Embracing Prayer

Psalm 55:17 "Evening and morning and at noon, I will complain and murmur, and He will hear my voice."

Psalm 62:8 "Trust in Him at all times, O People; pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us."

     Praying has never come easy for me. I usually find it feeling unnatural. I tend to find my prayers becoming repetitive as if I'm going through a mental checklist. That's not what prayer is supposed to be. Prayer is meant to be the most intimate of times with God we can have on this earth. It's a bonding experience. It's vital to your relationship with God. When a husband and wife stop talking intimately, trouble is coming. Distance creeps in. We must communicate with God-the more frequent the better. When my husband checks in with me throughout the day, I feel loved and closer to him. I imagine it works the same with God. Fortunately for us, there is never a time God can't talk. We never have to stop communicating. We can talk as much as we want and he will never get tired of hearing our voice. Prayer involves listening on our part too. God has plenty to share with us. 

     But what about difficult times? Sometimes I feel like I don't even want to talk to God about it. Usually things get harder at that point. Prayer is crucial during difficulties. We can look at hardships as blessings when we hide away in God our refuge. We can unload on Him and trust Him. That makes God so happy when we let Him help us. Through Him we have the power to not respond negatively, but prayerfully to hard situations. That is a blessing in disguise. 

     On my missions trip this past summer to Cincinnati, OH I met a man named Gordon who was a professional dancer. He had a crazy personality and just sucked people in. But what was most amazing about this man was his prayer life. Prayer WAS his life. I have never met someone who was so in tune with God. When I spoke to Him, I felt like I could literally see Jesus in him. When he prayed, you could feel the presence of Jesus filling the room. Gordon loved prayer. You could just tell. Every day we arrived at the site he would tell us to go pray while we waited for him. We were always stopping to pray throughout the day--and not just when it felt natural. All the time. Randomly. For no apparent reason. But, there always is a reason, isn't there? Why not pray? Are we really too busy to stop our day for the creator of the universe? That sounds crazy--and it is!! I wish everyone could get the chance to meet Gordon once in their life and pray with him. It is an experience I hope I never forget. Praying isn't just something we should do because God says so. Prayer is a gift, a blessing beyond compare, and open line of communication to the one who loves us beyond measure. Use it. Cherish it. Grow in it. It's as close to heaven as we can get.

Embracing Change

Hebrews 13:8 "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever."

Psalm 102:25-27 "Of old You founded the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands. Even they will perish, but You endure; and all of them will wear out like a garment; like clothing You will change them and they will be changed. But You are the same, and Your years will not come to an end."

Psalm 48:14 "For such is God, Our God forever and ever; He will guide us unto death." 

     Maybe it's just me, but I can't keep a schedule to save my life. Something always changes. Something comes up that throws everything off and I can't pull my day back together once that happens. This really stressed me out until a couple weeks ago. I think I finally embraced the change. 

     Our lives can never truly be perfectly organized in neat little time slots. It's not bad to have a plan for the day, but flexibility is key. We miss out on great opportunities God gives us when we worry too much about staying within the lines of our perfectly planned day. Sometimes we have to make that last minute trip to the grocery store to get the main ingredient for dinner that we (of all things) forgot. That can be really frustrating and maybe we won't get to go through the perfect little bedtime routine with our child that night. But maybe we will run into someone at the store that had a prayer request for us or needed some encouragement. Maybe not. But sometimes what seems like our plans being messed up, is really just our plans being put together the right way. 

     However, our being craves at least a little stability. When everything spins out of control, we reach back for something stable. For many people that means family. Family should always be a safe haven. Unfortunately, sometimes even family lets us down. Things change. People change. Relationships change. Everything changes! Except God. God is the only constant we can truly ever have. God has been around for all of eternity and never changed. That's a pretty good track record. When life spins out of control, why not reach first to the Solid Rock who will always be there. Even when our bodies change unto the point of death, God is there. He hasn't changed and never will. We will get to see our unchanging God face-to-face. So we can embrace life's constant change by finding constant stability in Christ-our Rock and our Foundation.

Embracing Weakness

Isaiah 42:3 "A bruised reed He will not break, and a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish; He will faithfully bring forth justice."

Isaiah 54:10 "For the mountains may be removed and the hills may shake, but My lovingkindness will not be removed from you, and my covenant of peace will not be shaken," says the Lord who has compassion on you." 

 Romans 8:26 "In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words."

     Looking out, it seems most people have it all together. Yes, bad things happen to everyone, but they seem to take their hardships in stride. Me? I crumble. I've often questioned my relationship with God because of my severe anxieties and depression. Where is this "joy" I'm supposed to feel in every circumstance. Shouldn't I just trust that everything will be okay? I know God holds the world together, so why does it seem like my life is always spinning out of control? 

     But what if being fragile is a gift? What would happen if I fully embraced my frailty? Being broken isn't wrong or even bad. It places us in a state of dependency. Most of the time our unwillingness to embrace this frailty is what makes things so hard. It's like watching my son desperately trying to reach something so clearly out of his grasp. He will end up in tears over it. But what if he asked for help? For me, it's no problem to get his juice off the counter. So why don't I just get it for him immediately? --To teach him how to ask for help. If he asked as soon as he realized he needed help, he could saved a lot of heartache. Maybe that's how it is with God. He is just waiting for us to say, "Help God! This is totally out of my reach." It's no problem for Him--after all, He keeps the universe together. 

     But why is this a gift--this constant brokenness? Some people got the gift of abundant energy and I get weariness? Here is the catch. The more dependent we are on God, the closer we are to him. His compassionate side gets to shower us with love and understanding. We get to suffer with Him, knowing that He has been there. And that joy is not a feeling, it's a hope. It gets better--A LOT better. And until then, we have the Holy Spirit to give us strength. Those of us who are fragile have the unique opportunity to shine His light in a way that people can relate to. We show the world that Jesus accepts you as you are--brokenness and all. We don't need to hide our weakness. Let it shine out and show the redemptive power of the Lord through your weakness.

    

Embracing Joy

John 10:10-11 "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep."

Matthew 1:23 "Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call his name Immanuel which translated means, "God with us.""

    Stop. Did you read those verses above? If you did, did you just skim them? Go back and read them again and really focus on what they say. Dwell on them for a moment before you read what I have to say. God's words will always be most important. (That's why they go first.)

  We were created to have joy. It was always meant for us. Life is supposed to be abundant, but for so many of us, that seems like an impossible stretch. Just getting through the day is sometimes hard to do. So how can we embrace the joy set before us? This world is going downhill fast. There doesn't seem to be much to be happy about. That's where I must remind myself: happiness is not the same as joy. Joy is not dependent upon our circumstances. Joy is a constant in the life of a born again Christian. Joy may not be a "feeling" but it can determine how we react and feel about our lives. Sometimes, joy seems a very foreign concept to me. Here is what I do know: Joy is hope. This world is not our home. We have a glorious Savior. We are already victorious in Him. That's joy. 

     But how can that affect every moment? Remember that before Jesus came to this earth He was named "God with us-Immanuel." Now we have the Holy Spirit walking with us 24/7. Think of that. Remember that you are in His presence and find joy in it. We can relax and enjoy life when we spend our day focused on the one who made us to live life abundantly.