Prayer Over Worry

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. – (Philippians 4:6-7, NIV)

Don’t worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need, always giving thanks for what you have. And because you belong to Christ Jesus, God’s peace will stand guard over all your thoughts and feelings. His peace can do this far better than our human minds. – (Philippians 4:6-7, ERV)

Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. – (Philippians 4:6-7, MSG)

 

As usual, what is part of my scheduled daily reading, is exactly what I needed to remember this morning. Part of the joy and blessing in our new puppy, is the constant companion who joyfully wants to join me in all things. The thing I have been most excited about, has been to have a dog who can run with us. For the last week, Thor (my sweet puppy), has been joining us on jog/walk/carries on weekday mornings. Two dear dog-owning friends privately messaged me to be careful about how far I take a puppy. I thought I was using caution, as I watched his cues, and picked him up to carry him any time he seemed weary or bored of walking. Sadly, unless I know specifics, I just do what seems best until I learn otherwise. One of the friends happened to send me a link about puppies and how much exercise they need, based on age, and all of the justification as to why. That sent me to research further, only to discover that I now need to pump the brakes on our morning sessions until Thor is quite a bit older. This caused two-fold anxiety in me. One, I felt horrible that I had likely overdone the exercise for my poor puppy for four or five days, and second, I was worried about how I would be able to stand staying seated for all of the hours of work that I need to do each day, without getting out and moving first. My prayer was pretty much, “O God, now what?” I paused, took a deep breath, and decided to call my running buddy. She was extremely gracious, and we determined to get back to afternoon running, as it is when I could recruit my boys to puppy sit. I know this is a small and seemingly insignificant concern, but God cares about our every concern, great and small. May we ever present our cares and concerns to Christ, for He hears, He loves, and He brings everything together for good somehow.

 

We need not worry,

Instead, let us pray;

For Christ hears each cry,

All night and all day.

What concerns our hearts,

He’ll carry with peace;

As we turn to Him,

Our fear is released.

So, lift head and heart,

To Him, give all care;

He’s ever-present,

And everywhere.

 

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that we can bring all of our concerns, cares and anxieties to You, and You care and bring us Your peace. Thank You that You are always ready and available to hear our prayers. Forgive us for fear and doubt that allow anxiousness a foothold. Teach us to trust You more, for You are faithful and kind and care about our concerns, no matter how small. Show us how to love those around us in tangible ways that make Your peace an obvious presence. May many come into a lasting relationship with You. Be glorified O God, as we seek You and trust You in all things. Amen.

 

© Shannon Elizabeth Grabrick and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present

 

Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? – Luke 12:25

 

 

Just Faith

Attempting to be right before God in our own strength, does not work.  Our very best intentions will never lead to justification, regardless of how hard we try on our own.  However, when we choose to live by faith, and place our trust in Him, we are counted righteous as He covers us with the mercy of His sacrifice made, and we are seen as spotless, shameless, and set free from sin.

“Clearly no one is justified before God by the law, because, ‘The righteous will live by faith.” – (Galatians 3:11)

Even our faith is a gift that God gives.  We have the freedom to choose whether or not we are to embrace God and the glorious gifts that He has given; or not.  When we choose Him, He meets us where we are, grows our faith within us, and opens the eyes of our hearts to more clearly see who He is and what He has done for us.  As our understanding deepens, we cannot help but long to love more deeply, and serve more selflessly.  By His grace, we embrace our faith, and He deems us righteous before Him.

In our own strength,

no way justified;

only by grace,

we are sanctified.

It is by faith,

not by any law;

that we’re called right,

before Father God.

It is a gift,

for us to embrace;

may each heart know,

His unending grace.

Open our eyes,

to more clearly see;

Your righteousness,

that has set us free.

Dear Jesus, thank You for coming and taking our place on the cross, so that we can be called clean, justified before God, because of what You willingly did on our behalf.  Thank You that despite our best efforts, on our own we would never measure up – yet with You, by faith, we are considered righteous before God.  Forgive us for trying to justify ourselves with our “I’ll do better next time” or “I’ll never do that again“, and help us instead to confess to You, and rely on You to be our help and our hope, so that we will do better the next time we face a similar scenario – not because we are better, but because we are trusting You more.  Teach us how to rely on You completely in all things and at all times, and be our hope and our help, even when we can’t seem to see or hear You in the midst of the mess.  Thank You that You are always present, and always good.  Help us to love others as You love us, and may many come to know You through our loving kindness.   Be exalted in all that we say and do.  Amen.

© Shannon Elizabeth Moreno and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present.

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. – Galatians 5:22-23

Found By Faith

“For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.” – Romans 3:28

For proof of His presence is EVERYWHERE!
image by Yoga on the Beach

Our forgiveness, salvation and justification from and before the Father are found only by faith; by trusting whole-heartedly that Jesus’ death on the cross was enough for us to become right with God.  We are not saved by works.  Only by FAITH.

“Why does God save us by faith alone?

(1) Faith eliminates the pride of human effort, because faith is not a deed that we do.

(2) Faith exalts what God has done, not what people do.

(3) Faith admits that we can’t keep the law or measure up to God’s standards – we need help.

(4) Faith is based on our relationship with God, not our performance for God.” – (NIV Study Bible footnotes)

If faith eliminates our personal pride for what we practice, then as we come before Him with humble hearts, He can do immeasurably more than we could ever hope or imagine.  As we exalt what God has done, we point to the path for people to find faith in the Father.

As our faith grows, we come to know just how short we fall from keeping the law in our own strength.  When we come to know our own need, we seek Him for the strength necessary to sustain us and keep our path straight.

Finally, faith is found through relationship with our Redeemer, not through our personal performance.  If our hearts and minds are busy looking to see how we are measuring up, we have moved our focus off of the Father and are missing the point.  However, when we press in and keep our focus on the Founder of our faith, spending time with Him, accepting His limitless love, mercy and grace, our faith finds secure footing and we learn to stand strong on  solid ground.

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that through Your Son, You have provided the way for our salvation.  Thank You that it is not through our performance, nor through our ability to follow the letter of the law (for we ALL fall short – Romans 3:23) that we are saved, but instead, it is through accepting the immeasurable investment that You have made available to every heart that believes.  Jesus’ life paid our price, so that we might receive eternal residence in Your holy presence.  Forgive us for forgetting our faith and trying to work to please You.  May we find rest in the very best that You grant us all, by faith and forgiveness through the sacrifice of Your Son.  Lead us to live lives faithfully in and for You, so that many may come to find faith too.  Amen.

© Shannon Elizabeth Moreno and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present