Prayer Life
Do you ever want immediate relief from a situation? You might try talking to your friends and family about it, or distracting yourself from it in some way, but it doesn’t always do the trick. You know you need something else but not sure what will help. We get so used to the temporary help and self-medicating ways of today’s world that we forget what we are really looking for. What we are really searching for is a permanent solution, and that is God. Philippians 4:6-7 says, “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.” Notice how the verse points us to go to God with everything, and in exchange, He will give us peace that surpasses all understanding that will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
In prayer we can go to God with everything, and in exchange, He will give us peace that surpasses all understanding that will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
We have an invitation to bring everything to God- our anxieties, worries, doubts, hurts, struggles and so much more. He wants to give us peace and relief in our circumstances. We can bring our requests to God with thanks, knowing that once we bring it to Him, we don’t need to worry anymore. He is working it all out. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 says, “pray continually.” In every moment you can talk to God. He is the one who you can take those random overwhelming feelings that occur when overthinking. You can ask Him to guide you in what to say in any interaction you will have that day. Or, you can just be thanking Him for all that He is doing and all that He has provided for you. When you keep Him in your every moment, you’ll notice how the worrisome thoughts do not overwhelm you as much. In addition, when you take time to thank Him for random things, knowing He has supplied them, you will find that fear does not take hold of you. There is proof that where there is gratitude, fear and anxiety cannot be present. Both these emotions take part in the same section of your brain and cannot be done simultaneously. What an intentional way for God to set up our brains! He wants us to focus on all the good that He does, which that alone, will help our mental health tremendously.
There are so many positive things about prayer and staying in constant communication with our God. There is so much power in prayer! Not only will we begin to see change in our mental health, but also in the way we deal with different situations. Specifically, when praying in accordance with God’s will, we will see prayers answered. In James chapter 5 and the second half of verse sixteen states, “..the prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” Our prayers have great effect! The Bible even tells us that all our prayers are heard by God and how our prayers are a pleasing aroma to Him. He takes it all in and understands what we are experiencing when we say each prayer.
God is so intentional to listen and gracious enough to give us what we need when we need it.
Right when we pour our hearts out to God, He is there to give us His peace. He is constantly there for us to go back to. And that peace protects our minds and hearts from overthinking and being rooted in negativity. Prayer is so sweet because it is something Jesus modeled for us to do while He was here on earth. He did it to communicate with God, illustrating for us how we can do the same! When we are with God in heaven, there will be no for need prayer. We will be in the presence of our Father, and trials or struggles will not exist. Therefore, take advantage of what God has equipped you with in order to do life with Him now!