Pray BIG and Pray HARD

1 John 5:14 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

14 Now this is the confidence we have before Him: Whenever we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.

Mark 11:24-25 The Message (MSG)

22-25 Jesus was matter-of-fact: “Embrace this God-life. Really embrace it, and nothing will be too much for you. This mountain, for instance: Just say, ‘Go jump in the lake’—no shuffling or shilly-shallying—and it’s as good as done. That’s why I urge you to pray for absolutely everything, ranging from small to large. Include everything as you embrace this God-life, and you’ll get God’s everything.

Jeremiah 29:12 The Message (MSG)

12 “When you call on me, when you come and pray to me, I’ll listen.

Matthew 6:7 New Life Version (NLV)

7 When you pray, do not say the same thing over and over again making long prayers like the people who do not know God. They think they are heard because their prayers are long.

James 1:6 New Life Version (NLV)

6 You must have faith as you ask Him. You must not doubt. Anyone who doubts is like a wave which is pushed around by the sea.

Prayer… the little emoji symbol we put on social media, what we say in passing when we see distress, something we do daily out of routine, putting our kids to bed they go through that ritual as well. I have prayed my whole life. I remember my mom tucking me in nightly and saying my prayers with me.  I have continued that ritual with my children. However, I feel like it has become very robotic for them.  This led me to thinking about my prayer life and how I pray. 

From the wall of Jericho to Noah looking foolish building a boat to David taking a sling shot to a massive giant.  Those were actions that the onlookers made fun of, but what was the outcome in those stories?  God heard their prayers and took action, massive action.  They had faith and they didn’t care if they looked foolish while following through with their prayer action.  They did 3 things:  

1. They named it,
2. They claimed it by taking action, and
3. They circled it in prayer.

God is not our “genie in the bottle” type of God, but He does want us to communicate and ask Him.  He wants us to get on our knees and really shout out our prayers.  Even in the quiet of my home, I don’t do this out of my “scare of looking foolish”.  I do the “bow your head and pray” action.  Simple, but sometimes not as effective as getting on my knees and really talking to the Lord.  

“We loose faith in God who gave us the big dream and settle for a small dream that we can accomplish without His help.  We go after dreams that don’t require divine intervention.  We go after dreams that don’t require prayer.  And the God who is able to do immeasurably more than all our right brain can imagine is supplanted by a god - lower case g- who fits within the logical constraints of our left brain.” (Batterson, M. 2016)

So, have confidence in your prayer (1 John 5:14).  Embrace it and pray it hard (Mark 11:24-25).  He will listen (Jeremiah 29:12).  It doesn’t have to be long or drawn out or even eloquent because God is not looking for perfection from us (Matthew 6:7). And lastly, don’t doubt Him because He will answer our prayers in His time (James 1:6).  

Be Blessed!  

PS.  

Recommended movie about prayer - If you haven’t seen War Room,  it is a must see!  

Recommended book about prayer - The Circle Maker By Mark Batterson.  

These are what I’m doing to increase my volume in my prayer life.  

Noise Pollution

Job 6:24 New Life Version (NLV)

24 “Teach me, and I will be quiet. Show me where I have been wrong.

Isaiah 32:17 New Life Version (NLV)

17 The work of being right and good will give peace. From the right and good work will come quiet trust forever.

Isaiah 30:15 New Life Version (NLV)

15 The Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, has said, “In turning away from sin and in rest, you will be saved. Your strength will come by being quiet and by trusting.” But you would not.

Noise pollution is defined by the Business Dictionary as “A form and level of environmental sound that is generally considered likely to annoy, distract or even harm other people.”  However, I find that noise pollution, for me, is anything that takes my mind off of what God is intending me to hear from Him.  

I truly struggled writing this week’s Thoughtful Thursday due to not know what He was wanting me to say.  That is when I realized that I had not turned it over to Him.  I had not kept my mind focused on what He was wanting to say to me this week.  Noise pollution in my life this week has been both amazing and draining.  From traveling to work to football on Sunday to focusing in on some personal goals, I have had a lot of noise pollution fogging my direct line to Him.  This has not “harmed me”, but has “distracted me”.  

God wants us to hear Him, but regardless of how “quiet” we get our environment we still have “noise” in our heads.  This, to me, is my noise pollution.  My book for the month of February is The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson.  “Well-developed faith results in well-developed prayers, and well-defined prayers result in a well-lived life.”  Being intentional about keeping the distractions out and truly praying will clear the fog that is around us.  This will quiet our minds and help us see clearly.  With that our faith grows, our prayer life increases, and our life is enriched.  

Be Blessed!

We Can’t Do It Alone

Proverbs 3:5-6 New Life Version (NLV)

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not trust in your own understanding. 6 Agree with Him in all your ways, and He will make your paths straight.

Hebrews 10:24-25 

Let us help each other to love others and to do good. Let us not stay away from church meetings. Some people are doing this all the time. Comfort each other as you see the day of His return coming near.

