“The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”
(James 5:16, NKJV)
I have slowly allowed myself, friends to develop the habit of praying instead of fretting.
My natural bent, I admit, would be to worry. But having walked with the Lord thus far has enabled me to realise that because He is with me, I have no reason to worry or be anxious anymore.
No legit reason whatesoever.
Now does that mean that I don’t get anxious?
Absolutely not.
Of course, I do.
But I have no reason anymore to stay that way.
I can instead, pray.
Prayer, quite simply, is close connection and communion with God. It is a chance to engage in a relational dialogue with the Father and get real with Him. It is an opportunity to express my truest feelings and let myself flow in the beauty and the authenticity of the freedom that my relationship with Jesus inspires.
It is also a place where I am shaped and forged. For it is in the secret place where I get to yield my will to His and exchange His thoughts for mine. It is here that I know I can lay down the burden of the ‘performance anxiety’ that I am feeling and instead, let myself grow into the gift of the full acceptance of the Father. It is here that I am able to embrace my imperfections and my vulnerabilities simply because His strength is made perfect in my weakness.
It is also in prayer that I can transact and bridge the gap between what Jesus has died for me to receive and my current reality. Here faith is the currency of exchange as I seek to draw from what Jesus has already put in my account, and I need only ask, seek and knock till the door is opened for me.
Prayer is when Heaven touches earth and nothing is going to be the same any more. But isn’t that the reason why the Gospel is called ‘Good News?’
I reckon.
In prayer, I assume the responsibility of partnering effectively with the King of glory as well as tap into the delight of being a much loved Child of God. I rejoice in the Lord who has gone before me and call down things that are not as though they are. I learn what it is to walk by faith and not by sight.
I prophesy so that I can testify. I believe before I see. I trust even when I can’t understand.
Here it is that I meet my Creator face-to-face, skin-to-skin, bone-to-bone as I work out my salvation with awe and wonder.
Ok. Coming back to my tendency to fret.
Let me share a verse from Scripture, friends.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
(Philippians 4:6-7, ESV)
The Word of God here is talking of a beautiful barter exchange – an exchange of our yoke with His.
We give Him our yoke which is oh-so heavy and burdensome, and receive His in its place, for His yoke is easy and His burden is light. He offer Him our worries in prayer and cast all our cares on Him because He cares for us. Joyce Meyer says something quite profound,
“Cast your care, but not your responsibility.”
So what is our responsibility?
To pray, to trust and to partner.
To do what He shows us to do, and trust Him with the results. The process is our responsibility, the outcome is His.
And He is Faithful.
Takes the pressure off, doesn’t it?
So as a result, I am honestly doing much better than before, friends. When I find myself even starting to get anxious, I am learning to still myself in His Presence and pray instead.
Suffice to say,
That’s how I fight my battles.
⚔💓
SoulandSubstance27 