Claire's Prayer

Have you ever had news that seems simply too good to be true? In fact, the news is so good that joy explodes inside you, and you can hardly comprehend it! I remember when my husband and I were trying to have a baby, time after time we were disappointed. And then that day came, I’ll never forget it, when the nurse told me I was pregnant! I wanted to jump over the counter and kiss her, I couldn’t believe it. I walked home floating on a cloud, so incredibly overjoyed. 𝗜𝘁 𝗳𝗲𝗹𝘁 𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗶𝘁 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗲.

In 1965, Navy Commander Porter Halyburton was shot down over Vietnam along with his co-pilot. His wife Marty Halyburton was informed of his death and the news was absolutely devastating. A young widow at 24 with a newborn baby to raise by herself. Coming to grips with her husband’s death was truly hard and I cannot imagine the river of tears she must have shed. 18 months later it was discovered that Porter was a Prisoner of War in the Hanoi Hilton and not dead at all! Military representatives came to Marty’s home with the dramatic news that her husband was alive – what a roller coaster. She was then told not to tell anyone at this point. How do you hide a new spring in your step, a smile that radiates from your lips, and eyes that brim with excitement? As soon as Marty was permitted, she called everyone she could think of with the news; “𝗛𝗲’𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲!”

After Jesus rose again He appeared to the eleven disciples, at first, they were frightened thinking that they were seeing a ghost and then Jesus showed them the brutal scars in His hands, the nail marks in His feet. In Luke 24:41 it says this; “𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙙𝙞𝙙 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙟𝙤𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙯𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩, 𝙝𝙚 𝙖𝙨𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢, “𝘿𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙚𝙖𝙩?” They were so amazed, and joy bubbled up within them, they almost couldn’t believe it. Jesus was alive!! They bought Him some fish and he ate, definitely not a ghost. Can you just imagine their excitement?!

Joy and Amazement, Delight and Wonder. Elation that Jesus was alive, that He rose again, defeated Satan, sin and death on our behalf! Good news indeed. Very good news. Should this not be our reaction every time we sit with Him, each morning when we breath the name “Jesus,” at the beginning of our prayers. Joy and Amazement that we are meeting with the One who made the stars to shine, took on the enemy and won, knows every hair on our heads. Delight and Wonder that the Savior of the World sits down and communes with us! Oh, Precious Jesus, how wonderful.

𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗜 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗝𝗲𝘀𝘂𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗺𝗮𝘇𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁, 𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝗷𝗼𝘆, 𝗷𝘂𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘀𝗶𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗞𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗳 𝗞𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀, 𝗔𝗹𝗺𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘆 𝗚𝗼𝗱.

𝔻𝕠 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕣𝕖𝕞𝕖𝕞𝕓𝕖𝕣 𝕨𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕚𝕥 𝕨𝕒𝕤 𝕝𝕚𝕜𝕖 𝕨𝕙𝕖𝕟 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕤𝕥 𝕗𝕖𝕝𝕝 𝕚𝕟 𝕝𝕠𝕧𝕖 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙 𝕁𝕖𝕤𝕦𝕤? The sun shined brighter, everything seemed fresh and new! You couldn’t wait to spend time with Him and you wanted to learn everything you could about Him. I remember that time, Jesus was on my mind every single minute of the day, there was joy in my step, and a smile on my face!

A few days ago, I was asked an interesting question, “Think of a person who really loves the LORD?” My mind flew straight away to dear Maggie, a lover of Jesus, who faithfully came every Wednesday afternoon to our Prayer Group. Rain or snow, Maggie was there, praying for those she loved, until her Abba Father called her home at 101 years old! I still remember her beautiful face as we sang an old hymn, her eyes would close, her delicate hands would turn upward, and a smile would appear at the corners of her mouth. She was carried right into the loving arms of her glorious Savior! Maggie was in love!

