In everything…
During this time, be open with the Lord about where you are at.
Philippians 4:6 says “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving in your heart, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your heart and your mind in Christ Jesus…“
Sometimes we think we can only bring “neat and tidy” requests to God that would pass the ‘sunday school teacher test’. It’s like we are trying to politely and modestly SCREAM AND CRY when there is an urgent need.
Does God really need to be told what He already knows?
It makes no sense to withhold your true desires and honest thoughts from Him who sees and knows the hidden things of the heart. The Bible promises in Psalms that as we “delight ourselves in the Lord, He will shape the desires of our heart” (Ps 37:4). Your Bible may say “give you the desires…” but the actual word means “to shape and mold”.
God wants us to be open, and in everything (work, life, job, marriage, family, sin, success, struggles etc) to present our requests to God with an understanding and thankful heart that we don’t need to carry that which He has already carried for us.
Anxiety is a sin that was paid for on the cross.
Immorality is a sin that was paid for on the cross.
Greed, lust, gossip, worry, fear, and anger… all paid for on the cross.
So, don’t try to be neat and tidy in this 10-minute prayer set. Open up your journal and write down your ‘worry list’, your thankful list, and your honest thoughts and fears as an offering to God, knowing that He is big enough, patient enough, peace-filled enough, and willing to listen and respond.
But don’t try to hide behind niceties.
A life ruled by sexual sin or addiction is often well-practiced in hiding and covering up. Start being open and honest with Him who already knows the heart. Tomorrow you’ll have another chance to lay it all out. As you do this segment each day, you’ll become more comfortable being “naked and unashamed” in the presence of The Lover of your Soul as intimacy grows between you and The Lord.
- B – be still
- R – repent
- O – open
