My word...for the year is....


I’ve seen some others who say they have a word of the year. Something to focus on no matter what the situation or something that they simply need to work on.  I thought “Hey that’s a good idea”, so I thought and thought on it.  I need a word to focus on, to help me every day and to grow closer to God in my walk/ on my journey.  I have decided that my word for the year is prayerful.  I know I need to work on my prayer life, both inward and outward, and be that example for my children. 


One of my favorite verses to go back to is Philippians 4:6-7.  When my brother was stationed overseas, he sent me a letter and in that letter he mentioned that he had gotten a bible and just opened it up to read and saw this verse.  I looked it up after that letter and it has been a go-to of mine for my really hard days.


Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”


Don’t worry about anything but pray about everything.  Wow!  But with thanksgiving.  So prayerful as my wors I am going to work on not just praying for a need but to also work on praying for the things and people I have.  A former youth pastor of mine (and now a good friend too) once said that prayers should follow J.O.Y. Jesus (thank him), Others (pray for and thank Him for those in our lives) and then Yourself… I will admit that I seldom do it that way when I pray but I do it that way when I lead the ‘repeat after me’ prayers with my daughter each night. I hope that this word each day will help me to remember it.


(Bear with me, as I typed this up this next part got a bit preachy)


When I decided on prayerful I opened up an app on my phone that was a concordance for the Bible and looked up why we need to pray, then I opened up the Bible app (yes I know not your typical way of doing it but it’s the one I always have with me no matter where I am) and looked up each verse it listed (there was like 40+ of them).  But 3 stuck out with me:

Jeremiah 29:12, where God says, “You will call out to Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.”  He hears us loud and clear, whether we call out loud or simply say it in our head/heart.  Knowing that God can hear me is an awesome feeling.

Psalm 7:6, David says, “I call on You, God, because You will answer me; listen closely to me; hear what I say.”  God doesn’t just listen, but He listens closely, AND He answers us.  Is it a loud booming voice I should be listening for? Probably not.  I big blinking sign that says, “God’s answers this way?” Nope not that either.  I know He is speaking to me when I have this small (large) nudge inside me pointing me in the direction I should go.  I call it a God-Feeling…something you just can’t see to shake away…that is one of the ways God answers us.  Another is by simply seeing what we have prayed about come to be.

Colossians 4:2, says, “Devote yourselves to prayer; stay alert in it with thanksgiving.”   There is it again, be in talks with the Lord and do it with thanks in your heart.  

God and those in the Bible have told us why we pray and even how to pray, I am hoping that by focusing on being prayerful that I can follow the instructions laid out before me to help draw me closer to him.

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