We will not be able to conquer this thing called “LIFE” alone.  My book this month was one I have mentioned recently, Never Go Back -10 Things You’ll Never Do Again by Dr. Henry Cloud.  Near the end of the book one of the last chapters is about how we can’t rely on ourselves alone to make changes that are internal and for the betterment of our lives.  We have to have “2 power sources”: God and people.  We have to have have a lifeline plugged into Him and a support system around us.  If there is something that you are experiencing and you feel alone, you need to 1st pray about it and 2nd ask God to put someone or a group of people in your life to pour into you.

A few years ago, I found a community within our church, a ladies Bible Study group.  Then I made a choice to better my health and found a community of friends who held me accountable to helped me overcome and push through plateaus.  I then fell into a community of women who are bettering themselves by becoming leaders.  Which then led me to a community of women that high five me daily as I push myself to be stronger than I have ever been physically.  I now find myself building a community for others to believe in themselves and have the same success.

In Daniel 3, King Nebuchadnezzar threw Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego into the fire pit believing they would burn.  However, much to his surprise, he observed not 3 men in the fire, but 4.  God was with them.  He was dancing in the midst of the flames with them.  He then delivered them out of the fire untouched.  Circumstances in our lives are not as dramatic as the firey furnace, but can simulate that heat in our lives.  He dances with us if we allow Him too.  He surrounds us with others who are wanting to dance with us as well.  Then He delivers us out of the firey furnace untouched on the outside, but our hearts are changed for the better.  These are the steps we need to take in order for change to be successful in our lives:

1. Believe in ourselves.
2. Pray.
3. Put one foot in front of the other in the right direction.
4. Pray.
5. Lean on others.
6. Pray again, and
7. Repeat!

Be blessed!  

His Masterpiece

Ephesians 2:10English Standard Version (ESV)

10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Genesis 28:15New Life Version (NLV)

15 See, I am with you. I will care for you everywhere you go. And I will bring you again to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done all the things I promised you.”

God is a constant in our lives.  We can choose to tap into His everlasting love or to not.  Our lives tend to be a rollercoaster of ups and downs.  However, He is always steady within each one of the dips and turns.  While our lives may seem to be riding something similar to Space Mountain at Disney World, He knows every emotion and feeling we will have while strapped into that coaster.  For certain, He sees it to the end.  On the flip side, we may be riding steadily around “It’s a Small World” stream.  Colors, happiness, and peace surround us.  Again, for certain, He sees it to the end.  

Regardless of what ride we are on, He knows each every turn, dip, and sway we will make.  He is teaching us something in each of those moments.  He has a plan and is creating work of art within us, that is if we tap into His love or not.  We just have to have our hearts and our heads aligned with what He is telling us in that moment.

Enjoy Masterpiece - Danny Gokey (Story Behind The Song)

Be Blessed!

Heart Check

Jeremiah 17:9-10The Message (MSG)

9-10 

“The heart is hopelessly dark and deceitful,

    a puzzle that no one can figure out.

But I, God, search the heart

    and examine the mind.

I get to the heart of the human.

    I get to the root of things.

I treat them as they really are,

    not as they pretend to be.”

1 Corinthians 10:13The Message (MSG)

13 No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he’ll never let you be pushed past your limit; he’ll always be there to help you come through it.

Jeremiah 29:11Good News Translation (GNT)

11 I alone know the plans I have for you, plans to bring you prosperity and not disaster, plans to bring about the future you hope for.[b]

This week I have been reading the story of Solomon in 1 Kings (I use the First Five app to drive my devotions).  He had everything and the Lord had truly blessed him.  However, his eyes got bigger than his heart.  “Greed” and “Lust” are two words that really come to mind when thinking of how his heart turned from the Lord.  He did not guard his HEART.  He did not position his heart with the Lord.  What happened?  His kingdom was torn apart.  

OUR HEART - we can’t live without it beating.  If it stops, we stop.  Scary to think about how one simple organ drives our whole existence.  The word “HEART” is mentioned 963 times in the KJV (found on https://bible.org/article/guarding-heart).  He is not speaking of the organ, but our spiritual heart.  We truly have to watch our hearts.  In fruitful seasons, we can easily stray away and not give Him the glory of that season.  Very quickly our eyes guide our hearts to move into other directions than He intends, such as exhibit A - King Solomon.  When in dry, hard seasons, we can easily be distracted and focus more on changing the circumstance rather than what God is trying to teach us in that circumstance.  It really all is a cycle.  During fruitful seasons, keep your eyes on Him and be GRATEFUL; keeping you hearts aligned with Him and giving Him the glory.  During dry seasons, dig in and really reflect/meditate/pray, on what He wants you to learn in this season; praying for that rather than the outcome creates a heart that is able to withstand any outcome.  We all know that we don’t always get what we want.  

