Prayer & Possibilities

We have arrived at DAY #11, of our 2022 Bible Memory Challenge. I hope the verses and blog posts have inspired you in our journey of “Loving to Talk to God”.

We are still going over some different aspects of prayer through these verses. Let’s get started with today’s reflection on prayer.

I apologize in advance that this one is a little long today. I realized that as I typed it out. I cut out about half of it, but I just didn’t feel comfortable about taking anything else out, so a long post it is.

The thought I want us to think about today is, Prayer helps us see possibilities. It helps us see beyond the ordinary.

DAY #11 MEMORY VERSE

And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. Matthew 17:20

Prayer Helps us See Possibilities

Please don’t let the length of this verse scare you. I think this is the longest verse we have had during our Memory Challenge, and if it is giving you trouble, please just memorize that last line, “…and nothing shall be impossible unto you.” Just grab hold of that thought and keep it with you. I think just that tidbit will stay with you and remind you that you can move mountains and see the possibilities that are out there for you.

We talked a little bit about moving mountains and the amazing things that prayer can do on DAY #2 of our Memory Challenge in relation to our faith. Today I want to go a little further than that and focus more on those amazing possibilities that are the result of prayer. And not just the possibilities in general, but specifically the possibilities of prayer to us as individuals and how we can reach for those wants and desires that we have personally.

Today I want us to think in relation to how we can do those amazing things through prayer that affects us individually in a big way.

We all have dreams and goals in life. We all have those bucket lists even if we don’t write out an actual list. We all have those someday ideas that float around in our heads. We have those daydreams that we keep close in our heart.

But have you ever thought of the actual probability of some of those things? With prayer there are possibilities!

No Magic Boxes

And hear me now. I’m not talking about a Ferrari or a Mercedes-Benz just showing up in your driveway. Or climbing Mount Everest at the age of 102 or something. But I’m talking about those real desires of your heart. And by the way, if a Ferrari is one of your heart desires that God has given you, then maybe pray for a good job, or a way to get a good education to land a good job that will help you reach the desired income you need to get that special car. I’m sure you’ve heard that saying, that sometimes we have to put feet to our prayers.

A magic box is not what prayer is, and if you come before the throne of grace with that attitude, you will be sorely disappointed. But God does want us to come boldly before Him and tell Him our wants and desires. He wants us to be those mountain movers.

And I think we have to learn to tell the difference between the desires of our heart and just plain greed. I think when we get that in perspective, it opens us up to really seeing what mountains we want to move in our lives. We see what really is important to us. We see God’s will more plainly. And it helps us open up to the Holy Spirit to allow guidance in what we ask of God.

Knowing the difference between the God given desires of our heart and greed will help with our possibility perspective.

Mountain Movers

What mountains do you need moved? What burden do you need lifted? What would make your heart much lighter?

Have a desire to go to go back to school or further your education? Have a desire to start a business? Have a desire to win souls? Have a desire for your family to know Christ and see Salvation?

What about a new roof on your house? What about upgrading your kitchen? What about purchasing some new clothes that you need? What about a pair of needed new shoes or a pair just because they are pretty and you are drawn to them?

What about a car that runs and is reliable?

You may want to do some things but just have never had the time to do them. Pray God works out all the planning for you. Pray that you will get that time you need to accomplish your goals. It might be something as simple as time to clean out a garage or a storage shed. It might be that you need to pray for the time to take a trip or have some down-time.

Maybe you want to do something different in ministry in your local church that maybe you haven’t tried before, but you are scared what others will think. Or you are scared that the job’s too big for you. Pray about it. It might be what God has for you to do.

Maybe you need money for something. You can pray for the money. You can pray for the extra hours at work. You can pray for a raise. Just pray about it!

I know some of us have expensive tastes. I do. That doesn’t mean we can’t pray for those things. That doesn’t mean we can’t have them just because they are expensive.

Personally, I don’t spend a lot of money on things. There are a lot of expensive brands that I love, but I never pay full price for them. I get them discounted or I shop thrift stores for them. And don’t think I don’t pray before I go to those thrift stores either. We are to pray about everything. I pray that there will be something just for me there and that God will provide what I need, and on top of that, I pray for what I want.

My Shirt Story

I’m a firm believer in praying for what we want. For example, let me tell you my shirt story. Long sleeve button down shirts are what I like to wear, even in summer. I roll the sleeves up on them. And my favorite brand of shirts is Foxcroft. Have I ever bought a Foxcroft shirt full price? Well, no! The style I like are the button-down ones which are $89 regular price on their website. Sorry. I’m not paying that for one shirt.

I first tried them several years back when I got a couple at a thrift shop, and I absolutely loved them. So, I made it a matter of prayer. Next thing you know, I am standing there checking out at a thrift store with 9 of them in immaculate condition. all in my size, all in an array of colors sitting on the counter. I can still see them piled up there and my heart was just singing. Hallelujah! It was such a beautiful pile of shirts! And I was paying $2.99 a piece for them.

I now have 19 Foxcroft button downs in my closet. All colors, except white. A white one is on my prayer list. I’m praying for a really deep discount on them somewhere.

Over time God has blessed me with my shirt desire I guess you would say. I have scaled down my closet immensely, but I wear these every day, and they make me happy, so I keep them. They are all in pristine condition and all came from thrift shops and all less than $5 apiece.

God can bless in even things that may seem little to someone else, but to you it’s the world! It’s your mountain, so to speak. That mountain of shirts moved from that thrift store counter right into my closet.

And I’m not saying you must get everything from thrift stores either in order to get your prayers answered. I’m not saying that at all. I just wanted to show you how God blessed me with one of my desires. I think swapping prayer stories is good for us as Christians.

I just want you to know that I am a firm believer that I must make my wardrobe a part of my prayer life because you know what? I like pretty clothes, pretty jewelry, and all pretty things, and I am not ashamed to admit it. I like to look nice. And I like things that are made well and fit me well. It makes me feel confident as I go about my day, and I think that’s a good thing.

Eyes Wide Open

I know I need reminded from time to time that it is okay to ask for something maybe out of the ordinary in prayer. Maybe something I wouldn’t dare dream I could have. Maybe a problem that I think will never be solved. When I start focusing on what faith can do and what God can do, it opens up a world of possibilities for me. It helps make my eyes wide open for what God can do through prayer.

And I’m not talking about just things, but God can work in hearts in such big ways. He can work in the coldest of hearts. He can help people see the error of their ways. He can turn a person that bullies into a kind person. The possibilities are endless!

I think some of us have been programed to tell ourselves, “We can’t have that” or “We can’t pray for that”.

We must change our thinking. When we start studying all the passages in the Bible on prayer, the we can’t have that thinking just doesn’t compute with what prayer really is. We can see that by just the verses we have looked at so far during this “Loving to Talk to God” Memory Challenge.

Seeing the possibilities of prayer makes me remember in awe again just how great a God I have. God can do the impossible and He can and will do it for me.

Thanks for stopping in to listen to a little chatter on prayer. I hope you will share your thoughts on today’s verse in the comments. I love hearing what you all have to say. Feel free to swap your prayer story with me!

Have a lovely day,
Julia

2022 Bible Memory Challenge

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