John Piper asks us this thought provoking question, “𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴: 𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯, 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘯𝘰 𝘴𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘪𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘯𝘫𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘢𝘸, 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘩𝘺𝘴𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘵 𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘣𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯, 𝘪𝘧 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦?”

That’s a question that stops you in your tracks and makes you think!

Does your “𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙡 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜, 𝙮𝙚𝙨 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙛𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙇𝙊𝙍𝘿?” Does your “𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙡 𝙥𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙇𝙊𝙍𝘿 𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙙𝙚𝙚𝙧 𝙥𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙧?” Do you “𝙨𝙚𝙚𝙠 𝙃𝙞𝙢 𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙡𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙙𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙛𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙝 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙃𝙞𝙢 𝙞𝙣 𝙖 𝙙𝙧𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩𝙮 𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙤 𝙬𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙧?”

Let’s ask the LORD to return us to our first love, to remind us how it felt to be in love with Him, let’s take the time to seek Him out and fall in love again with the lover of our soul.

ℙ𝕖𝕣𝕤𝕡𝕖𝕔𝕥𝕚𝕧𝕖.

It’s a funny thing. So often the way we see something is not the same way others see it at all. In 2013, Dove launched a fascinating experiment called “Real Beauty Sketches.” They asked a forensic artist to draw a portrait of a woman as she described herself and then asked a stranger to describe the same woman to the artist while he did a 2nd portrait.

The results were startling, each time the 2nd portrait described by the stranger was much more flattering and closer to reality than the one where the woman described herself. Dove had proved their point; you are more beautiful than you think!

What if you could sit down and describe yourself and then our wonderful Abba Father would describe how He thinks about you. What would He say? What would His perspective be? You see, Almighty God sees you through the blood of Jesus. He looks at you and says you are without spot or blemish, totally beautiful in His sight. He thinks you are valuable, more valuable than the sparrows (Matt 10:31), He knows you are fearfully and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:14) He sees You as a new creation, free and not condemned! (2 Cor 5:17, Romans 8:1). And you are loved, Oh so loved, unconditionally! (Is 54:10)

What would life be like if we could have a change in perspective and begin to see things from the Father’s point of view? Would we be less defensive, more willing to love on others, confident, and perhaps even brave? Today I pray that the LORD would give me His perspective, that I would see things from His point of view, and I pray the same for you – 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒅, 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒗𝒂𝒍𝒖𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒇𝒖𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌!

In John 7:37-38 Jesus said;“𝑰𝒇 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕𝒔, 𝒍𝒆𝒕 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒌. 𝑯𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝑴𝒆, 𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒑𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅, 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒇𝒍𝒐𝒘 𝒓𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒓.” Jesus promised not only to fill those who are thirsty, but promised that rivers of life would flow out from their innermost being. 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗳𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻, 𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗳𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝘂𝘁.

In Israel, there are two seas that are fed from the Jordan River. The Sea of Galilee, teaming with life, home to a myriad of fish, the soil is so fertile that almost any plant will flourish. The rabbis wrote, “𝙰𝚕𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝙶𝚘𝚍 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚌𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚜𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚜𝚎𝚊𝚜, 𝚢𝚎𝚝 𝙷𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚌𝚑𝚘𝚜𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚊𝚜 𝙷𝚒𝚜 𝚜𝚙𝚎𝚌𝚒𝚊𝚕 𝚍𝚎𝚕𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝.”

The other sea fed by the Jordan is the Dead Sea. During the Crusades, this sea was sometimes referred to as the “𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗹’𝘀 𝗦𝗲𝗮!” Sitting at 1,300 feet below sea level, this lake is the lowest place on earth. Nothing lives in the Dead Sea. Nothing.

These two seas are in the same area of Israel, fed by the same river but one of them is full of life and the other quite dead! The difference is that the Jordan River flows into the Sea of Galilee and then flows out again, but the Jordan only flows into the Dead Sea, there is no outlet. The Dead Sea takes the river in and keeps it to itself. The result–no life at all!

