Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful….(Col. 4:2).
I’ve wrestled with the whole concept of prayer. Like being in the middle of a dream, truths about prayer echo in and out of my subconscious mingled with my own frail human understanding–or trying to understand. Lies of this world disguise themselves as truth complicating what used to be so simple. Unanswered petitions threatened my faith. I say all this to proclaim a recent epiphany:
[tweetability]Prayer is complicated when we make it that way.[/tweetability]
I want to go back to the simple basics.
1. We are commanded to pray.
2. We are to be devoted to prayer.
3. We are to be watchful or expectant.
4. We are to be thankful.
I’m trying something new based on Col. 4:2 (above). For the next 30 days I’m going to purposefully and deliberately pray with expectation and thankfulness. After I give Him my petition, I’m going to thank him for answering my plea.
I know some of you reading this are prayer giants who need no such help. But for those of you who also struggle with prayer, would you take this 30 day challenge with me?
Tomorrow is April 1st, so the challenge will end Wednesday, April 30.
Do you struggle with prayer? Has an unanswered prayer injured your faith? Leave a comment below. I would love to pray for you as we do this challenge together.
Blessings!
Bite of Bread
Pour your coffee, grab your journal. Spend 5 minutes with the Word. How has spending time in Scripture daily helped you?
I could be a better prayer warrior. Answered prayers have opened my eyes to what God will do when people pray. He has answered many of my petitions but the best confirmation came a few weeks ago. A week before Christmas my brother was rushed into emergency surgery, when the news came to me I reached out to many prayer warriors. My pastor had just done a sermon “Expect Great Things from God”, so for the first time I petitioned many prayers with great expectations from God to heal my brother. My brother was released from the hospital at the end of March. He is still recovering but he is alive and God receives ALL the glory. God not only worked great and wonderfully but it was revealed to me that the day he was rushed to the hospital (while I was praying with great expectations) My brother died two times that day and while the world would say it was the medical team that brought him back. I boldly say it was God. Sorry for the length, I tried to make it as short as I could without losing the point of how God displayed His confirmation to me. Joining you in your challenge. Have a wonderful weekend.
Thank you for sharing that wonderfully encouraging testament to answered prayer. You are a prayer warrior.
Seeing you at church yesterday and pulling out your card that I have been carrying around in my wallet was not a coincidence. God is good! I want to take the 30 day challenge with you all.
My faith is being tested as I venture into new territory. I thought I would always be married, but find myself single after 41 years. Discovering the woman that God has called me to be takes tremendous faith. My struggle with lack of faith and God’s ability to do far more than I can see is a challenge that I face daily. Now there is no one to stand in the way of my relationship with God. It’s all on me.
Thank you Andy for your writings and encouragement. I look forward to hearing about the answered prayers of others, and I am claiming victory over my struggles and give God the glory in advance.
Many blessings,
Vickie
Vickie, I’m so glad we ran into each other at church yesterday! You’ve been on my heart. I will be praying for you with expectation and thanksgiving for what God is doing in your life. Praise Him! Use this time to dig deeper than you ever have. Experience His Presence. He is your husband. Keep in touch. Thanks for reading and commenting and following!
After praying for more years than I can count, I have always had the assurance that for now that was my job; To pray and believe that our God would in His perfect timing answer this prayer because I knew it was in line with His will. Today I am rejoicing because just one day ago, the prayers of many years was answered. Don’t ever give up praying even when you can see no answer on the horrizon. Praise the Lord for His perfect timing.
Hi Linda! Thank you so much for sharing your passion and calling to prayer. Thank you for the encouraging word. Praise God for His answer and your tenacity to continue praying for so many years. God is so good.
Honestly, yes I do. I’ve always been a “better” worshiper and Bible student than a pray-er. I’ll join you on your challenge. It’s never a bad time to start spending more time with God. <3
Okay girl! Here we go! Thanks for joining me in this challenge. Praying you up with expectation and thanksgiving. I believe you are called to be a prayer warrior. No, it’s never a bad time to spending more time with God. :) Thanks for your comments Samantha. They encourage me.
Thank you Andy. I will do this challenge. I have some health issues going on right now. I’m trusting that The Lord knows what’s best for me, but sometimes I struggle to wait for his answers. Thank you for being the wonderful encourager you are. Thank you for your last challenge to get on our knees that has made a great difference, I feel much closer toThe Lord when I’m on my knees.
I love you Marie! I will be praying for you and your health issues. I especially feel the need to pray for His Shalom over you. God’s shalom is peace but it also means wholeness and health. Thank you for reading and commenting! Give Patty a hug from me and then tell her to hug you from me. :)
Thank you Andy for posting this!! I have struggled with some unanswered prayers and I am excited to try this challenge. Truly expecting Him to answer and thanking Him before I see anything happen will be challenging bc this is a long unanswered prayer. However im ready to be completely sensitive to the spirit and follow what His word says.
Thanks so much for sharing, Alicia. I will be praying for you and your unanswered prayer. Your surrender to follow the Spirit and Scripture is huge. He’s a good Papa. He wants what is best for you. Only the best. I pray you can rest in that today. Looking forward to hearing what God does in the next 30 days!
I love this post and will share it with my Somebody’s Mother Online Prayer Support Group on facebook. It is just what we need today.
Peace and blessings,
Donna
Donna, you just bless the socks off me all the time! Thank you so much for reading, commenting, and sharing. All I can say about this post is Hallelujah! I’m just trying to follow as the Spirit leads. Thank you for the confirmation.