Has there been a season in your life when prayer was the only thing that kept you sane? In what ways was God's presence comforting to you?
Mamahood has had a way with prayer for me that nothing has been able to compare to.
Perhaps it lessens with time but as far as I see, it just increases as new
adventures and development arise.
Navigating the waters as a new mom had me on
my knees, with hands raised and Bible opened. And then deepened with the birth
of a Jude and even more so with the entrance of Ryland.
Prayer and transitions always seem go hand in
hand. Not to say that prayer life is based on the hardships because that would
not be accurate but the prayers asking for wisdom and strength and peace come
more readily in those times, as well as the welling of gratitude for the
provision.
I find myself praying for other mama friends
and their marriages and for wisdom and fun because they, too, are navigating
similar unknown waters. At the beginning of the year friends and I formed
a Mamas in Prayer group where we meet once a month to take time to pray for
whatever is filling our hearts and hands at the moment, while the kiddos run
and play and we enjoy coffee.
While motherhood is a big part of my prayers
these days, it is not all encompassing.
Hearing God has forever changed my prayers
and deepened them and God's comfort has been made nearly touchable. Reading
God's word and the words forming their own meaning and application for life in
ways only the Holy Spirit knows is soothing to my soul and a reminder how he
hears us and loves us all the same.
He is constantly using people to
bring his Word to me; little billboards and flashing lights of how he is a God who
is in everything and working in it all and using his people to do his works. A
sweet friend called this morning, asking how everything was going and offering
prayers as I told her of the latest happenings.
A little while later, as I spoke with
a woman who walked through my door due to circumstances beyond my control, the
theme of prayer wrapped the conversation as she humbly claimed prayer as her
source of strength and the only reason she could do what she does and how everything
and everyone who is involved is covered in her prayers. And I almost wanted to
laugh as she spoke, since the theme of today's writing on prayer encompassed the
day. It was this beautiful picture of what it looks like to rely on God for all
things and to keep going even when things are not easy and do not make sense. That
is the majesty of God, always working for our good and showing his goodness in
any way he can.
Here's to prayers and God's comforting presence.
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This is part of a 365 day blogging series through Savor by Shauna Niequist. If you would like to blog along, whether daily or weekly, I would love to have you for the journey; be sure to link back to the post. And if you are not a blogger, you can join along, too. Just leave your response and answers in the comments.