I was lugging my medium-sized purse, filled with panty liners and lip gloss. Over the other shoulder, hanged my work-bag, overstuffed with my laptop and papers still in need of grading.
Both of my hands were carrying a crate, that also encompassed my lunch-bag, now empty bowls from lunch, along with my water bottles and coffee mug from the day.
With all these things weighing me down, I motioned for my colleague to hold the elevator for me. I was struggling because I was just carrying too much. I was going home to unload.
“Wow,you’re carrying a lot of stuff!” she exclaimed. “Yes, even when I’m intentional in not, I carry way too much stuff,” I replied with a deep sigh.
Then God convicted me then and there, because this has been something that He has been working on, in me but lately I seemed to have bypassed the lesson.
With the Holiday season, often comes, ample opportunities to heal once and for all, or injure wounds that were never properly rehabilitated.
As of late, my family has been going through a particularly chaotic time. It’s been a season of discord, miscommunication, and frankly, lack of love.
We have seemed to de-prioritize loving one another at all, let alone loving one another well. There have been many instances of malicious words shared and rumours spread and it has been unsettling for me. And because of the way my heart is wired, I have been trying to be the voice of reason, be prayerful, and attempt to mend the disconnect, yet often getting caught in the cross-fire by having my intentions misunderstood and abused.
In an honest and transparent conversation with a dear-friend, I came to realize that I falsely believed that my consecrated prayers for and over my family were not enough. It’s almost as though I felt that I had to pray and then do.
And though in certain instances, God does call us to follow prayer with action; other times, we must learn to stand still in the midst of our prayer, knowing that by faith, that our prayers are enough.
How do we know when to do which? When to move versus when to be still? Simply by being prayerful and waiting for God to give direction on how to proceed.
When my colleague spoke those words to me in the elevator, I knew without a shadow of a doubt, that many of the burdens I opt to carry for my family are just that- an option that I am choosing.
Many of the burdens we pick up, in our sincere quest to be more like Christ, are His alone to carry.
There are so many small decisions that I can make my job and in my family that would allow me to free myself and carry a lighter load.
If you are like me, and you are constantly carrying things that are not meant for you, I encourage you to lift up this prayer:
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank You for being a God that is strong enough to carry all that weighs me down.
Thank You for being a God that is willing to carry my burdens.
Lord, forgive me for every time I tried to “play God,” as opposed to trusting You to be God.
Forgive me for every time I acted as though my prayers were simply not enough.
I lift up my family and I pray that You heal the disconnect.
Lord, I pray that we learn to honor You by the way we choose to love one another.
In this season, may You grace us with the yearning to be steadfast in our prayers, and the wisdom to know when to move and when to be still.
In Jesus’ name, I pray.
Amen.
theprayingwoman.com
by Maggie (Tacoma)
God, I do not know if it your will that my husband and I survive this marriage. If it is your will then please help us find our way back to a path that will once again converge.
If it your will that we are done, then please give me the strength to let go with dignity, compassion, and accept my prayer that he find what he is looking for. Circumstances have taken his confidence from him and a car accident has taken from me the ability to protect him from the world.
I thought we had more after 30 years. I pray every day that I can be myself again and that he will see me in me again; and that I will see him in him again. It hurts to watch him walk past me, so please God, Thy Will Be Done so we can both stop hurting each other.
I love him and would rather let him go than stay until he hates me. Our time together deserves more than that, not to be dragged down until all meaning is lost.
Return to Daily Devotional
www.praywithme.com
Father in Heaven, I give you all the praise and glory that is due to Your name. You are great and I thank You for the many blessings and marvelous works You have done. Great and Mighty are You My Lord.
I cast all my burden unto You, Father, because You care for me and You grant me the desires of my heart. As I surrender my all to You, help me to always remember that I can let go and let God.
Proverbs 3:5-6 – Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
Teach me, Almighty God, to not worry about the things that are beyond my control.
I know that You have already put those things into perspective for me because You are a God of hope and peace.
Let go and let God. Click To Tweet
Jeremiah 29:11 – For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Envelop me, O Jesus, with Your loving arms. Show me Your mercy, for I belong to You, in Your Kingdom.
Thank You, Holy Spirit, for giving me the opportunity everyday to learn a little more of how to let go and let God.
I trust in You, my Creator, to look over all things on my behalf. Thank You that I can call upon You wherever I am and whenever I am in need.
You are amazing! Thank You that I live in a place where I am free to worship. I can call upon You when I do not know what to say, if only to call on my Lord of Lords, Jesus!
1 Peter 5:7 – Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.
Matthew 11:28 – Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Thank You Holy Spirit, for helping me learn each day a little more of how to let go and let God. Click To Tweet
Thank You for Your guidance and grace, which is always steadfast and true.
