Prayer

There are lots of different prayers spoken by us moms.

There are prayers of desperation, silently thrown at the feet of Jesus as we go about our day. When the demands of little people just seem to be too much for one woman to handle.

There are prayers of fear, yelled aloud in moments of terror. I've experienced this while watching my two day old baby turn blue.

There are thoughtful prayers, two word prayers, and many more. But perhaps my favorite, are forgotten prayers. Those prayers that were uttered from the depths of your heart, sharing your desires with Jesus. The prayers that weeks or months later, you remember, as God is answering each and every detail. I remembered such a prayer last week. Soon after our baby boy was born, the hubby and I were discussing taking permanent measures, debating between three or four children. We had always said we felt an even number would be best, but with three so close together, we didn't know if we could handle any more. We prayed about it, together and separately. And I remember praying in the shower, where I do most of my serious thinking and praying, that God would do what was best for our family. I prayed that if God wanted us to have a fourth, He would allow that to happen before we did take permanent measures. That if He gave us a fourth, it would be born between 15 and 18 months after baby boy's birthday. I told God that I wanted a fourth, but I didn't want one baby too far apart from three that were so close together. I told Him that my heart's desire was to have at least one more, but I just didn't know if that's what was right for our family - or if we could handle it. I told Him that if He did give us a fourth, I would really like baby boy to have a brother. I told God lots of things and trusted Him to do what's best. He's our Daddy and wants to hear what is on our hearts. He wants to give us good things.

And here I am, pregnant with Baby #4, a boy, due exactly 17 months after his big brother's birthday. God is good.

Prayer

Prayer is a powerful thing because we serve a powerful God. That's why I'm asking everyone I know to pray for a friend from college, Amy, and her husband Matt. She was almost 25 weeks pregnant when she found out her baby had passed away and had to deliver his body. We who have not experienced such grief can not imagine how difficult this must be, so the only thing we can do is pray. God answers prayers. You can read his story on Amy's blog, here, and see his announcement as well.

 

"Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. He made the storm be still, and the waves of the sea were hushed. Then they were glad that the waters were quiet, and he brought them to their desired haven."

- Psalm 107:28 - 30

Today's Prayer

I hope that at the end of every day, I can earnestly pray the following in regards to my children:

"I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them."

- John 17:26

Loving Instruction

"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." - I Thessalonians 5:16 - 18

If you've spent any time on this blog, you know that a big part of our life right now is waiting for God to show us His will regarding job/s, seminary, housing, living location, ministry, children, etc. We are in daily prayer over these matters and sometimes feel we are stuck. Some days, I just want God to write His will for us and the answers to our questions in the sky or an e-mail so I really won't miss it. "What do You want us to do, Lord? What is Your will?" Then I stumbled across this passage. I think it's one of those verses that my brain knows, but my heart needs to know as well. In fact, my heart needs to be reminded daily. He has written down His will for us. Not in an e-mail, but a book. He tells me that His will for me is to "rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances". So today I will rejoice, pray, and give thanks!

Lord, thank you for the place you have put me today. Help me to rejoice in caring for my husband, children, and housework. Please continue to direct our path and lead us in Your will. Thank you for all You have provided and given us. Thank you for these difficult times - they are drawing us closer to You. Thank you for proving Your love and promises to us every day.

Today's Prayer

"O Lord, be gracious to us; we wait for you. Be our arm every morning, our salvation in the time of trouble." 

- Isaiah 33:2

Today's Prayer

"Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long."

- Psalm 25:4, 5

Today's Prayer

"For this reason I bow my knees before the Father . . . that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith - that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God." - Ephesians 3:14, 16 - 19

Today's Prayer

And Hannah prayed and said,

"My heart exults in the Lord; my strength is exalted in the Lord. My mouth derides my enemies, because I rejoice in your salvation. There is none holy like the Lord; there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God. . . . He raises up the poor from the dust; he lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor. For the pillars of the earth are the Lord's, and on them he has set the world."

- I Samueul 2:1, 2, 8

Today's Prayer

Lord, thank you for seeing me through today. When tears dropped to my plate during my prayer for lunch and I didn't even know what to ask or say, You did. You knew that those weren't the first tears shed this morning or that they would be the last for the day. You know how emotionally and mentally exhausted I am. You know that today was a struggle from the moment I woke up. You also knew what I needed. You knew that I needed the girls to play by themselves happily. You knew that I needed Megan to start a fork sword fight over our chicken nuggets that ended up with all of us girls laughing hysterically. You knew that I needed all three kids to nap for two hours at the same time this afternoon. You knew that I needed Michael to laugh at his sisters and shreak happily when I kissed his chubby cheeks. You knew that I needed the girls to parade around the house in their red shoes and play jewelry, Megan singing her version of "Jesus Loves Me." You know, and I praise you!

Truth and Prayer

"Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge. I say to the Lord, "You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you." You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore."

- Psalm 16:1, 2, 11

Today's Prayer

"I am continually with you; you hold my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever."

