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Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." Imagine a world where your kids are always joyful and thankful for all you do. Imagine them saying "Thanks, Mom" with joy and enthusiasm for every meal, everly load of laundry and every bedtime story! Imagine if your children would come to you regularly and ask, "How can help?" The phrases in the verse above could be taken individually, but I believe that God intented for them to be all part of one "attitude of prayer" (joy and gratitude in ALL circumstances) That is what God wants from us. He does listen to our requests just as he promised but what would please him the most would be our prayers of thanksgiving and offering to be a willing servant to whatever He wants us to do. In order to hear his small voice our prayer time also needs to include some quiet listening time with an open mind and a willing spirit. The more we practice this the easier it gets to hear God's directions. His voice also comes from his word, but sometimes he may reinforce what the scripture is telling us or He may be giving us a name of a person or some other "nudge" to get our actions going! Like scripture, prayer is a very individualized thing. Some people pray by writing things out that come to mind. Some people pray in a certain setting or with a prayer partner. Of course it is best to be in the habit of "praying continuosly" throughout your day. Remember though this is not "praying your requests" throughout the day. This is praying for others, wisdom, peace, and of course just telling God how much you appreciate Him and the blessings you been given. For this "tool" for maintaining a clean heart, I think of a flower. We often give flowers as gifts for saying thank-you, illness, celebrations, etc. We should also pray in all these situations. Flowers are also some the most beautiful ways God's displays His presence in the world! Reflection: Do you only pray for requests or for the big blessings in your life? Or do you have the habit of praying thanksgiving, praise and willingness to serve? If you are like me you are probably somewhere in between these two. How can you remind yourself to pray with more joy and gratefulness? Maybe whenever you look a flowers or a picture of a flower, you can be reminded to pray in this way! Prayer: For prayer today, I am going to use the words from Be Glorified by Chris Tomlin and Louie Giglio. Lord, Your love has captured me. Your grace has set me free. Your life: the air I breathe! Be glorified in me! You set my feet to dancing. You set my heart on fire. In the presence ofa thousand kings, you are my one desire; and I stand before you now, with trembling hands lifted high. Be glorified! Amen
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