Because I Don’t Want to Sleep Anymore

Praying to a Jealous God

Pray Continually Day 3

10 Things to Pray While Praying Continually

Have you tried praying scripture before? What I mean is using scripture as your guide or direction as you pray.

Praying scripture is powerful because we know God’s word is His will for our lives. God’s word holds promises for us, but sometimes we miss the point of the promises. For instance I have heard folks pray like this:

“God, You promised in Your word no weapon formed against me will prosper so I believe now I will be healed of cancer.”

It is true God’s word does promise “no weapon formed against you will prosper” (Isaiah 54:17). However we have to remember God’s ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:8). Cancer may bring physical death to the man or woman who prays this, but God brings victory in other ways. The weapon of cancer can only kill the body, but not the spirit and not for eternity. It will not prosper even if it results in physical death.

There are other examples of praying God’s word. I love praying about the armor of God as I shower each day. While I wash my hair I pray the “helmet of Salvation” will protect my mind and thoughts. I also ask God to remind me it is by His grace I have been saved and not by works so I extend grace to others. As I clean my feet I pray every where I go I am ready to share “the gospel of peace.” I pray I will live in peace with God and man as I share Jesus’ love and grace to a world hungry for Him.

Consider praying God grow the fruit of the Spirit in your life. Remember this is not fruit you can produce yourself. This fruit only comes from God’s Spirit. Praying He grows patience and kindness and gentleness in your life are wonderful ways to pray scripture.

Using God’s names as you speak to Him can be humbling and comforting. When you feel invisible pray to the God who sees you. If you can’t see a way through or out of your situation pray to the God who is able. When you struggle knowing what to do next pray to the God who has plans for you. Over all our prayers we also need to pray like Jesus did and pray “…not my will, but Yours [God's] be done.”

Praying scripture is powerful. What scriptures do you pray?

Because I don’t Want to Sleep Any More

Praying to a Jealous God

Pray Continually Day 3

Some of you may keep a detailed prayer request list and pray over those items frequently. Others of you may have circumstances and situations that seem so huge you can’t stop thinking of things and details to pray for. But then there are some who don’t really know what to pray for or about. So here is a list of things we all can pray for.

1. Our Churches…the leaders would honor God, the members would grow closer to God, we would influence the world to want to love Jesus.

2. Our Schools/Universities (even if you don’t have kids in these places they need prayer)…pray for safety, professors and teachers to not discriminate on any basis, kids learn so they can lead productive lives, for funds, those in leadership, and discipline.

3. Our Countries…our leaders would make wise Godly choices, economy would recover, more jobs would be created, our countries across the globe would work together, diplomacy, unity despite diversity.

4. Our families…marriages, their spiritual lives, physical protection, emotional health, healing, for prodigals wandering away, wise spending of our resources, wisdom, direction.

5. Our friends…difficult circumstances, marriages, wisdom, direction, health for their bodies, minds and souls.

6. News flashes…each time you hear a news alert pray for God’s way in that situation.

7. Our environment…pray we use resources wisely, for God’s provision through the environment.

8. The world…famines, poverty, war, plagues, the lost, those who never heard the gospel, hungry (even in our neighborhoods), homeless, those suffering with cancer or medical scares….

9. Our medical communities…they provide excellent health care, they work well together in unity, they come to know God.

10. Ourselves…love God more deeply, obey Him more completely, read His word daily, pray more continually, confess our sins regularly, help when we struggle, peace and patience in the waiting, wisdom to do what He wants us to do.

I don’t know about you, but this list could keep me busy for a really really really long time. What are other things you pray for or that prompt you to pray? Would you share?

As I drove to take my girls to school today, I thought of friends and family and church. I prayed for each person, I prayed our church would find a worship pastor, and for God’s immeasurably more to be shown for His glory.

So my mind wandering is becoming a prayer prompt. Instead of just wondering how someone is doing, I pray for them.

When I think about a situation I cannot see a way out of, I pray.

I heard about a 16-year-old boy who drowned yesterday. I prayed for his friends and family.

When sirens of an emergency vehicle screech loudly, I pray.

I feel convicted to pray for the driver tailing me and speeding past in such a hurry. Could it be a family emergency?

As I rehearse my to-do list in my mind, I pray for my ministry, my husband, my kids.

When anger flares I pray for wisdom that I may not sin in my anger. I pray for direction and for the person who hurt me.

Through God’s prodding, I am more alert. I am praying more. I fail. This is a process, but God is working it out through me.

Then I read this, “Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and he hears my voice.” Psalm 55:17

When I cry out to God (in distress or in duress or in peace) He hears my voice. My prayers are heard and He delights hearing from me. He doesn’t roll his eyes at me when I say, “God,” for the thousandth time in two hours. No, He hears me. He hears us all.

What is helping you to pray more consistently?