If we become like the Dead Sea, wanting only to be poured into, the results will be catastrophic. We need to be like the Sea of Galilee, thirsty, drinking of the Living Water but letting that river flow from us. 𝗧𝗼𝘂𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀, 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗼𝗽𝗲, 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝗞𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗱𝗼𝗺. It’s only when we do this that we will begin to see abundant, rich fruit in our lives.

In Psalm 90:12 we read this verse; “𝑻𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉 𝒖𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒏𝒖𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒅𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒖𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒔𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒚 𝒅𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒐𝒑 𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒅𝒐𝒎 𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒔.” A seemingly impossible request, how many of us know the number of our days? Only our Abba Father who has appointed every single one of them for us.

Hidden in this verse is a sparkling treasure, a truth that will change us if we let it. In Hebrew, this verse says, “𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐮𝐬 𝐭𝐨 ‘𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐡’ 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐬,” to not just number our days but to prepare and appoint them. Our instructions are to look upon every day as important and to plan for it ahead of time. To prepare for the things we need to do, even to appoint moments in our day.

Perhaps make an appointment with a friend for coffee and set aside a particular day. Elect a time when you will meet with your Savior and keep the date. Set aside time for your children, your spouse, your parents. Appoint a day to write a blog or journal, study a book or meditate on God’s Word. Plan and prepare your days instead of watching them fly by in what seems like a flash and a blur.

If we ‘manah’ our days then, “𝒘𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒚 𝒅𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒐𝒑 𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒅𝒐𝒎 𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒔.” The wisdom that we all want, desire, and need. We will be like the five wise virgins who had oil in their lamps, they knew there was an appointed time for the bridegroom to come and get them. In this same way, we are asked to appoint, prepare, and number all the days of our lives.

I often have great intentions, but the busyness of life, procrastination on my part, and the squirrels in my head (oh, those squirrels!) often distract me from my destination. But I am learning, and one of those things that I have learned is that nothing about being in relationship with our Eternal God is passive. There’s always a part we must play, a choice we have to make.

Let’s take a look at a few examples from the Word of God:

“𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒊𝒕 𝒖𝒑𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝑶𝑹𝑫 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉…” Isaiah 40:31

“𝑻𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝑶𝑹𝑫 𝒊𝒔 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅; 𝒃𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒔 𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒖𝒈𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒉𝒊𝒎.” Psalm 34:8

“𝑫𝒓𝒂𝒘 𝒏𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝑮𝒐𝒅, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑯𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒅𝒓𝒂𝒘 𝒏𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖.” James 4:8

“𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒏𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝑶𝑹𝑫 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓; 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒆𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒓𝒖𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒊𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒇𝒆.” Proverbs 18:10

“𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝑶 𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝑮𝒐𝒅, 𝒇𝒍𝒆𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒖𝒆 𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒆𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔, 𝒈𝒐𝒅𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔, 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉, 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆, 𝒑𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆, 𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔. 𝑭𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒇𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉, 𝒍𝒂𝒚 𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒐𝒏 𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆, 𝒕𝒐 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒄𝒉 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒍𝒔𝒐 𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒇𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒇𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔.” 1 Timothy 6:11-12

Action words and verbs simply abound in these passages. 𝑾𝒂𝒊𝒕! 𝑻𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑺𝒆𝒆. 𝑫𝒓𝒂𝒘 𝑵𝒆𝒂𝒓. 𝑹𝒖𝒏! 𝑷𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒖𝒆. 𝑭𝒍𝒆𝒆! 𝑭𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕!

So much of the Word of God requires action on our part. We cannot just sit, doing nothing, and expect to grow in the knowledge of our God. Good intentions and good ideas don’t get us anywhere! Therefore, I love the consistency of our Abba Father, and this is why I so want to be like Him. If we consistently wait, consistently taste, consistently draw near, we will get to know the LORD and we will see change in our families, our nation, and across the world.

