betweenprayersandprose

[betweenprayersandprose]

Dear God, when I feel like a mess, remind me that You specialize in turning chaos into beauty. Thank You for never giving up on me. Amen.

[betweenprayersandprose]

To Him Who Is Our Faithful Friend

There are days when our mind is at war. Days when we wish we weren’t ourselves just so we wouldn’t have to face certain battles. And then there are days when we remember the Father’s promises and ask ourselves: Are they really for me?

Because our limited vision makes us believe that our reality doesn’t fit into His promises. And that thought hurts. The clash with reality shows us who we still need to become, and the distance to the goal wounds us too. But the only One who can fight our battles and help us grow is Him.

Jesus.

And despite so much affliction, so many tears, and countless cries for help (every single day), we have faith—not in what we can do, but in what we know You can do. And that is ENOUGH.

We must remember every day that if it were up to our own strength, we would have already given up. So, thank You, Jesus, for being our Rock in difficult times (and not just then).

We know we are still far from becoming who You have called us to be. We also know who we are as humans—weak, flawed, small… so ourselves.

But, Father, we believe in Your promises. Even when our eyes see nothing, and even when the changes in us and around us seem smaller than we’d like, we trust in You.

Now, read this as a prayer:

Thank You for sustaining me, encouraging me, and helping me. Thank You for hearing me when I cry out. Thank You for being a good Father!

I ask that You help me keep walking and always stay by my side, because if I have to live life without You, I don’t want it.

I love You, Father. I know You will never leave me.

And when I win this battle and people ask me the secret to never giving up, I will say:

— It’s Jesus, from beginning to end!

[betweenprayersandprose]

To Him Whom I Ask ‘Why?

Things that happen in our lives make us ask: Why? Why me, LORD? Why this? Why now? So many “whys,” and sometimes, because we are so small, we forget about YOUR wisdom over everything. We forget that the control is still in YOUR hands, no matter how much it seems otherwise!

GOD, trusting is so difficult. We have the urge to control everything and do things our own way, thinking it’s better as we imagine. But YOU know that nothing we imagine could ever be as good as what YOU have planned! Taking our hands off the control requires trust. And how can we trust someone else if we cannot even trust our own hearts? ABBA, we have so much to learn from YOU… So much!

Even in the midst of so many “whys,” we trust in YOU. YOU are a faithful FATHER, the ONE who completes all things in all circumstances. Even in the overwhelming storm within our souls, we trust that YOU are in control. We trust even when we don’t understand. We trust even when we keep asking, “why?”

Since we should not be moved by feelings and emotions but by what we know and trust, then, JESUS, we trust in YOU. In the opposing winds, in afflictions, in the sobbing cries, in the exaggerated laughter, in the pain of wounds, in the conflicting thoughts, in every area that still needs change and renewal.

Now, read these words as a true prayer:

LORD,

I entrust every piece of my heart to YOU.

I entrust to YOU every barrier I have built myself.

I surrender to YOU every broken part of me.

Every moment and every chapter of my story,

I place in YOUR hands.

The life within me belongs to YOU, regardless of my “whys.”