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5 Practices to Help You Become the Person God Created You to Be

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Follow my example: Even the Son of Man did not come for people to serve him. He came to serve others…

MARK 10:45

The things you do consistently over time create the person that you ultimately become. Are your habits filling you with the wisdom, compassion, and joy you need to serve others? 2020 may be more than halfway over, but it’s never too late to start growing. Here are 5 spiritual practices that can help you become the person God created you to be:

Find wisdom in God’s Word.

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Bible Plans help you learn about and explore God’s Word in manageable chunks, a little at a time each day, with selections you can read, listen to, or watch. Try a featured Plan, or search by category, topic—or even by emotion. When you start a Plan, invite friends to join you.

Find a Plan >

Enjoy conversations with God.

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Prayer is simply talking to God about whatever is on your mind, by yourself or together with friends, and then listening for Him to speak. Our Prayer feature helps you keep track of things you’re praying for, Prayers you’ve created, and Prayers that Friends send to you.

Add a Prayer >

Connect in biblical
community.

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We’re not meant to do life alone. Invite friends to join you in the app, where you can explore God’s Word together, share prayers with each other, and more. Look for Suggested Friends in your Home feed, tap [Friend icon], or go to More, Share the Bible App.

Invite Some Friends >

Honor God in worship.

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Take time each day to express respect and devotion to your Father. Sing to Him. Thank Him in prayer for something He’s done in your life. Tell other people about what He’s doing. Search your music streaming service for “worship” or “praise,” then listen to renew your mind with reverence for Him.

Learn More >

Invest in God’s kingdom.

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God modeled generosity by giving us Jesus, His most prized possession. Give your time by working to become a better listener. Use your talents to serve others in your community. Invest your resources— first into your local church— or consider supporting YouVersion’s mission.

More Ideas >

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How can you make the world a better place?

Love your neighbor as yourself - Luke 10:25-30 - Verse Image

3 Ways to Show Love to a Hurting World

In Luke 10, Jesus tells the story of a Samaritan man who helps a wounded Jew. At this point in time, years of tension had led to a centuries-long conflict between Jews and Samaritans.

But instead of letting the Jew die on the side of the road, the Samaritan stopped what he was doing, noticed the man’s pain, and went out of his way to help. The Samaritan showed compassion and empathy…when nobody else would.

Then, Jesus ends this parable by telling His followers, “You, go and do likewise.”

In a world filled with conflict and hardship, how do we actively live out Jesus’ words in a way that is helpful?

Here are 3 ways we can follow the Samaritan’s example and love our neighbors:

Place Yourself in Someone’s Pain

Sharing someone’s pain allows us to taste what God did for us when He came as a human to endure the cross. When we choose to experience what someone else is going through, we can then show that person true compassion.

Sacrifice Your Plans and Position

The Samaritan invested his time, his money, and his resources into saving the hurting man, just as Jesus surrendered Himself so that we could have abundant life. Sacrificial love costs us something—but the return is healing and forgiveness.

Take Specific Action

The Samaritan showed the Jewish man that he cared by taking care of him. It was that decision that led to restoration. In the same way, we must be willing to repeatedly act in ways that demonstrate empathy, humility, and grace. Compassion, in order to be effective, has to lead to action.

So, who in your life is hurting? How can you step out of your comfort zone and into their pain? Your decision to do that might just lead to healing and restoration.

A Prayer for Empathy

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A Prayer for True Justice

Act Justly. Love Mercy, Walk Humbly. - Micah 6:8 - Verse Image

Our hope for the YouVersion Community is for each person to be on a journey, drawing closer to God and seeking His heart every day. As a community, we have a lot we need to talk about. What happened to George Floyd, and to many others before him, and what continues to happen is tragic, heartbreaking, and unjust. These things should never happen to anyone. We should celebrate the diversity of our global church, but we must also address the disparity that continues to exist. We have a lot of work to do, together, uniting in love as brothers and sisters in Christ. Let’s pray for boldness—that can only come from our Savior—to confront the injustices and racism in our world.

A Prayer for True Justice

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Plans to Spark Conversation

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What are you praying for?

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Be saturated in prayer throughout each day, offering your faith-filled requests before God with overflowing gratitude.

PHILIPPIANS 4:6

Healing? Peace? Protection? A breakthrough? Are you praying for yourself? Or for someone you care about? Whatever you’re praying for, consider inviting someone you trust to pray with you.

Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ.

GALATIANS 6:2

Hopefully you’ve already discovered that YouVersion’s new Prayer feature is a great way to keep track of everything you’re praying for. But YouVersion Prayer also lets you include friends in your conversation with God. When you add a Prayer, all you need to do to invite others to pray is tap Share with Friends.

Share with friends on Prayer card

The Prayer Chain feature lets your Bible App Friends share your Prayer with their Friends, who can then share it with their Friends, and so on.

Create a Prayer Chain

Allow your Friends and Friends of Friends to share this Prayer

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Add a Prayer

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How to Pray When You Don’t Know What to Pray

Woman praying

What stops you from talking to God regularly?

Becoming comfortable with prayer takes practice. And yet—if we want to grow in our faith, it’s important that we’re able to have honest conversations with our relational God.

So, if you’re not sure what to pray about…

Here are 5 examples of daily prayers:

  1. Pray for God to be Known

“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think… to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations…”

EPHESIANS 3:20-21

Example:

God, we know that You are above all things and that by You all things are held together. Today, please be glorified in our world. Would people who have never met You, find You. Amen.

  1. Pray for the World

“Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.”

EPHESIANS 6:18

Example:

God, please set the world right. Do what’s best for Your kingdom, and fill Your people with mercy, strength, and bright ideas so that we can spiritually contribute to our world. Amen.

  1. Pray for What You Need

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.”

PHILIPPIANS 4:6

Example:

God, You know what I need before I do. So please give me what I need today so that I can focus on You, and not on my problems. And, when it comes to tomorrow’s needs, I trust that You will provide. Amen.

  1. Pray for Forgiveness

“But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too.”

MARK 11:25

Example:

God, You alone know our intentions. Please forgive the people who have wronged me because I have forgiven them. And Lord, forgive me because I’ve also messed up. Please don’t hold our mistakes against us. Amen.

  1. Pray for Healing and Protection

“Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.”

JAMES 5:14

Example:

God, there is so much suffering in our world. Please heal the sick and restore peace and life to our weary souls. Protect our bodies and our minds, and give us Your strength to endure temptation and trials. Amen.

These ideas aren’t new—Jesus used them to teach His disciples how to pray 2,000 years ago:

Our Father in heaven,
may your name be kept holy.
May your Kingdom come soon.
May your will be done on earth,
as it is in heaven.
Give us today the food we need,
and forgive us our sins,
as we have forgiven those
who sin against us.
And don’t let us yield to temptation,
but rescue us from the evil one.

MATTHEW 6:9-13

To help you create a regular prayer rhythm, try creating a Prayer List inside your Bible App. Every day, pick a few things from that list to focus on. (You can also invite friends into your conversations with God by sharing your Prayers with them.)

As time goes by, you’ll be able to look back at that list and reflect on what God was doing in your life during that time.

Pray Now

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