Don’t you love it when people are short and to the point? In today’s world of demands, one’s time is a priceless commodity. So, here’s my prayer for you today. Don’t rush, reflect on it, and share your heart with God as you read. I can’t begin to tell you how excited He is to hear your voice and to see His daughter draw close to spend some time in His presence. There’s something beautiful in it for you.
Love you, sweet woman!
Father God, I give You praise and worship because You are worthy. I surrender all to You and give You my transparency because you can be trusted with everything. The beauty of who You are overwhelms the places where Your glory rests. I lean close to Your heart because there are beautiful things to discover about You.
I have not deserved a single thing You have done for me, yet You have been extravagant in giving me Your presence.
Thank You for being faithful to accomplish all You have said You’d do, are doing, and have yet to do. There is nothing false about You. You are the Fountainhead of truth; Your living waters flow from Your throne.
You are high and lifted up, yet You bend low to love on me. No one knows the things about me that You know, and yet You love me completely. You draw me with Your loving kindness asking that I come closer to Your heart so I can hear and feel Your deep affection for me.
Even on the days I don’t feel very lovable, You never shame me nor do You berate me. You receive me, tears and all, no questions asked. Just a few minutes of unguarded time in Your presence and I again release the same weighty things I gave You yesterday then picked up again.
In Your presence I’m saturated by Your love.
I walk away from our One-on-one time filled with You, and I’m reminded I have everything I need. I could pass away in that moment, and still I have everything I need because of who You are. Our time together gives me Your wisdom for my day, the responsibilities I have, and the decisions I need to make.
Your clarity guides me to walk in Your will for my life, therefore I don’t have to worry about the outcome—that, too, is Yours. I can listen without taking offense. I don’t have to get my word in, and I don’t feel the need to control the outcome. I cannot override Your authority and power, it reigns supreme in every situation.
I don’t have to prove anything, bring anything, or do anything. When I sit with You, You release Your joy for me. You show me various facets of who You are in relation to the unique person you created me to be. When I bring You deep questions that only You can answer, You challenge me to peel away the world’s value system to discover what You have to say in Your great wisdom and knowledge.
For me, there is no combination more powerful than Your presence combined with Your Word. When I bring my submission and worship to You, you reveal incredible things that You keep close to Your heart. Things that You only reveal to those who will take the time to draw close to Your Fatherly heart and discover all that You have to say in Your great love for us.
Father, I don’t want to forget about the Bridegroom today. Thank You for Your Son, Jesus Christ. Thank You that everything we’re going through to get to the wedding day is covered in Your grace and love for us. We’re going to be so beautiful because of You. You are clothing us in Your beauty, Your strength, and Your truth. We have no ability to qualify ourselves as the bride of Christ, but we do get the chance to participate in the preparations. We get to discover the heart of the One who first loved us, Who willingly laid down His life for us, and Who waits patiently to be joined with us for eternity.
When I think about the beauty of that day in which the Son will come to get us, His Bride, I have no reference point with which to imagine what You have planned for us. Your Word says, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard and no mind has conceived what You have prepared for those who love You.”
How extravagantly beautiful the mystery You call us to experience with You. You’re not a god who hides. You are the God who calls us into relationship and the process of discovering all You have for us wrapped in the beauty of who You are. It’s in the intimate space of Your presence that You share who You are and who we were created to be in You.
Father, You’re invited to take me by the heart and show me Your great love for me.
Amen
NOW LIVE LOVED and THRIVE!
Self-Reflection
These questions are in no way a substitute for healthcare professionals or any level of professional counseling. I’m an advocate for taking care of oneself mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. These questions reflect my heart, NOT my profession.
This questionnaire is an opportunity to journal your thoughts and feelings. It can serve as a launching pad on which to evaluate your heart condition as you understand it. My hope is that you will take the truths you discover about yourself and hold them up to the Light to evaluate them against who God says you are.
- What do you imagine or know about the heart of God for you?
- Share something God revealed to you when spending time in His presence.
- What is a scripture in the Bible that you hold close to your heart?
- In what way does that scripture speak into your life? Explain.
- Is spending time with God a priority for you? Explain.
- What is something you can do to carve out (more) One-on-one time with God?
Talk to God about your answers. Give Him praise, ask Him questions and then listen for His gentle response.
Take Action
Use God’s word to take control over the traumas in your life. Whenever you feel terrorized by your thoughts take them captive by replacing them with the truth of God’s promises in His word.
Here is a scripture for you to print, cut and carry with you and/or post in places where you will see it often. Ground yourself in God’s truths not Satan’s attacks. Encourage your heart and mind every time you are reminded of His great love for YOU!
Here is what God’s Word says about His unfailing, relentless, unending love for you:
“What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived—the things God has prepared for those who love him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9 (NIV)
Translation: What we think we know and what we can imagine about heaven is nothing more than a shadow of what God has prepared for us. We simply do not have a point of reference with which to understand God’s extreme generosity. His extravagance for us is immeasurable.
