The best life is a God First life

Category: Prayer & Devotion

My King and My Father: Approaching God with Both Reverence and Confidence

When we approach God’s throne in prayer, we often bow our heads, close our eyes, and kneel. I love doing these gestures because they signify respect, honor, and glory to God. They also help focus our attention solely on the prayer and can be great examples in teaching our children to pray and respect our Heavenly Father.

One thoughtful response to this point put it well: we often bow our heads and hide our faces and eyes out of respect, honor, and submission to Him—especially in times when we need forgiveness, confidence, or assurance—because He is our King. Most of the time, however, we can come confidently and unashamed. We are assured of our place with Him through His Son, and we simply want or need a Father to talk to: a Father who listens, hears, cares, and possesses unending wisdom. He is the Father who is infinite love, who allows us our choices (even the bad ones) and still says, “I’m here. I’m listening. I still love you.” We can share our best days and our worst days with Him, talk about the beauty of creation, or wrestle with hard questions, because He is both our King and our Father.

This said, prayer has no limits! We can pray anywhere at any time in any situation or environment. We don’t pray to impress those around us; we pray to have time with our Creator, say thank you, or ask for help. God is family, and no one loves us the way God loves us, and no one has the ability to help us more than God does. So we can pray out loud or in our mind without a single word spoken, with our eyes wide open, driving down the road, cutting grass, fishing, hunting, cooking, walking the dog, or holding the baby.

God has given each of us the avenue of direct prayer through the name of Jesus, His only begotten Son, so why not take advantage of this incredible opportunity and pray often? God wants to hear from us!

Hebrews 4:14-16; Matthew 6:9; Psalm 47:7; Isaiah 33:22; Isaiah 63:16; John 20:17; Romans 8:15-16; 1 Thessalonians 5:17; Ephesians 6:18; James 5:13; Romans 12:12; Matthew 6:5-7; 1 John 5:14-15; Luke 15:10; 1 John 3:1; 1 John 4:8; Romans 8:1; 1 Corinthians 1:25.

God First!

Finding God’s Comfort on Painful Anniversaries

Some dates, like birthdays, bring us happiness and Joy, while some dates bring heart-wrenching memories of shattered hearts, terrible life-changing events, death, and accidents. I often pray for the emotional strength and comfort that only God can provide for all my loved ones during these times. I once prayed, ”Father, please help all my family and us in these coming days, as I don’t know what to do.” As I said, “I don’t know what to do.” It dawned on me—I was doing it! Nothing is more powerful than God’s help; God can comfort our hearts and minds beyond understanding and place people in our lives who help us overcome despair. His approach may not be simply the love and compassion of good friends, but rather God may be helping by providing us opportunities to help others in need; opportunities that, if we pursue them, focus our minds and time on others, which distract us from the temptation to wallow in sorrow. Look for opportunities to do good; these are blessings to the heart. (Galatians 6:9-10)

Praying is so simple that we might diminish its value and forget just how powerful communicating with our Creator truly is. Scripture tells us: “The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” So, pursue righteousness with all we have to give.

Scripture also states: “Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” James 4:8 So, Let’s pursue righteousness and pray often with righteous prayers from loving hearts, then trust God!

Galatians 6:9-10; James 5:16; James 4:8; Mark 11:24; Zechariah 1:3; Philippians 4:6-7; John 15:7; 2 Corinthians 1:3-4; Psalm 34:18; 1 Peter 5:7; Hebrews 4:16; 1 John 5:14-15; Matthew 5:4; Psalm 147:3.

God First!

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