Dear Heavenly Father,
A person I know is going through a very difficult time in her life. She said, “I’m giving up on Jesus Christ! How can there be a God if I’m going through all of this?!” She has been praying about the same situations for a while now and just wants to give up. From the outside looking in, it is apparent to me that she wants You to bless her, but she is unwilling to release the people and situations in her life that partner in her sin. You are the One True Living God, and You do not punish Your people. You do not condemn or abandon us. You love us, and You want to help us grow in Christ.
As Your sons and daughters, we must remember that prayer is sacred communication with You. In it, we have the privilege and responsibility to invite You into our circumstances. When we do this, we should expect that the first place You are going to start intervening is in our own hearts. You will help us to see the places where we are blocking Your love from coming in.
Many people have been taught the wrong things about You. They believe that You are causing them to endure hurtful and harsh situations. Nothing is further from the truth. In 1Peter 5:8, You warn us to stay alert, to be watchful because our adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone he can gobble up. It is the devil that destroys and causes all manner of chaos and confusion in our lives.
If we are not knowledgeable about Your Word, we cannot increase in faith, because Romans 10:17 tells us that faith comes from hearing, understanding, digesting, and trusting the truth of Your Word. We cannot have faith by believing a lie. We must believe the truth to stand firm in faith.
Standing in faith is what You tell us to do. In Ephesians 6:11, You tell us to put on all Your armor so that we will be able to stand against the tricks of the enemy. In James 4:7, You tell us to submit ourselves to You in humility. This is how we resist the devil, and he will flee.
When Jesus taught us how to pray in Matthew 6, he said we must first come to You with a recognition of Your awesome holiness and power. We must be humble enough to desire that Your WILL is done, not our will. Humility dictates that we seek Your righteousness, as it says in Matthew 6:33. We cannot seek our own righteousness and think that we don’t have to change or give up any of our old ways. We must submit to You with a humble heart. We must ask You to come into our lives and help us remove anything that stands in the way of us having a pleasing relationship with You.
Father God, You want us to fight the good fight of faith. Please help my friend, and all others that are having a challenging time in life to stand firm. Help them to see that they must humble themselves before You, and that You will cause all things to work together for good as they trust and believe in Your Word. Please help us to grow in the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank You for our Blessed Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ, and thank You for the Holy Spirit. Let Your Will be done on earth as it is in heaven. In the precious and powerful name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
“Stand Firm in Faith”, written by K. Lizzie, edited by Reverend Fran Mack for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2018. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.