Yesterday I mentioned God calling me to training myself to pray continually. I have not made my index cards yet, but I have noticed when my mind starts to wander I catch myself and pray more. Consider joining me for this 30 days of praying.

Exodus 34:14 says, “ —for you shall not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God—”

Our God deserves to be the only one or thing on the throne of our lives just like a husband deserves to be the only one in his wife’s bed. He wants pure and complete devotion and He deserves it. This same God isn’t distant or demanding in His jealousy. No amazingly He gently draws us to Himself. Hosea 2:14a says, “Therefore, behold, I will allure her…” God allures Israel and us. This jealous, powerful, loving God gently draws us to Himself.

As we pray to Jealous, our God, we pray to a God who deeply loves us and woos us. Imagine a man who loves a woman and does all in his power to gently and kindly woo her. That is how God calls us into a relationship with Him. Knowing this truth should embolden our prayers. We need not be timid or shy as if we could annoy God. Instead we can confidently approach God who loves us more deeply than we can fathom and longs for our devotion.

How are you doing as you practice praying continually? What are you struggling with?

Awakening to the truth of the world–exposed, delicate, beautiful, and finally awake.

Awakenings often include a dying of sorts. Letting go of all you once knew to open up and break apart that beauty may come.

God has been rousing me from a slumber which I loathe admitting I succumbed to. It started banging around in my heart and head after I read what Samuel told Israel right before he died, “As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you.” 1 Samuel 12:23a Failing to pray for someone is sinning against God. Ouch.

Then Paul tells us to pray continually and “be alert and always keep on praying for the saints.” (Eph. 6:18)

Continually praying, staying alert, always praying…I have been asleep too long. So here is my plan for the next 30 days…

1. I won’t let my mind wander, instead I’ll  pray. Pray while I type, drive, and read. Pray while I clean.
2. I am going to write the word pray on index cards and place them on my bathroom mirror, on my refrigerator, on the dash of my car, in the books I am reading, anywhere I will see it and remember to pray.
3. At least once a day I will look at my prayer journal and pray for the needs, add needs, and write in the answers to prayers I have received.

Do you want to join me? I’d love to cheer you on and have your support as we pray together.

I love mothers day, but it also stings. I have a wonderful mother who encouraged me and taught me so much. I love honoring her. I also have a wonderful mother-in-law who helped shape my husband into the man I love. God blessed me with three beautifully messy kids. They call me mom.

But…I think of folks who mourn the loss of their moms. How mother’s day reminds them their mothers are gone from this earth.

I think of people who grieve moms who abandoned them or abused them. Mother’s day means something different to them.

I remember my friends who desperately want children but have been unable to have them. I mourn with those who lost children to disease, miscarriage, or accident. My heart aches for those dealing with the scars of failed adoptions and successful abortions.

Mother’s Day stings and burns and blooms at the same time. Isn’t tha the way of God? He takes our messy fallen sinful world and redeems something in the midst of the stinging burn. He transforms the pain into character and redeems grief into something He can use for His glory.

Maybe here in the midst of the pain and joy God is having His way with us. When we open our grief-filled hands and give the pain to Him, then He can make something new from it. Here our load is lighter in the midst of knowing His hope and glory. In return He gives us joy for our mourning and beauty for our ashes.

Praying you experience God’s peace and joy when Mother’s day stings.

Having one of those days where you finding yourself hiding in the bathroom or closet just for a few extra moments of peace? Then chaos abounds as little fingers clamor under the door to get your attention; Heather Riggleman has been there. In her book Mama Needs A Time Out; she shares her early experiences of mothering and wondered how to connect with a God who has so many different names.

On her parenting journey, she shares the antics of her strong-willed son, including blue sparkle tooth paste messes, bathtub farts, and explaining her son’s perspectives to his preschool teacher.

Heather has three children, two with special needs; she married her high school sweetheart, serves as a coordinator and field leader for MOPS (www.mops.org), and is currently blazing a new trial with an online talk show of sorts, www.herviewfromhome.com. If anything, she knows what it’s like to be pulled in a million different directions on a daily basis. Heather offers insight to find God in the trenches of motherhood.

Throughout her mothering journey, she has learned to know God intimately as Healer, Shepherd, Judge, Peace, and Refuge. Mama Needs A Time-Out offers personal insight of going deeper with God. These short devotions and stories help you laugh at life’s most embarrassing moments, provide a unique view of God being with you in the midst of your worst moments, and help put things back into perspective.

Mama Needs A Time-Out is your daily getaway, book-ended by Scripture, Heather’s “been-there-and-done-that” transparency and tips for moms are a great way to refresh your spirit—you know, the sleep-deprived, squabbling-refereeing, hormone-crazed, woman your kids refer to as, “Mom.”

