationship? Forgive us for the distractions that we have today. Help our humanity not get in the way of encountering You in prayer. We boldly approach Your throne of grace in amazement that You, the King of the World, would come to us and give your life for us. We are sinful, broken, and imperfect people, but You came out of Your great love for us. Your Love casts out fear. Your grace is sufficient for our weakness. Your Spirit is alive in us. Your Word stands true for all eternity. We praise You.

Enable us to focus on You this winter season. Give us the desire and longing to seek to reflect on You throughout the season. When we are tempted to seek temporary comforts, remind us to seek Your kingdom first. When we want to be first, help us to be last. When we want to be served, empower us to serve. When we want to fight back, help us to turn the other cheek. Give us the strength to live like You, Jesus. Give us the awareness to be in awe of You each day. Fill our thoughts with gratitude at the start of the day and when darkness falls each night. Help us to live on a mission this winter. As we personally seek You, grow us by guiding us in Your Word. Give us the joy and peace to share the hope of the gospel with others around us. May we take this slower season to treasure You, Your Scriptures, and Your Spirit. Help us to reset our values where they have become misguided by the desires of the world. Give us the strength to choose You first and to surrender any areas necessary. Bless our intentional time together and open our minds to comprehend Your Scriptures. May anything we learn in our minds be reflected within our hearts. Amen.

Photo Credit: ©Unsplash/Alessandro Viaro

Emma Danzey’s mission in life stems from Ephesians 3:20-21, to embrace the extraordinary. One of her greatest joys is to journey with the Lord in His Scriptures. She is wife to Drew and mom to Graham. Emma serves alongside her husband in ministry, she focuses most of her time in the home, but loves to provide articles on the Bible, life questions, and Christian lifestyle. Her article on Interracial Marriage was the number 1 on Crosswalk in 2021. Most recently, Emma released Treasures for Tots, (Scripture memory songs) and multiple books and devotionals for young children. During her ministry career, Emma has released Wildflower: Blooming Through Singleness, two worship EP albums, founded and led Polished Conference Ministries, and ran the Refined Magazine. You can view her articles on her blog at emmadanzey.wordpress.com and check out her Instagram @Emmadanzey.

Editor's Note: We're proud to announce we've just launched a new nighttime companion to Your Daily Prayer: the Your Nightly Prayer devotional. You'll soon be able to subscribe to receive Your Nightly Prayer via email, or as a podcast, but for now you can find it on the website at crosswalk.com/devotionals/your-nightly-prayer. We hope it's a relaxing and soothing way to wind down your day with rich meditations on who God is.

Related Resource: Jesus Calling - Stories of Faith

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Inspired by Sarah Young's classic devotional book, the Jesus Calling podcast has brought encouragement and peace to millions. New episodes drop every Thursday! Listen today on LifeAudio.com or wherever you find your podcasts.

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