Claire's Prayer

It’s all very well to accept that invitation to the table but what happens after Jesus draws back your seat and tenderly places a napkin in your lap? Are you a little like me with thoughts that spin in your head at an alarming rate, distractions that seem like a thousand ping-pong balls dropped from the ceiling?

As I sat with the LORD trying to still my mind I heard him say the word “𝔽𝕠𝕔𝕦𝕤 – 𝕚𝕥 𝕚𝕤 𝕥𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕥𝕠 𝕗𝕠𝕔𝕦𝕤. 𝕀𝕥 𝕚𝕤 𝕥𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕥𝕠 𝕤𝕥𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕥𝕙𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙𝕥𝕤 𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕤𝕡𝕚𝕟 𝕚𝕟 𝕞𝕪 𝕡𝕣𝕖𝕤𝕖𝕟𝕔𝕖. 𝕋𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕥𝕠 𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕝𝕝𝕪, ‘Be still and know that I Am God.” (Ps 46:10)

Hebrews 3:1 says this – “Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest.” That ‘heavenly calling’ in the Greek indicates an invitation to a feast. The table He has prepared for you! ‘*Fix your thoughts on Jesus!’ *Focus on the Saviour! Don’t let your eye be distracted by the battle going on before you, no matter the intensity or ferocity, the enemy is just trying to divert your attention.

Focus on His Words, His smile, His love, kindness, and faithfulness. Stay present in the moment. Allow Holy Spirit to wash over you and settle your mind. Be still. Consider Jesus.

ʜᴇ ɪꜱ ᴛʜᴇ ᴀʟᴘʜᴀ ᴀɴᴅ ᴏᴍᴇɢᴀ, ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴇɢɪɴɴɪɴɢ ᴀɴᴅ ᴇɴᴅ, ᴏᴜʀ ᴄʀᴇᴀᴛᴏʀ, ᴏᴜʀ ʀᴇᴅᴇᴇᴍᴇʀ, ᴛʜᴇ ᴏɴᴇ ᴡʜᴏ ᴄᴀᴍᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴇᴀʀᴛʜ ꜱᴏ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʏᴏᴜ ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅ ʙᴇ ᴡɪᴛʜ ʜɪᴍ ꜰᴏʀ ᴇᴛᴇʀɴɪᴛʏ. ꜱᴏ ʙʀɪɢʜᴛ ᴀɴᴅ ꜱᴏ ʜᴏʟʏ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʜᴇᴀᴠᴇɴ ʜᴀꜱ ɴᴏ ɴᴇᴇᴅ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ꜱᴜɴ. ʜɪꜱ ʙʀᴇᴀᴛʜ ʙʀɪɴɢꜱ ʟɪꜰᴇ, ʜɪꜱ ᴡᴏʀᴅꜱ ᴄʀᴇᴀᴛᴇ ꜱᴛᴀʀꜱ, ᴄʀᴀꜱʜɪɴɢ ᴡᴀᴠᴇꜱ, ꜱᴘᴀʀᴋʟɪɴɢ ꜱɴᴏᴡ, ʜɪꜱ ᴘᴏᴡᴇʀ ᴄᴀᴜꜱᴇꜱ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴏᴜɴᴛᴀɪɴꜱ ᴛᴏ ᴍᴇʟᴛ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴡᴀx. ᴛʜᴀᴛ ɪꜱ ᴛʜᴇ ɢᴏᴅ ʏᴏᴜ ᴀʀᴇ ɪɴᴠɪᴛᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ꜱɪᴛ ᴀᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴀʙʟᴇ ᴡɪᴛʜ! ꜰɪx ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴇʏᴇꜱ ᴏɴ ʜɪᴍ, ʜᴇ ɪꜱ ᴏʜ, ꜱᴏ ᴡᴏʀᴛʜ ɪᴛ!

ℝ𝕖𝕤𝕥𝕠𝕣𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟.

I love this word.

Let’s take a moment to just breathe it in.

𝗥𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 – our beautiful Savior will restore your soul! He will rebuild you and return you to that place where peace reigned. Not only will He restore you but He will then lead you in paths of righteousness.

