Thankful Thursday ~ Praying God's Word

“Have we taken time to inscribe God’s Word on our hearts so we have a framework of verses to construct our prayer in the time of need?” Priscilla Shirer

Day 5 in Week 3 of Jonah Navigating a Life Interrupted is all about prayer. When we are refocusing our hearts & minds on God prayer is one of the most basic & one of the most important areas we need to focus. Prayer is the foundation of our communication with God.

In Jonah Chapter 2 we learn 3 lessons on prayer: the pattern of prayer, the passion of prayer, and the posture of prayer.

·      A lesson in repeating:

Woven throughout Jonah’s prayer in verses 2-9 are references to passages from the Book of Psalms.

      Jonah 2:2 – Psalm 30:3

      Jonah 2:3 – Psalm 42:7

      Jonah 2:4 – Psalm 31:22

      Jonah 2:5 – Psalm 69: 1-2

      Jonah 2:7 – Psalm 18:6, Psalm 77:11-12

      Jonah 2:9 – Psalm 66:13-14

Do you pray the Word of God? When we pray the Word of God we actively participate with Him; we breathe in His Word, we absorb His Word, we live His Word. But to pray the word of God we must know His Word.

Do you take time to read & memorize His Word?

This question convicts me as I write it. Over the past month I have committed to memorizing a chapter of the Book of Psalms. In fact just a few weeks ago during my quiet time I prayed through the chapter as I prayed over a very difficult issue my family is facing. But, in the busyness of life I have slacked off and fallen very behind in memorizing. Today I will commit to beginning again.

·      A lesson in crying:

Jonah passionately cried out to God.

“In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me. From the depths of the grave I called for help, and you listened to my cry.” Jonah 2:2

He was in the depths of despair in the belly of the fish and had nowhere to turn but to God. As he cried out, God heard his plea and answered him.

Have you ever passionately cried out to God? I’ve shared with you before that there have been many times I have cried out to God. God knows our pain. He knows our sorrows. He knows our concerns. We just need to be honest & lay them out before Him.

He wants to help us all we need to do is ask.

·      A lesson in gratitude:

“But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good Salvation comes from the Lord.” Jonah 2:9

Jonah was still sitting in the belly of the fish. He had spent 3 long days & nights stranded and there was no end in sight. But, he chose to trust that the Lord would rescue him and thanked him for the deliverance that he knew would come.

Whether you are in the beginning of a storm or the middle of a storm trust that God will deliver you and thank Him for that deliverance. You might not know how to thank Him but find one thing you are grateful for. Even if its just one thing today then hold tight to that one thanks. And tomorrow, find one more thanks and then another and another until you are through the storm.

When we trust and thank God through a storm He brings us through on the other end stronger than when we entered the storm.

What do you have to be thankful for today?

Continuing the Joy Dare of Thanking God each day #1091 - #1099

·      Worshipping through tears & joy

·      Having my son lean over in church & say, “This preacher is awesome!”

·      God’s healing touch

·      Thanking & trusting God that He will get us through a difficult time

·      Bright sunny mornings

·      Making changes even when we don’t want to

·      Baby snuggles

·      Great hit by my little girl in her first softball practice

·      Watching birds build nests outside my window

In His Calm,

Mary