Being in a season where I have no idea what my future holds, brings about feelings of disappointment, anxiety, and fear. Prayer is one of my greatest assets to relieve stress and regain sanity in my life.
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition,
with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."
Philippians 4:6
"Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer."
Romans 12:12
Many of us know we are supposed to pray or want to pray, but we don't really know how. How do we talk to a perfect God ... a God that we can't even see or touch?
Perhaps you wonder if you are praying for the "right" things? Or maybe you are just giving God a laundry list of wants? How you do you know you are praying for the Lord's plan and not just your plans? I have certainly wondered all of these things.
I was at a Careers In Motion meeting, and a wise pastor I know stated, "We know we are praying the right things when we are praying scripture."
How simple, yet so profound.
This changed the way I was praying for my plans for the future. I was praying that the Lord would show me what I needed to do with my life, for clarity for my future, or that I would be able to find a new job. These prayers were not necessarily wrong, but I wasn't sure if I was praying for things that the Lord wanted for my life. During this journey, I have felt a need to use my life in a way that would serve the Lord. So ... instead, I started praying that I trusted that the Lord had a plan for my life; a plan to give me hope and a future. I prayed that whatever happened, that I my life would be used to serve Him. I started to find peace in the unknowns of this life, by knowing that the Lord knows!
"For I know the plans I have for you,"
declares the Lord,
"plans to prosper you and not to harm you,
plans to give you hope and a future."
Jeremiah 29:11
Lauren, you are amazing! Thank you for posting this message. Like you (and I am in so many ways, as you know), I have been struggling with how to pray and what to pray for in my life. Your message today has totally spoken to me and touched my heart. Through you, I have learned this new way to pray! Thank you for your honesty and openness. God is truly doing His work through you. Keep 'em coming!
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