I would like to leave you with a quote from the book Never Go Back: 10 things you’ll never do again, “We find that two things are true:  First, the good life sometimes has little to do with outside circumstances.  We are happy and fulfilled mostly by who we are on the inside.  Research validates that.  Second, our internal lives largely contribute to producing many of our external circumstances.  Our talents and abilities, when invested in God, actually build much of the external life.” (Cloud, 2014)

Be Blessed!

Dandelions...are they weeds or wishes?

1 Corinthians 10:13Good News Translation (GNT)

13 Every test that you have experienced is the kind that normally comes to people. But God keeps his promise, and he will not allow you to be tested beyond your power to remain firm; at the time you are put to the test, he will give you the strength to endure it, and so provide you with a way out.

Romans 8:28New Life Version (NLV)

28 We know that God makes all things work together for the good of those who love Him and are chosen to be a part of His plan.

Philippians 4:8New Life Version (NLV)

8 Christian brothers, keep your minds thinking about whatever is true, whatever is respected, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever can be loved, and whatever is well thought of. If there is anything good and worth giving thanks for, think about these things.

“Dandelions are like bitterness that spread sadness and disappointment.”  This past weekend that analogy really stirred in my heart on multiple levels.  Dandelions are seen by most as weeds, but to some as wishes.  We all know that weeds are not something we want, but wishes are what we crave.  Negative thoughts are the seeds that tend to take over our minds and then our actions.  As my dear friend, Ashley Shephard wrote in her book, Beautifully Designed, “The bottom line is there are words that enter our minds and, if we’re not careful, these words can stick to our hearts and become our identity rather than the truth of who God says we are.”  

We tend to remember more of the negative than we do the positive.  I, as all of you, have many roles in which I pour positive words into others.  As a teacher, I have the kids write down positive mottos on their desks.  They have to look at that on a daily basis and remind themselves that they can accomplish anything.  As a lifestyle coach, I help others see all of the positive things they are seeing and doing.  We are writing these positives daily.  The minute I hear doubt in their voices, is the minute I remind them of the “NSV’s- non-scale victories” that we just discussed.  Why do we hold onto those negative words and thoughts more?  I do not know because I do it best.  But what I do know is that if we let them become weeds in our minds and hearts, it does us no good.  

So take those positive seeds and let them spread like those of a dandelion’s.  Let them create wishes and become a field of possibilities.  

Remember that:  

He will give you the strength (1 Corinthians 10:13) 

and 

all things work together (Romans 8:28)

and

whatever is true, respected, right, pure, can be loved, and is well thought of. think about these (Philippians 4:8)

Because those are the seeds that need to be planted in our hearts.  

Be Blessed!

Goal Digger

Philippians 3:13-14Good News Translation (GNT)

13 Of course, my friends, I really do not[a] think that I have already won it; the one thing I do, however, is to forget what is behind me and do my best to reach what is ahead. 14 So I run straight toward the goal in order to win the prize, which is God's call through Christ Jesus to the life above.

2 Chronicles 15:7New International Version (NIV)

7 But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded.”

Proverbs 3:5-6Good News Translation (GNT)

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Never rely on what you think you know. 6 Remember the Lord in everything you do, and he will show you the right way.

Romans 12:2Good News Translation (GNT)

2 Do not conform yourselves to the standards of this world, but let God transform you inwardly by a complete change of your mind. Then you will be able to know the will of God—what is good and is pleasing to him and is perfect.

Proverbs 16:9Good News Translation (GNT)

9 You may make your plans, but God directs your actions.

Proverbs 16:3Good News Translation (GNT)

3 Ask the Lord to bless your plans, and you will be successful in carrying them out.

 Goal setting and making resolutions used to be a game for me.  A game in which I would start out successful, but then at some point loose focus and either give up or just slowly loose focus.  I never really understood why setting goals was important.  In fact, growing up, I don’t remember setting goals.  I wasn’t in sports, due to medical issues.  I believe this led to me not having a competitive spirit.  Not having a competitive spirit is not a bad thing, but it is not always a good thing either.  

With that said, a few years ago I started setting goals for myself.  Goals that involved my diet, exercise, and personal growth.  It then bled into me sitting down with my family and setting goals.  This led to dreaming bigger together.   Not all of the goals are met each year, but there are reasons as to why they were not met.  That is when it is time to reflect on the “why” they were not met, are they “within reason”, and if so “how” can we meet them. 

God places us each in our lives and on our paths for a purpose.  We can choose to not set goals, just slide by day to day and survive, OR we can really ask God to help us discover our purpose;  to help us uncover goals that surround HIS purpose for us.  I encourage you to sit down and really pray about the goals/resolutions that you set for yourself for 2018.  Some may not occur because HE has something better in store for you.  Some may occur and you can celebrate.  Keep faith in what you are doing, giving it all to Him as you complete HIS plan.  He will show you the way and help you reach for what is ahead.