𝗗𝗶𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁?

𝗛𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂!

He will take you by the hand and lead you along your life’s pathway, a righteous path. Our LORD doesn’t just put you on the road and say ‘off you go’ to do it by yourself, He leads you. It is yet another reminder that He is our constant companion, our friend.

“𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘶𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘶𝘴 𝘣𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘶𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘦𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴!”

(This picture is one I took on a visit to Israel of the sun rising over the Sea of Galilee. Truly still waters!)💕🦋

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! 💕💕👏👏👏.

𝗘𝗹 𝗥𝗼𝗶. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗼𝗱 𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝗦𝗲𝗲𝘀. The God who sees us in every moment, whose eye is always upon us, watching over us. The God who sees us when tears slip down our cheeks, when the weight of the world threatens to crush us. The God who sees us when we sit alone, when anxiety overwhelms, and we can’t seem to cast off those fearful thoughts. The God who sees us in the good and the bad. 𝗔𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝘄𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴. 𝗘𝗹 𝗥𝗼𝗶.

The story of Hagar is a beautiful one, the only time our Father is referred to as El Roi. It’s a story of redemption and hope. In Genesis 16:13 Hagar says this to the LORD; “𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑮𝒐𝒅 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒔 𝒎𝒆,” 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅, “𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑶𝒏𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒔 𝒎𝒆.” You saw me. The Creator, the Holy One, the Great I Am saw me and didn’t ignore me! But even more than this, Hagar says, “𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑶𝒏𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒔 𝒎𝒆.” Hagar saw God! In that desolate place, crushed, and expecting to die, Hagar saw God.

In moments of great anguish, God not only sees us, but He also reveals himself to us. Do you remember Elijah? After being chased by Jezebel he fell into a great depression and cried out to God saying, “𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉, 𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅,” 𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅. “𝑻𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒎𝒚 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆.” (1 Kings 19:4b). Strengthened supernaturally by the LORD he traveled for 40 days to a cave at Mount Horeb where God revealed Himself to Elijah in a whisper. A voice of intimacy, one where you have to lean in and come close to hear the words.

Hagar wouldn’t have seen God if it wasn’t for her brokenness and trials. When all seems lost, remember God sees You! Ask Him to reveal Himself to you, to comfort and encourage. Your loving Father sees you in all your wonderful potential. Washed clean and beautiful by the blood of Jesus. He sees you in your good moments and in your bad. You are never invisible or too small and insignificant – the ever-watchful eyes of your Savior are upon you! 𝗛𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂.

One evening, very recently, while sitting chatting to my children, there was a sound.  Or perhaps it wasn’t a sound but a sudden sound of nothing.  And then the lights went out!  There we were, sitting on the couch, plunged into sudden darkness!  We waited a while but nothing happened and so I turned on the flashlight on my phone.  How thankful I was in that moment for the incredible mind that put a flashlight on a phone – who’d have thought!  Certainly not me.  My little flashlight didn’t light up the whole house, but it was enough for me to search for candles and other sources of light, to which I discovered I was miserably prepared!

My mind went to the scripture, “𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒅 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒍𝒂𝒎𝒑 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒚 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒕, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂 𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒚 𝒑𝒂𝒕𝒉.”  Psalm 119:150.  There were no lights on cell phones back in Israel 2,000 years ago.  If you were taking a journey at night, you carried a small lamp with a flax wick and a little olive oil and that was enough light to reveal one step at a time.  Enough to keep you from stumbling or tripping over a rock.  Not enough to reveal the destination or even the end of the road. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝗯𝘆 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗽.

When you find yourself in need of direction, the Word of God will guide you.  When you feel as though you are plunged into darkness, God’s Word will illuminate you.  In a world that is dark, with little direction, it is God’s Word, the Word of Truth that will show you the path you should take. 

Elizabeth Elliot, a missionary, and author whose husband was martyred in Ecuador, would always quote a line from an old poem; “𝗗𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴.”  It helped her through her grief and was advice she often gave to others helping them through anxiety, depression, and loss.  “𝗗𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴.”  It was a phrase that helped me when I was overwhelmed.  It suddenly simplified my life, and I could go to the LORD and ask, “𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐’𝘭𝘭 𝘥𝘰?”  And step by step, with God’s Word of Truth and prayer, I could do the next thing and the next.