So if you’re in need of a time out, solid Biblical teaching, and a moment or two with God, this book is just for!~

Heather says the reason she wrote this book is she was desperate for God’s companionship and intrigued by all His names in the Scriptures. How can a mom who is being pulled in a million different directions be able to build an intimate relationship with God?

That question in itself, she learned on a daily basis when her preschoolers were infants and toddlers. She discovered we can know God intimately, even when we are folding socks, shuttling kids everywhere, and even when our baby is crying non-stop, He is there! She wanted moms to learn what she did about our faithful God.

You can buy Heather’s book on  Amazon or eChristian.

I do not have any affiliate links nor am I compensated in any way for this post.

Our first time in the pool.

Friends over on Saturday.

A birthday party for my little boy on Sunday.

I turned in my first assignment of a new writing course I enrolled in.

So my blog got put on the back burner. I did want to share this short story with you.

My J turned four and wanted a Star Wars birthday party. About a year ago I bought some Star Wars cupcake wrappers and toothpicks with characters on them. So I asked J what kind of cupcakes he wanted. His answer was strawberry cupcakes with strawberry icing. I reminded him that his icing would be pink, but he didn’t mind. I figured pink cupcakes with Star Wars figures on top would not be a bad deal. On Saturday I the Star Wars cupcake wrappers were no where to be found. So I thanked God and my sister for Pinterest and this Star Wars cupcake idea. In fact my husband loved the idea so much, he drew on the marshmallows with the food coloring marker. Here is how ours turned out–pink icing and storm trooper helmet.

They tasted wonderful…I hope you have a great Monday filled with nice things like Trooper cupcakes with pink icing.

Lucy {the one that gets on top of the play set} sits self-assured and pleased with herself. Maggie takes a few steps up the play set, but gets nervous and heads back down. Then from the ground she whines and fusses at her sister. In fact she even tries to keep Lucy from climbing back up the play set.

Is this not what we do in life? We look at someone at the top of the play set. This person may be thin or have the job we want or the ministry we desire. She may drive the car we long for, have the amount of kids we want, or just great hair. We sit at the bottom of the play set and whine.

Why? Well doing the work it takes to get up to the top is hard and scary. Besides we tell ourselves she {the person on the top of the play set} certainly never had to deal with the things we did. Going up the play set comes easy for her.

We try to keep them on the ground with us. We tell them how crazy they are for going up the play set. Wouldn’t they prefer to stay safely on the ground? We lecture them on safety or moderation all the while wishing we had the guts to go up the play set.

Instead shouldn’t we cheer these people on? Maybe even ask how they made it up the play set? Perhaps in encouraging and cheering those on the play set ahead of us, we will gain courage and strength for our own journey up the play set.

Today I challenge you to encourage someone you consider at the top of the play set. Send them a text, comment on their blog, post on their Facebook page, share a Facebook comment or even tweet them. Perhaps cheering others on will give you the courage to take the next step up the play set.

Elisabeth Elliot writes: “A simple and orderly life represents a clean and orderly mind. Muddled thinking inevitably results in muddled living. A house that is cluttered is usually lived in by people whose minds are also cluttered, who need to simplify their lives. This begins with simplifying and clarifying their thinking. Mind and life need to be freed from the “disorder of the unnecessary.”

Immediately I looked up and saw this:

My heart clinched and sunk to my stomach. I began to fumble with excuses. Each one seemed empty and my shoulders tensed tighter and tighter. Elisabeth Elliot is someone I look up to. She is a woman who loves Jesus with all her heart. She is a prolific writer and speaker. If anyone knows truth she does.

My inner dialog started, “You are not good enough. You can’t keep your house in order. You can’t even free your mind from the ‘disorder of the unnecessary.’ How can you possibly be a good wife or mother or friend if you live like this?”

The truth is I long to get organized and stay that way. I admire people with clear counters and clean kitchens and floors that don’t look like this:

I walk into other people’s houses and wonder how they do it. I claim my twin stole my organizational gene. I am not wired to keep things in neat and orderly.

Part of this clutter struggle is disciplining myself to pick-up, put-away, and clean-up as I go along. However the other part is I enjoy playing with my kids, writing, and doing other things too. I need grace, discipline, and wisdom.

Grace that a clutter-free house is not a clutter-free life. Nor does a spotless house make a happy home.

Discipline to find a system that works for me and to pick-up and organize–I do not enjoy it.

Wisdom to know when I need grace and when I need discipline. Condemnation is not good, but laziness is not either. It is a fine balancing act and right now my house is getting the raw deal.

But I had a blast playing Treo blocks with my kids.

Let’s pray God gives us grace for ourselves, discipline to do what He calls us to do, and wisdom to know which we need at any given time.

What side do you fall on…too much grace or too hard on yourself? What systems of organization have you found helpful? How do you walk the line between grace and discipline?