June 14, 2019 • Life for Leaders
Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,
but whose delight is in the law of the LORD,
and who meditates on his law day and night.
That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers.
Psalm 1:1-3
A Note from Mark:
If you’ve been reading Life for Leaders for a while, you know that Friday devotions are usually drawn from the Psalms. In fact, last week I just completed one whole lap of the Psalms, drawing my inspiration from Psalm 150.
Today I want to start something a bit different. For a while, Friday devotions will still be based on the Psalms, but the format will be new. Rather than reflecting and then praying, I want to share a prayer right up front. This prayer will be explicitly connected to work, both paid and unpaid. My intention is that this approach to the Psalms will help you to pray in the context of your own work, whether you labor in a kiosk or a kitchen, a shop or a studio, a field or a factory, a boardroom or a bodega, a classroom or a church.
My hope is that this series of prayers based on the Psalms will help you go deeper in your workplace discipleship. May you discover God’s presence right where you work and find new freedom to offer all that you are to God in workplace worship.
Prayer:
Dear Lord, as I think about my work, I want to be like that tree in Psalm 1.
I want to yield fruit in season.
I don’t want my leaves to wither.
I yearn to prosper in whatever I do in my work.
You have made me to be fruitful, Lord. So my yearning is part of my God-given DNA. That I want my life to matter – yes, my work to matter – is a result of how you have created me. Plus, I am your handiwork, created anew in Christ Jesus for good works that you’ve prepared for me. I want to do these works in all of life, including the part of life I call my work.
Help me, I pray, to be a tree planted by streams of water.
May my roots grow deeply into your truth and love.
May I take time each day to meditate on Scripture, so it might inform and inspire my work.
Even as I’m doing my job, focusing on the tasks before me, may your Word be alive within me: guiding, encouraging, nourishing, empowering, and liberating.
To you be all the glory in my work today! Amen.
Ponder Throughout the Day:
Meditating on God’s Word will help you to be fruitful in your work.
For Further Reflection:
In addition to Psalm 1, this prayer has been inspired by Genesis 1:28, Ephesians 2:10, and Hebrews 4:12-13.
Explore more at The High Calling archive, hosted by the Theology of Work Project:
Best of Daily Reflections: Avoiding the Sweetness of Evil
Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a Senior Strategist for Fuller’s Max De Pree Center for Leadership, where he focuses on the spiritual development and thriving of leaders. He is the principal writer of the daily devotional, Life for Leaders, and the founder of the De Pree Center’s Flourishing in the Third Third of Life Initiative. Previously, Mark was the Executive Director of the De Pree Center, the lead pastor of a church in Southern California, and the Senior Director of Laity Lodge in Texas. He has written eight books, dozens of articles, and over 2,500 devotions that help people discover the difference God makes in their daily life and leadership. With a Ph.D. in New Testament from Harvard, Mark teaches at Fuller Seminary, most recently in his D.Min. cohort on “Faith, Work, Economics, and Vocation.” Mark is married to Linda, a marriage and family counselor, spiritual director, and executive coach. Their two grown children are educators on the high school and college level.
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What a great prayer. Thanks, Mark.
I am so enriched by these devotionals. Thank you for all your efforts.
You are a blessing! I like how this encourage to run to God and
get closer each day. – Noemi
Love the new format for Friday Psalms. Praying the Word is always a blessing to me.