1 00:00:02,720 --> 00:00:15,760 Speaker 1: Life Audio. Thank you for listening to your Daily Prayer, 2 00:00:16,280 --> 00:00:19,000 Speaker 1: a podcast dedicated to helping you find the words you 3 00:00:19,120 --> 00:00:22,840 Speaker 1: need to connect with your Father in Heaven. No matter 4 00:00:22,880 --> 00:00:25,560 Speaker 1: what is going on in your life today, you can 5 00:00:25,600 --> 00:00:29,200 Speaker 1: trust that God wants to hear from you. Right after 6 00:00:29,240 --> 00:00:32,160 Speaker 1: the short word from our sponsor, people pray you today's 7 00:00:32,200 --> 00:00:54,360 Speaker 1: prayer to become an imitator of Christ together. A Prayer 8 00:00:54,480 --> 00:00:59,440 Speaker 1: to Become an Imitator of Christ, written by Emily Rose Massey, 9 00:01:00,200 --> 00:01:05,920 Speaker 1: read by Carrie Ikeeburger. I have firm brethren by the 10 00:01:05,959 --> 00:01:09,479 Speaker 1: boasting in you which I have in Christ, Jesus, our Lord. 11 00:01:10,080 --> 00:01:16,720 Speaker 1: I die daily first Corinthians fifteen, verse thirty one. Change 12 00:01:16,760 --> 00:01:21,280 Speaker 1: the baby's diaper, take the dog outside, feed everyone breakfast, 13 00:01:21,360 --> 00:01:25,800 Speaker 1: including said dog. Start a load of laundry, empty the dishwasher, 14 00:01:26,080 --> 00:01:29,320 Speaker 1: fill a dishwasher with more dishes, fold and put away 15 00:01:29,360 --> 00:01:37,200 Speaker 1: the laundry, clean counters, vacuum, sweet mop, snacktime, school time, naptime, lunchtime, snacktime, 16 00:01:37,360 --> 00:01:42,880 Speaker 1: dinner time, snacktime, bedtime. Do it again tomorrow. As a 17 00:01:42,880 --> 00:01:46,520 Speaker 1: wife and mother to four boys, I am given countless 18 00:01:46,520 --> 00:01:50,160 Speaker 1: opportunities to set aside my own once and give my 19 00:01:50,280 --> 00:01:55,200 Speaker 1: love time and attention to my husband and children. Pouring 20 00:01:55,200 --> 00:01:58,240 Speaker 1: yourself out like that on a daily basis can sometimes 21 00:01:58,320 --> 00:02:03,840 Speaker 1: be physically exhausting. I often find myself praying for supernatural strength. 22 00:02:04,760 --> 00:02:07,200 Speaker 1: Yet at the end of the day, even though I 23 00:02:07,240 --> 00:02:10,360 Speaker 1: am tempted to wonder where my me time is, my 24 00:02:10,480 --> 00:02:13,880 Speaker 1: heart is always full. This is when I began to 25 00:02:13,960 --> 00:02:17,200 Speaker 1: see more clearly what the apostle Paul meant when he said, 26 00:02:18,040 --> 00:02:21,680 Speaker 1: I affirm, brethren, by the boasting in you which I 27 00:02:21,720 --> 00:02:26,200 Speaker 1: have in Christ Jesus our Lord. I die daily. The 28 00:02:26,200 --> 00:02:30,079 Speaker 1: biblical principle of dying to yourself has always been true, 29 00:02:30,639 --> 00:02:33,520 Speaker 1: but I didn't always live it or even understand it. 30 00:02:34,360 --> 00:02:37,400 Speaker 1: Becoming a stay at home mom has challenged me in 31 00:02:37,480 --> 00:02:40,120 Speaker 1: more ways than I can count in the area of 32 00:02:40,160 --> 00:02:44,000 Speaker 1: putting others before myself, and I am always learning and 33 00:02:44,080 --> 00:02:47,320 Speaker 1: finding that it is truly more blessed to give than 34 00:02:47,360 --> 00:02:51,560 Speaker 1: to receive. As Jesus disciples, we are called to follow Him. 35 00:02:52,280 --> 00:02:56,840 Speaker 1: That was Paul's mission in life to imitate Christ, and 36 00:02:56,880 --> 00:02:59,200 Speaker 1: it is what he and the rest of the Apostles 37 00:02:59,240 --> 00:03:02,400 Speaker 1: literally gave their lives to preach to the world through 38 00:03:02,440 --> 00:03:05,960 Speaker 1: their words and actions. We may never have the honor 39 00:03:06,000 --> 00:03:09,240 Speaker 1: of literally dying for Jesus Christ because of our faith 40 00:03:09,280 --> 00:03:14,000 Speaker 1: in him. But by God's grace, we can imitate his selflessness. 41 00:03:14,040 --> 00:03:18,520 Speaker 1: Every day. To imitate Christ, we must look to Jesus 42 00:03:18,520 --> 00:03:22,800 Speaker 1: as our example. Even though Jesus was God in the flesh, 43 00:03:23,080 --> 00:03:25,960 Speaker 1: he still leaned upon God the Father for everything he 44 00:03:26,040 --> 00:03:29,880 Speaker 1: said and did. While he walked this earth. Jesus would 45 00:03:29,960 --> 00:03:33,480 Speaker 1: rise early to pray and seek God's will for the day. 46 00:03:34,400 --> 00:03:38,120 Speaker 1: In addition to seeking God in prayer, Jesus obediently submitted 47 00:03:38,200 --> 00:03:41,200 Speaker 1: himself to the will of the Father, even unto death. 