Answered Prayers…

“A praying life isn’t simply a morning prayer time; it is about slipping into prayer at odd hours of the day, not because we are disciplined but because we are in touch with our own poverty of spirit, realizing that we can’t even walk through a mall or our neighborhood without the help of the Spirit of Jesus.” ~ Paul Miller.

I just wanted to share a few praises with you all…first of all, to THANK YOU for praying for me over the years, and especially my recent battles with depression and weight loss!! My bloggy friends are such an encouragement to me!!

Secondly, one of the reasons I feel so prompted by God to share my struggles with you in this little place on the web is to ENCOURAGE any of you that may be walking similar paths. I pray that my words are a blessing and encouragement, as so many of your prayers and words have been an encouragement to me!! I truly believe that God gives us comfort to be a comfort to others…blessed to be a blessing. {2 Cor. 1:3-6}

I am reading A Praying Life: Connecting with God in a Distracting World by Paul Miller. {First of all, I highly, highly recommend this book if you are looking for a practical and encouraging book on the subject of prayer!! I am about 3/4 of the way through this book and I think I can safely say that it is probably my favorite book I’ve ever read on the subject!! And, for those of you that struggle with prayer…I really think that this book would give you some encouragement…as well as practical tips and ways to pray in our busy world. Oh it is just so good!}

Anyway, I am actually reading it as I walk on the treadmill! (this is a free book I downloaded when we got our iPad and have been reading it a little bit at a time as I walk/jog.)

As I walk I am reading…and praying. And God is using these moments on the treadmill to mold and form me in new ways. It truly is an answer to prayer!! I have had some of the best prayer times on the treadmill. Who would have thought?!? 🙂

“A needy heart is a praying heart. Dependency is the heartbeat of prayer.” ~ Paul Miller. Oh, how this has proven so true in my own life!! I am so, so needy…and for the first time in my life, I am learning that being needy is NOT a bad thing…I am just totally desperate for and dependent on my Savior.

For one thing – I have always hated exercise. And might I dare to say that I am actually starting to enjoy the treadmill and my time there? This all ties into Made to Crave, as well, because chapter 9 is about exercise!! Dreaded exercise. 🙂 But I have been praying for a few weeks now that God would help me to enjoy it and keep at it. I have such a long way to go…but this morning I realized as I was praying that God was already answering my prayers!! Even if I fail tomorrow, He has been faithful to answer my prayers for today!! What a blessing and what a joy to be thankful for each small gift that He gives.

“The criteria for coming to Jesus is weariness. Come overwhelmed with life. Come with your wandering mind. Come messy.” ~ Paul Miller.

I can truly say that God is getting me through each exercise session – and He has used prayer, reading this book and worship music to help me. It is so like God to use some of my favorite things – worship and reading – to help me enjoy something I otherwise hated!! God does work in miraculous ways. 🙂 I cannot tell you how many times I have put my music on shuffle and at the exact moment I was praying to God for grace to get me through the next minute of running and what do I hear next? A song about God being my deliverer, words about God giving grace for the moment, turning my eyes to Him and helping me forget myself. I praise Him for these moments of grace in my life!!

“If you are going to enter this divine dance we call prayer, you have to surrender your desire to be in control, to figure out how prayer works.” ~ Paul Miller.

My favorite chapter from this book has been about the desert. God first showed me that He indeed does lead us into the wilderness when He showed me the passage in Exodus where he led the Israelites into the wilderness. He does have a purpose for these times in the desert!! In fact, I am learning how to be thankful for these times of struggle. They are truly gifts that draw me to the feet of my Savior. “God takes everyone He loves through a desert.” ~ Paul Miller.

Your desert will be different from mine. But, each desert is designed specifically with our individual hearts in mind…We learn to give up the fight – we can’t do it on our own anyway! We become broken…which leads to humility. The things we were once clinging to gradually die. Our idols aren’t idols anymore. The desert builds in us a thirst for the Living Water that only Jesus can bring. “Desert life sanctifies you.” ~ Paul Miller.

So, if you find yourself in the desert today, whatever that may look like in your life, please be encouraged. God is doing a work in you that you will someday look back on with joy…He is making you more like Himself. It is worth it.