Let’s make this our prayer – “𝘓𝘖𝘙𝘋 – 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵, 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦, 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘧𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘶𝘪𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴. 𝘛𝘶𝘳𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯!”

Sometimes when I set aside time to pray, I don’t want to do it wrong, I want to do it right. I don’t want to be the one Solomon spoke about in Ecclesiastes 5:2; “𝑫𝒐 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒃𝒆 𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒄𝒌 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒎𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒉, 𝒅𝒐 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒃𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒚 𝒊𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒖𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝑮𝒐𝒅. 𝑮𝒐𝒅 𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒐𝒏 𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒉, 𝒔𝒐 𝒍𝒆𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒔 𝒃𝒆 𝒇𝒆𝒘.”

When I was in my teens, we were taught to pray the ‘ACTS’ way. Adoration – Confession – Thanksgiving – Supplication. Should I stick to this methodology? Is this the ‘right’ way? Before I know it 30 minutes has passed as I worry about getting it right!

I know that we are told to come ‘boldly’ into the presence of God. “𝑳𝒆𝒕 𝒖𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒍𝒅𝒍𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒆, 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒚 𝒐𝒃𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅.” Hebrews 4:16. But what does ‘boldy’ look like? It’s certainly not brash or with a sense of entitlement!

𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 is what my Strong’s Concordance tells me. With confidence and free from any kind of fear, the ability to pour out your heart before the King. Before a throne of grace, unmerited favor, and merciful kindness!

Spurgeon puts it way better than I ever could; “𝘞𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘍𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘵, 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘉𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘮 𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘦. 𝘏𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘶𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘸𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴. 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘦, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯, 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘸𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦, 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘸𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘺 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘏𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘺?”

At the end of the day, I think I make things too complicated. Our Bridegroom is approachable. There is no perfect way or ‘right way’ to talk to our Father. He longs for us to come to Him in confidence, with honesty, and openness in our hearts.

Today I pray that you wouldn’t delay, that you would know the freedom you have to approach your Savior, He welcomes you into His presence with open arms! Pour out your heart to Him knowing that He listens with avid attention and responds to the cry of your heart.

Peace. We all long for it and yet at times it seems that as soon as we have it, it slips away once more.

God’s Word tells us that we can indeed have the peace that we fervently desire. “𝑩𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒙𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒚 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒌𝒔𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒍𝒆𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒓𝒆𝒒𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒔 𝒃𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝑮𝒐𝒅; 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝑮𝒐𝒅, 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒄𝒉 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒑𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒈𝒖𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔.” (Phil 4:6-7)

We all know this scripture, in fact, Amazon released data stating this is the most highlighted passage of scripture in the Kindle Bible!

I don’t need to point out the obvious, that we need to pray about everything, raising our voices in thanksgiving to the God of the Universe, to the One who deserves all our thanks, I know you know that. But there is something in this scripture that speaks loudly to me. “𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝑮𝒐𝒅 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒄𝒉 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒑𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈.” As we pray and seek the LORD with thanksgiving, w̲e̲ ̲m̲u̲s̲t̲ ̲r̲e̲l̲i̲n̲q̲u̲i̲s̲h̲ ̲o̲u̲r̲ ̲r̲i̲g̲h̲t̲ ̲t̲o̲ ̲u̲n̲d̲e̲r̲s̲t̲a̲n̲d̲, release our questions to Him and give up our need to understand it all, acknowledging that we don’t need to understand, just trust.

Then peace will rise above and surpass our need to understand and guard our hearts and minds! Herein lies the secret to peace, praying, seeking God, thanksgiving, and giving up the right to understand.

My prayer for you today is that you would be able to trust and find God’s peace, and with that peace would come joy, overwhelming thanksgiving, that you would indeed be like the trees of the field clapping their hand in praise to our beautiful Savior, Jesus Christ!