Queen of the Castle ~ Week 8

Week 8 ~ Pray First, Act Later

You can find the previous weeks HERE.

Do you have a "lonely place" to be alone with the Father as Jesus did in Mark 1:35?

My "lonely place" is usually on my bed with my lap desk.  I go in and shut the door or tell everyone that I'm going to do my "devotions" now and they know that mean I need some peace and quiet so that I can pray and study God's word.  If Doug is on night shift that means he's in bed during the day so my  "lonely place" becomes the corner of the table near the sliding glass door.  Once again, everyone knows to leave Mom alone for a bit.  (that doesn't always happen when you have kids, though!)

We need quiet time with God to replenish us and fill up our tanks for the hours, days, weeks ahead.  When we are the busiest is when we need that time even more. 

For me last week, that time was in a hospital waiting room waiting for my dad to have some tests run.  I threw my 1st Place book and journal in my bag and took them along.  Sometimes we have to be creative.

We can pray as we wash dishes, fold laundry, drive back and forth for errands or picking kids up.

LBW has some prayer ideas:

-Before prayer, spend a few minutes in silence to prepare for the prayer.  Settle in and be aware of God's presence before starting.  I actually do this already.  I have to take a few minutes to just quiet myself of the activities of the day and settle into a prayerful mind.


-When over-burdened with life and you just can't get the words to form a prayer, try listening to music.  This is so powerful!  I listen to http://www.klove.com/ online.  They have great music and their motto is "Positive and Encouraging".  After listening for a while, I can feel my mood lighten.

-Write out prayers and date them so you can later look back and see how God has answered your prayers.  I sometimes write prayers in my journal.  Usually if I'm greatly bothered and really emotional.  This isn't something I do on a normal basis though.  I know people that write all their prayers and requests.

-Read a hymnbook if you have trouble praising God or being thankful.  It helps to read thoughts of praise and faith that have come from another person's spiritual walk.  Sometimes when I read the words of hymns, I'm amazed at how closely their feelings match mine.  I am amazed at the way the writers were able to put such thoughts and feelings to music and hand them down for generations.  What a great way honor to God.

"Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need."  Hebrews 4:16

Just a reminder:  LBW suggests looking ahead to plan for celebrating Easter.  This year Easter is on April 24th.  By not waiting until the last minute, we can take the time to fully appreciate all that Easter means.

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