I declare that I am a Redeemed Child of the Most High God and in the name of my Savior, Jesus Christ, I pray, So Be It…Amen and Amen!
Psalm 52:8 – I trust in God’s unfailing love for ever and ever.
Luke 1:37 – For nothing is impossible with God.
2 Corinthians 4:18 -So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
Read also: PRAYER: LETTING GO and Prayer: Let Go of Unforgiveness
Prayers that Activate Blessings: Experience the Protection, Power & Favor of God for You & Your Loved Ones
“Are you frustrated with your life? Are you struggling to find breakthrough and feeling like you are spinning your wheels? Well, struggle no more!
John Eckhardt shows you how to move from the mundane into the supernatural favor of God.“
Get Your Copy Now!
christianstt.com
General Bible suggestions how to pray to God. Thanksgiving keeps us in a right standing with God. “In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians. 5:18). We are indebted to God because all that we have comes from Him. We don’t deserve the gift of life and all the blessings attached to it, but He gave it to us freely. So, God deserves our thanksgiving prayer points. When we thank God for being the giver of all good gifts, we realize that we could not even exist without His blessings. Returning thanks to the giver of all, shows God that we are grateful for what He has done.
We must come to that state of knowing that all we have comes from God. He expects us to show gratitude for all His benefits towards us (James 1:17). Imbibing a daily attitude of rendering thanksgiving prayer points to God will drive our focus on blessings rather than our wants. “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good,for those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). We are instructed to thank God for everything, whether good or bad (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Thanking God in the midst of the challenges of life, takes out grief and sadness away from us. But when we live a life void of thankfulness to God, we become self-centered and arrogant. Then pride creeps into our heart.
As Christians, It is very important to daily pray Thanksgiving prayer points. It will help build our relationship with God. The fact that we all have reasons to be thankful, justifies why the prayer of thanksgiving is very important.
Thanksgiving prayer points
Every thanksgiving prayer we render to God as the fruit of our lips builds our love for God. It also proves our unshakable faith in Him. Every moment of days is not even enough to count your blessings and pray thanksgiving prayer points. Nothing we have is actually really ours. It all belongs to Him. Bible, Psalm 24:1 says, “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein”.
General Bible suggestions how to pray to God
The following are a few prayer points of thanksgiving to God to express our gratitude to Him for all His benefits towards us.
- Pray and thank the Lord for bringing you this far and for all His benefits towards you: “Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation” (Psalm 68:19)
His grace is what made all His good gifts available to us. This is why we are obliged to pray Thanksgiving prayer points until our last breath. It is important to thank God for yesterday, today and tomorrow. We must cultivate the daily habit of showing gratitude to God. Knowing that we don’t deserve all the gifts we are receiving from God, should cause us to give Him thanks at all times and for all things.
- Pray and thank God for always been there whenever you call on Him, and for His protection, provision, and strength upon your life (Psalm 18:3)
We need to thank our creator for His breath upon us, for His presence that strives with us, for our daily bread that comes from Him, for His never-ending protection and guidance, the list goes on and on. All these are the wonders of His works. Thank Him!
- Pray and thank God for the precious gift of Salvation.“The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock, and exalted be the God of my salvation” (Psalm 18:46)
We need to pray and thank God for giving us His only begotten son Jesus Christ, to die for our sins in order to reconcile us back to Himself. This has brought us redemption and given us access to enjoying His grace. We don’t deserve it, but he gave it to us freely, so we should thank God for this.
- Thank God for making you victorious over sin and over all the devices of the devil: “But thanks be to God, which gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:57)
Christians face temptations, trials and troubles oftentimes in life journey. All these are the devices the enemy’s uses in order to cause us to sin. But God has given us victory and is still giving us: This is a great thing God has done for us!
- Pray and thank God for the privilege to be at His service and to tell of His wonderful works to others. “O give thanks unto the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the people” (Psalm 105:1)
Throughout the Bible, especially in the book of Psalms, Thanksgiving Prayers are proclaimed by people who are opportune to carry out God’s purpose and task. The relevance is to remind us of what God has done for us, thereby showing God’s glory to others.
- Daily enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with Praises, bless His holy name (Psalm 100:4)
Prayer of thanksgiving should be a daily lifestyle for all Christians. It should be as natural to us as breathing. Doing this will make God know that we are very thankful to Him and that He’s always being there for us (Ephesians 5:20).
The importance of thanksgiving cannot be overemphasized. Thanksgiving and praise intertwine. You can’t effectively praise God without also being thankful to Him. When you make it a habit of thanking God for what He has done, it brings you to the platform of receiving greater blessings from Him. He alone deserves our praise.
Also read: THANKSGIVING PRAYER FOR EVERYDAY
prayray.com