 - Psalm 73:23 - 26

Today's Prayer

Lord, please forgive me for pushing my grocery cart.

Let me explain.

Since my first baby was born, grocery shopping by myself has been my get-away. My quiet time. Time where I don't have to answer to demanding children, clean the house, or talk to anyone. Time to think or time to let my mind finally think of nothing; it didn't matter. It was my time.

Today was no different. Just a few errands to run while everyone else in my house napped. Running into the grocery store, my last stop, I threw a few basics into the cart: potatoes and an onion for dinner, milk, and orange sorbet that was on sale. Going through the line, I noticed there was no bagger to walk my groceries to my car, and I liked that. (I've always hated people doing things for me and asking for help, but pride is another many more posts worth.) As I dropped my wallet into my purse, out of the corner of my eye I see a bagger grabbing my cart and hear "Shall we?". "Oh, thank you, but I can get it" I made sure to say with a smile. This chipper girl replied "You most certainly will not.", quite happy with herself to assist me. Lady, do you even know you're dealing with? You surely must know that telling me I will "most certainly not" do something is pretty much a guarantee that I "most certainly" will in fact be doing that very thing. Before I could blink, one word came tumbling out of my mouth: "no". (Don't you hate it when that happens?!? I did not approve of my mouth saying that!) I honestly don't know if it was the tone of my voice or the look on my face, but that poor girl backed away from my cart like I had just told her there was a bomb strapped to it. Feeling very powerful having just won this little battle I marched through the exit. The guilt hit almost as fast as the hot southern air. Really? Had I just done that?

Lord, please forgive me for pushing my grocery cart. Forgive me for not thinking before I speak, for not letting Your love shine through me. She was only doing her job, happily and willingly. She was trying to serve me. I'm so sorry that I let my pride and selfishness get in the way of You.

I guess grocery shopping isn't my time. It's God's time.

Truth and Prayer for Today

"The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The Lord is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made." - Psalm 145:8, 9

I am so grateful for a gracious and merciful Heavenly Father. Especially on days where I fail at those qualities repeatedly. Today was one of those days where every little thing was frustrating. (Thank you, PMS!) And when every little thing is frustrating and you're caring for a 2 1/2 year old, 1 1/2 year old, and 6 month old, it's NOT a good combination! Megan (2 1/2 years) trying to perfect her fake cry every five mintues. Lauren (1 1/2 years) throwing fits. Michael puking nonstop. Megan purposefully upsetting Lauren so Lauren will scream and get in trouble. Lauren screaming. Michael not sleeping. Megan 'mothering' her siblings a little too roughly resulting in three little people crying because they're either hurt or they don't like seeing a sibling hurt, and/or Mommy giving too much comfort-cuddle time to someone else even though they need Mama love, too. Needless to say, I lost it. More than once. A harsh "Stop!" stated, a rough hand grabbing a little arm to get their attention, and most likely quite the unloving look on my face when I confronted each situation with much too little grace.

Father God, please forgive my failures. I want to be like You, but I was a far cry from Your standard today. Please give me mercy, grace, patience, and love for my children, whom I cherish. Please let Your love shine through me so they know Your love, love that can only come from You. Physically, please help me to feel more balanced and calm. You are in control of every aspect of life and I cling to that truth today. Thank you for being gracious and merciful towards me when I clearly don't deserve it. Thank you for being patient with me. You are amazing God!

Today's Prayer

Dear Jesus, today was rough. It has left me physically, emotionally, and mentally exhausted. My big girl refused to share anything with her little sister and wanted to be carried all day. My little girl acted like it was her job to test Mommy and see how many no-no's she could get into. She screamed, threw fits, and kicked her therapist during her therapy session which had to be rescheduled. My baby boy puked all day and didn't want to be put down. I am still recovering from driving through the night to get home from a wedding, and when I stepped on the scale this morning I realized I am officially pre-pregnancy weight. While this sounds wonderful, my clothes are no where near to fitting, even the ones I was in after my second pregnancy. I failed miserably at being meek, gentle, and loving. Thank you for forgiving me and washing me clean. Lord Jesus, I needed you today. And You were there. Just like You promise. I heard You when Megan comforted her brother in her sweet voice, "What's wong Michael? It's okee, Michael." I saw You when Lauren ate a hot dog for the first time (right after leaving the therapy session for her eating skills). I felt You while cradling my sleepy, smiling baby, remembering what a blessing You have given us in this little boy. I heard You in giggles between sisters, sharing secrets in their own language I will never know. I felt You when both girls asked for hugs at bedtime and started patting my back. Thank you for the very good, little things that saw me through the day.

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change." - James 1:17

Today's Prayer

"O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!" - Psalm 8:1, 3-5, 9

Today's Prayer

"Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name." - I Chronicles 29:10b - 13

Today's Prayer

"O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory. Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. So I will bless you as long as I live; in your name I will lift up my hands." - Psalm 63:1-4

Today's Prayer

"Keep me as the apple of your eye, hide me in the shadow of your wings." - Psalm 17:8