"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." Have you ever had a hard time sticking to this commandment? Well the past month so have I. Despite all the blessings I could list, our packed schedule really began to wear me out. And being overwhelmed usually ends up producing impatience, worry and frustration. I'll spare you from all the details but let's just say I wasn't the funnest person to be around I'm sure.
Not being able to, or really even wanting to change my attitude God gave me people to help me start. (without them even knowing) Within a week a group of girlfriends and I had commited to pray for one another faithfully, then another friend asked me to pray with her each week, Jason and I once again began praying together every night after having slacked off...are you getting the picture? I was being surrounded in prayer. And let me just say that within a week the joy and gratitude were a product of that prayer. And He's continued to prove to me the necessity of prayer. Not just to pour out our desires and ask for things but to align ourselves with Him and to allow Him to change us.
Very quickly I'd like to share a powerful verse that has driven this home even further. It is found in Acts. Herod has thrown Peter into prison for preaching the Gospel and intends to kill him after the Passover. It ends with him being miraculously freed. Acts 12 - it's awesome take a minute and read it. Now I'm sure Peter was begging God to free him but my favorite part is in verse 5: So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.
It just shows how powerful our prayers really are. Sure, we don't change God's mind but we move His heart and he acts. When we pray with each other and for each other God is listening and he is moving.
You say you need more proof. Well Jason and I have asked you to pray with us that our support would be raised. As of Friday we have 50% of our support committed!! There is no way we could do this within our own strength. But by praying & trusting Him to provide we've seen Him far exceed our expectations already. So thank you and please keep praying. Also, we'd love to know if there is anything we can cover in prayer for you!!
