Paul’s first word to the Ephesians is the cornerstone for personal revival:
“Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (1:2, emphasis added).
Preaching the gospel to ourselves and praying it into our souls is critical work in the (sometimes) dry and weary land of women’s ministry. Unless we are continually filled with and awestruck by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, we won’tminister out of the simple but profound gospel. Instead, we will serve out of our own strength and self-righteousness.
Won't you join me in praying right now for a fresh infusion of gospel grace and revival into our souls?
A Prayer for Personal Revival
Our Father in Heaven,
We praise You, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. What a miracle that we were chosen in Christ before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in Your sight and to be your adopted daughters.
Father, thank You for including us in Christ by sending others to share Your message of truth, the gospel of our salvation. Thank You for marking, sealing, and anointing us by your Holy Spirit. The fact that we are called Your treasured possession brings us great joy!
Recall to us the depths of sin from which You’ve ransomed us so we can celebrate the height, depth, width, and length of Christ’s redeeming love. Like rising floodwaters in our souls, send Your love to saturate the dry, complacent, weary places where ministry has drained and depleted us.
Deliver us, oh God, from ministering out of emptiness, which gives way to weariness and burnout. Cultivate self-control in our hearts and minds to say no to fruitless activity and busyness. Help us scale back on doing for You and spend more time being with You. Carve out for us sacred “mealtimes,” feasting at the banquet table of Your Word, drinking-in Your living water, and being washed and revived by the Word so we will overflow with the fruit of Your Spirit.
Reorder our hearts’ affections: ministry success, pleasing others, materialism, idle pastimes, and yes—even good things like our children and spouses. We desire You, Jesus, to be the highest object of our affection. Our High King of Heaven, You alone are worthy to sit on the throne of our hearts. Open the eyes of our hearts to grasp the hope of our calling to be completely Yours. Come and rule over our lives today and every day so we will joyfully say “yes, Lord” to Your every invitation.
May you, the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, our Father of glory, give every leader who is praying this today a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Jesus. Father, we long to know Your Son more intimately! We believe that the more we know Him, the more we trust Him, and the more we trust Him, the more we will desire to obey His voice of truth.
Father, you have given Your Son a heavenly position that is far above all rule and authority, power and dominion both today and forever (Eph. 1:21). He reigns over everything including us. We bow humbly before the fullness of the One who fills everything in every way. May all we do bring honor and glory to our King of kings.
In Christ’s name we pray,
Amen
Your Turn to Cry Out
- Block out some time to allow your glorious Father to minister to you. Pray Ephesians 1:17–19, asking Him to fill you afresh with “the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him.”
- Pray for the truth of the pure gospel to remind you of the freedom Christ Jesus purchased for you on Calvary.
- Ask God to reveal objects of your affections that are leading you astray. Confess and repent, acknowledging Jesus as your first love (Rev. 2:3–4).