Today if you are feeling overwhelmed, worried, depressed, or anxious, feel as though your life is flipped upside down and you are in darkness, or even if you need wisdom when facing a tricky situation.  𝗚𝗼 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗱, 𝗿𝘂𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿.  The Bible will bring light to your situation, showing you what to do, God will encourage you and Holy Spirit will guide you every step of the way.  𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝗮𝘁 𝗮 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲.

(By the way, that power cut we had, was caused by a snake getting into a transformer and caused 11,000 people to lose power!  How crazy is that!!)

𝕀𝕗 𝕪𝕠𝕦’𝕣𝕖 𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕕𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕤 𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕟 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕤 𝕚𝕤 𝕒𝕝𝕝 𝕒𝕓𝕠𝕦𝕥 𝕐𝕆𝕌 (even though it’s about me too!).

Did you know that there is a whisper going on in heaven, a rustling among the angels? The word is out on the golden streets and rumours are being circulated from angel to angel. There is a definite buzz in the heavens today and the news is spreading like wildfire! Where did the word begin I wonder? Who is it that all the angels are whispering about??

Oh my! They’re talking about me. They say the King of kings told them, Jesus. They say they saw Him rejoicing, He was dancing with joy, He couldn’t stop talking about ME!!

“𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝗛𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝘆 𝗜 𝗮𝘀𝗸?“

“Jesus said that you are beautiful, totally perfect for Him, you are lovely. Oh, and He said that when you sing to Him, His heart starts to beat faster with an overwhelming love for you. He told us that He cannot stop thinking about you, day and night, night and day YOU are on His mind!”

I couldn’t believe it, Jesus said that…… about me?! Are you sure it was me that He was talking about? After all, this is Jesus we’re talking about. The Beautiful Saviour, the Glorious Lord.

“That’s not all He said,” the angels whispered, “Listen to this! Jesus told us that you are the one He wants to be with forever, you are His bride and He is your bridegroom. He says He has so much He wants to tell you, things He has never told anyone else, deep secrets, the secrets of His heart and He won’t tell anyone else, only you because He loves you! He told us that He has so much for you, so much for you to do together, places to go to, exciting plans. He told us that He has blessings for you, gifts. Surprises around every corner! Flowers, sunny days, rainbows, colours, perfume, everything He can think of just to enchant you. He tells us He loves it when you laugh and clap your hands with delight when He blesses you. Then He told us that He simply loves to watch you, He is enthralled by you, He said you have the most beautiful smile, contagious laugh, you are just lovely. It’s funny,” the angels said, “𝗛𝗲 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗻’𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂…… 𝗜 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗛𝗲 𝗺𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲!” 💕🦋

“𝑨𝒔 𝒂 𝒃𝒓𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒈𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒎 𝒓𝒆𝒋𝒐𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝑯𝒊𝒔 𝒃𝒓𝒊𝒅𝒆, 𝒔𝒐 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝑮𝒐𝒅 𝒓𝒆𝒋𝒐𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖.” Isaiah 62:5.

The detail that the LORD put into His Word is astounding. The way we are loved by our God is so overwhelming. Let’s take a look at God’s glorious promise to us in the Jewish wedding ceremony.

The groom would go with his father to the bridegroom’s family, a contract would be drawn up and the father would give his son a glass of wine, he would drink and then pass the cup to the one he had chosen, with the words, “this cup I offer to you.” The essence of what he was saying was, “I’m offering you my life, will you marry me!” If she accepted his offer, she would take the cup and drink, offering her love and life in return.

𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕕𝕖𝕒𝕝 𝕨𝕒𝕤 𝕤𝕖𝕒𝕝𝕖𝕕.

ᴛʜᴇʏ ᴡᴇʀᴇ ʙᴇᴛʀᴏᴛʜᴇᴅ.

𝗙𝘂𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗱.

Only a divorce could separate them now.

The groom would then leave to prepare a place for his beloved bride, often taking a year or more to do this. The groom would not drink of the fruit of the vine until the day of their glorious reunion, a great wedding feast, and much rejoicing.

