"Prayer is the open admission that without Christ we can do nothing. And prayer is the turning away from ourselves to God in the confidence that He will provide the help we need. Prayer humbles us as needy and exalts God as wealthy."
Remember the story of the woman at the well in John 4? Jesus is basically saying,
" ' If you just knew the gift of God and who I am you would ask me--you would pray to Me!' There is a direct correlation between not knowing Jesus well and not asking much from Him. A failure in our prayer life is generally a failure to know Jesus...Christians who spend time in prayer--do it because they see God as the great Giver and Christ is wise and merciful and powerful beyond measure. And therefore their prayer glorifies Christ and honors His Father...the chief end of man is to glorify God: become a people of prayer!" (Desiring God by John Piper p. 161)
I am a prideful woman. I need prayer because I really have no control over this life, and I need Him desperately. I say He's Messiah, Christ, Lord. I want to live this way and practice this daily, many times throughout my day. The constant reminder to myself that I can accomplish meaningless things in my own strength or pray and work in HIS power, to be filled with HIS joy, rely on HIS grace.
God is Great Giver, and He's given me these things this week:
119. First walk of the Spring
120. New photos taken during our walk
121. Seeing Kenna chasing chickens with all her might
122. New haircut and highlights
123. Picking up my co-op order
124. Makenna (4 yr) reciting books of NT almost perfectly because she's heard big sis recite them so often
125. Reading Ramona--my childhood books--to my girls
126. laughing with my parents over the way my child is misbehaving just like I used to: "The Stare" must be genetic
127. Joy of seeing Makenna learning so much at Cubbies this year
128. Husband touches
129. Experiencing beauty around me and wanting to write poetically
130. Anticipation of Butterfly display at the Gardens
131. Chickens are out & about & crowing & laying more eggs
132. Girls running outside without snow pants!
133. Sunny days with no clouds! I just learned that we are the 2nd cloudiest place to live (after Portland)
134. Hearing God speak as I'm spending more time, regular time in His Word.
135. The joy of girls swinging and feeling hair loose and flying
136. Cooking new 7 Grain Cereal for breakfast
137. Poking earth and soil to see how fruit bushes and plants survived their first winter
138. Children giggling as they wrestle with Daddy
139. Mav totter another 3 steps
140. Enjoying Cinderella play with children
141. Hearing Harmony in Worship in both the young girls' and the gentlemen's quartets
142. Hearing Hannah excited to read "real" books--Hop on Pop and Pal and Sal
143. Staying up late to read
144. Tim building relationships at men's retreat over the weekend
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