48 00:03:42,080 --> 00:03:45,480 Speaker 1: Each day we are faced with the temptation to satisfy 49 00:03:45,520 --> 00:03:49,400 Speaker 1: our flesh and go outside the boundaries of God's perfect will. 50 00:03:50,200 --> 00:03:52,920 Speaker 1: We discover what that will is when we read the 51 00:03:52,920 --> 00:03:56,520 Speaker 1: Bible and study it for ourselves to learn God's ways. 52 00:03:57,240 --> 00:04:02,040 Speaker 1: We are not perfect, but Thankfullyjesus was, and because of 53 00:04:02,120 --> 00:04:05,080 Speaker 1: his sacrifice on the cross, we have been given the 54 00:04:05,120 --> 00:04:10,800 Speaker 1: precious gift of the Holy Spirit as born again believers. Ultimately, 55 00:04:11,320 --> 00:04:14,960 Speaker 1: Jesus did not come to be served, but to serve others. 56 00:04:15,880 --> 00:04:20,000 Speaker 1: Jesus ministered to thousands upon thousands of people during his 57 00:04:20,120 --> 00:04:23,800 Speaker 1: time year on earth. John twenty two tells us that 58 00:04:23,880 --> 00:04:27,400 Speaker 1: if all the things Jesus did were written down, the 59 00:04:27,560 --> 00:04:30,560 Speaker 1: entire world could not contain the books that will be written. 60 00:04:31,680 --> 00:04:35,440 Speaker 1: Dying daily definitely isn't easy, but it is worth it 61 00:04:35,760 --> 00:04:39,920 Speaker 1: because Jesus promises us that whoever loses his life will 62 00:04:40,000 --> 00:04:44,400 Speaker 1: find it and find it in abundance. But remember, we 63 00:04:44,480 --> 00:04:48,200 Speaker 1: cannot die daily in our own strength. Friends, The Holy 64 00:04:48,240 --> 00:04:51,640 Speaker 1: Spirit is who empowers us to choose God's way through 65 00:04:51,680 --> 00:04:55,320 Speaker 1: the fruit of the Spirit. With each passing day, by 66 00:04:55,360 --> 00:04:59,520 Speaker 1: God's grace, we mature and cultivate a life worth dying for, 67 00:05:00,320 --> 00:05:04,679 Speaker 1: a life found in Christ alone. Who is God asking 68 00:05:04,720 --> 00:05:08,640 Speaker 1: you to serve? What selfish desires do you need to 69 00:05:08,720 --> 00:05:12,119 Speaker 1: lay aside to put someone else's life before your own? 70 00:05:13,000 --> 00:05:16,120 Speaker 1: Are you too busy or to distract it to serve others? 71 00:05:16,960 --> 00:05:20,279 Speaker 1: Take some time to write down those who come to mind, 72 00:05:20,680 --> 00:05:23,680 Speaker 1: whom you can minister to, even if it's just a 73 00:05:23,720 --> 00:05:27,840 Speaker 1: simple phone call to encourage someone. May God empower us 74 00:05:27,839 --> 00:05:33,840 Speaker 1: to imitate Christ daily by sacrificially loving others more than ourselves. 75 00:05:34,440 --> 00:05:39,280 Speaker 1: Let's pray Heavenly Father. My flesh wants nothing to do 76 00:05:39,360 --> 00:05:43,360 Speaker 1: with denying it of anything. I don't want to experience suffering, 77 00:05:44,120 --> 00:05:46,600 Speaker 1: but it is in those moments of dying to self 78 00:05:47,040 --> 00:05:50,400 Speaker 1: that I become more like Christ. Help me to embrace 79 00:05:50,480 --> 00:05:53,880 Speaker 1: those trials and sufferings so that I may grow closer 80 00:05:53,920 --> 00:05:57,960 Speaker 1: to You. I want my life to look more like Christ, 81 00:05:58,160 --> 00:06:02,120 Speaker 1: dying by learning to be humble and sacrificial instead of 82 00:06:02,160 --> 00:06:05,960 Speaker 1: resisting those difficult times. Help me to find great opportunities 83 00:06:05,960 --> 00:06:10,600 Speaker 1: for sanctification to be conformed to the image of Christ. Jesus, 84 00:06:11,520 --> 00:06:14,800 Speaker 1: Thank you for your spirit that empowers me to die 85 00:06:14,920 --> 00:06:30,039 Speaker 1: daily in Jesus name. Amen. Your Daily Prayer is a 86 00:06:30,080 --> 00:06:34,240 Speaker 1: production of Life Audio and Sale Media. If you haven't already, 87 00:06:34,640 --> 00:06:37,400 Speaker 1: be sure to follow the show in your favorite podcast 88 00:06:37,480 --> 00:06:41,000 Speaker 1: app so you never miss an episode. For more faith 89 00:06:41,040 --> 00:06:51,760 Speaker 1: tul inspirational podcasts, visit us at lifeaudio dot com.