Now let’s look at Passover, the LORD’s supper. During Passover, 4 cups of wine are offered. Jesus offered the 3rd cup, The Cup of Redemption or the Cup of Salvation. As He offered the cup to His disciples He said, “𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒚 𝒃𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒂𝒏𝒕.”

“I am giving you my life, will you take it, will you marry me?”

Then the words, “𝑰 𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝑰 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒅𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒇𝒓𝒖𝒊𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒐𝒏 𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑰 𝒅𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒊𝒕 𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒚 𝑭𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓’𝒔 𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒅𝒐𝒎.”(Matt 26:29)

The promise that He has gone to prepare a place for us, the promise that He will return for us bringing us to that final banquet, that wedding feast in His Father’s kingdom! Every time we take communion, we drink of that cup, it is the one offered by Jesus, our bridegroom. Each time we drink we are saying Yes! Yes, LORD, I will marry you, I will wait for you, I give you my life in return!

𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕕𝕖𝕒𝕝 𝕚𝕤 𝕤𝕖𝕒𝕝𝕖𝕕.

ʏᴏᴜ ᴀʀᴇ ʙᴇᴛʀᴏᴛʜᴇᴅ.

𝗙𝘂𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗱!

I cannot imagine being swallowed by a great big fish! The smell alone must have been ghastly 🤢. The very worst of places. Alone and in a dark place with no hope of escape, I’m pretty sure that I would have had an epic meltdown! Perhaps Jonah did too. But after 3 days and nights, 𝗝𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗵 𝗯𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗢𝗥𝗗! Astonishing. As Jonah began to shout out his thanksgiving, God spoke to the fish and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.

What was Jonah saying as he shouted those grateful praises?𝗛𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘀𝗮𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗔𝗺, 𝗵𝗲 𝗸𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗚𝗼𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗳𝘂𝗹. He was convinced that Almighty God would save him and rescue him from this horrible situation. And so he began to shout, he began to praise God and give Him thanks!

No matter how dark or hopeless your situation may be, God is still worthy of shouts of grateful praise! I encourage you, wherever you are and whatever you are going through to summon up those shouts, those praises, that thanksgiving. Perhaps take a moment to jump up and down and declare His goodness over your situation, knowing that your God will move. 𝗛𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗺 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗱𝗼𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗻, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸! 🙏💕🐳

Nehemiah.  One of the real ‘greats’ in the Old Testament.  So often pointed to as a great leader who did incredible things in the face of incredible opposition, but Nehemiah was also a man who prayed.  Nehemiah was a man who relied on the strength of God and was humble enough to realise he could not do this alone.  He was a man who continually acknowledged the Great and Mighty God and had a relationship with God based on prayer.

Nehemiah 2:4 says, “𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑲𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒆, ‘𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒒𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒕?’ 𝑺𝒐 𝑰 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑮𝒐𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒏.”  Nehemiah had just spent 4 months in prayer over the wretched state of Jerusalem and its people.  He had beseeched the LORD, he had fasted and even begged the LORD to remember His promise to His chosen ones.

Now, here Nehemiah was, in front of the King, prepared by his 4 months in prayer before the LORD, when the God of Heaven moved on his behalf and opened a door of opportunity.  “𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘥𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘳𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵?”  At that moment, Nehemiah knew that he needed his Father’s help, so he shot out a quick and silent prayer.  He knew that his prayer would reach the attentive ear of the Lord in the same second he breathed it.  

Psalm 66:9 says this, “𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒍𝒚 𝑮𝒐𝒅 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒅; 𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒗𝒐𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒚 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒓.”  God listens attentively when we pray, but not only that, he attends to our prayers.  I love what the dictionary says about ‘𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦’; all ears, enrapt, hanging on every word, heedful, interested, watchful.  God is interested in what you have to say to Him, even enrapt.  The thought that our Great and Mighty God might hang on to every word I say is a knowledge too wonderful for words.  The LORD God of Heaven attentively listens to what you say, even to what you silently speak in your mind.

Nehemiah knew that God was listening at all times, never slumbering or sleeping, he knew He would not let his foot slip, that the God of Heaven was watching over him, ready to help him at this pivotal time of need.  We don’t know exactly what Nehemiah prayed at this moment, just that he did.  Perhaps it was simply, “𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯, 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 𝘮𝘦!”  After all, he had but a second to pray.  But from this brief entry, we can see the heart of Nehemiah, we can see his humility – “𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘥𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘓𝘖𝘙𝘋.”  We can see his faith – “𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘦 𝘍𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳.”  We can see that Nehemiah was a man who put prayer first.

Nehemiah knew God would listen attentively to his prayer and act on his behalf.  And He did!

“𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒢𝑜𝒹 𝑜𝒻 𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝐿𝑜𝓇𝒹 𝒥𝑒𝓈𝓊𝓈 𝒞𝒽𝓇𝒾𝓈𝓉, 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝐹𝒶𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇 𝑜𝒻 𝑔𝓁𝑜𝓇𝓎, 𝓂𝒶𝓎 𝑔𝒾𝓋𝑒 𝓉𝑜 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓈𝓅𝒾𝓇𝒾𝓉 𝑜𝒻 𝓌𝒾𝓈𝒹𝑜𝓂 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓇𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓁𝒶𝓉𝒾𝑜𝓃 𝒾𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓀𝓃𝑜𝓌𝓁𝑒𝒹𝑔𝑒 𝑜𝒻 𝐻𝒾𝓂, 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝑒𝓎𝑒𝓈 𝑜𝒻 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝓊𝓃𝒹𝑒𝓇𝓈𝓉𝒶𝓃𝒹𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒷𝑒𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝑒𝓃𝓁𝒾𝑔𝒽𝓉𝑒𝓃𝑒𝒹; 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓂𝒶𝓎 𝓀𝓃𝑜𝓌 𝓌𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒾𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒽𝑜𝓅𝑒 𝑜𝒻 𝐻𝒾𝓈 𝒸𝒶𝓁𝓁𝒾𝓃𝑔, 𝓌𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓇𝒾𝒸𝒽𝑒𝓈 𝑜𝒻 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝑔𝓁𝑜𝓇𝓎 𝑜𝒻 𝐻𝒾𝓈 𝒾𝓃𝒽𝑒𝓇𝒾𝓉𝒶𝓃𝒸𝑒 𝒾𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓈𝒶𝒾𝓃𝓉𝓈, 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓌𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒾𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝑒𝓍𝒸𝑒𝑒𝒹𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝑔𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓉𝓃𝑒𝓈𝓈 𝑜𝒻 𝐻𝒾𝓈 𝓅𝑜𝓌𝑒𝓇 𝓉𝑜𝓌𝒶𝓇𝒹 𝓊𝓈 𝓌𝒽𝑜 𝒷𝑒𝓁𝒾𝑒𝓋𝑒, 𝒶𝒸𝒸𝑜𝓇𝒹𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓉𝑜 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓌𝑜𝓇𝓀𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝑜𝒻 𝐻𝒾𝓈 𝓂𝒾𝑔𝒽𝓉𝓎 𝓅𝑜𝓌𝑒𝓇.”– Ephesians 1:17-19

What an amazing prayer!  You can feel Paul’s love and care for the Ephesians dripping off his pen as he writes to them.  That you would know Him more, that you would know the hope of your calling, that you would understand the riches of your inheritance and the exceeding greatness of His power!

Paul wasn’t praying that the Ephesians would have new things, or more things, he was praying that the eyes of their understanding would be opened, 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗵𝗮𝗱!  That by wisdom and revelation they would come to know the Father of glory even more.  

In the Guinness Book of Records, Hetty Green, holds the dubious honour of being the “World’s Greatest Miser”!  In the late 1800’s her stinginess was legendary, she would not turn on the heat or use hot water, seldom washed her clothes, did not wash her hands, and would eat cold oatmeal as it cost too much to heat it up!  Her son had his leg amputated as she tried to have him admitted to a free clinic instead of getting him good medical attention.  Hetty may have been extremely mean, but she wasn’t poor.  When Hetty Green died she left behind an estate valued at more than $100 million dollars.  She had incredible resources available to her but did not use them! 

Paul’s prayer is that “the eyes of your understanding be enlightened”, that we wouldn’t stumble around in the dark but that we would know Him more, that we would understand what we already have!