The Power of Being Thankful: 365 Devotions for Discovering the Strength of Gratitude (61 page)

Because God has fashioned our hearts individually, our prayers can flow naturally out of our hearts and be consistent with the way He has designed us. As we develop our individual styles of communication with God, we can learn from people who may be more experienced than we are, but we need to be careful not to make what others do our standard. Thankfully, Jesus is our standard, and He is the only standard we need.

Enjoy your time with the Lord. Don’t try to force yourself to do what others do if you are not comfortable with that in your spirit. You don’t have to keep up with others or copy their prayer styles. You can go before God with thanksgiving in your heart, knowing that He hears you and loves you just the way you are. You can pray as the “original” He has made you to be.

Father, I thank You that everything about me is unique—even the way I pray. Help me to shake off comparisons and just come to You with confidence as Your child. I love You, Father, and I love spending time with You.

I frequently hear people say, “I am just not a disciplined person,” or, “I just don’t have any self-control,” and they name a certain area like eating, exercising, or keeping things organized. If you are one of these people who believe you are not disciplined, then I want to encourage you to change your thinking.

The apostle Paul stated that God hasn’t given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind, and a spirit of discipline and self-control (see 2 Timothy 1:7). Be thankful—God has already given you the discipline you need! It is time to start renewing your mind by meditating on this thought:
I am disciplined and self-controlled.

You will never rise above what you believe, and as long as you believe you are not a disciplined person, then you won’t be one. Instead, believe God’s Word and live in its truth. You have self-control, and you are disciplined!

Father, I thank You that You have provided all of the discipline and self-control I need. Help me to renew my mind according to the truth of Your Word. I thank You that, with Your help, I can live a disciplined, overcoming life.

When what you are doing no longer gives you joy—when there is no life in it for you anymore—that is a strong indication that God is finished with whatever He was doing through you. Prayer will help you find out if God is leading you to make changes.

Some individuals don’t have any joy because they are trying to do things God is not calling them to do anymore. They are simply trying to ride a dead horse, so to speak. My advice is this: When the horse isn’t moving, it is time to dismount!

Seek God’s direction and have the boldness to say, “I did things a certain way for a long time, and I was grateful to have the chance to do it, but this isn’t the way God is leading me now. I believe God is leading me to do something new.”

Father, thank You for showing me when it is time to do something new. I trust You to lead and guide me, and I know that joy always comes with Your plan. I thank You in advance that You will make it abundantly clear which direction You want me to take.

As your relationship with God matures, you will find yourself living less by guidelines, rules, and regulations, and more by the desires of your heart. As you learn more of the Word, you will find His desires fill your heart with thanksgiving and joy. God wants you to know His heart well enough that you will want to follow the prompting, leading, and guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Once you are free in Christ, stand fast in that liberty and do not become ensnared with the joy stealer of legalism, which is the yoke of bondage that you have put off (see Galatians 5:1). God wants to bring you into a new place that is full of freedom, so follow your heart, because that is where His law abides.

Thank You, Father, that the more time I spend in Your Word, the more I love it. I pray that Your Word would fill my heart so that my desires will begin to line up with Your instruction and direction for my life. Thank You that You are bringing me to maturity in You.

God’s plan for us is actually so simple that many times we miss it. Jesus has told us what to do to begin to discover God’s plan: Believe! (See John 1:12; 3:16.)

When God says something to you in your heart, or when you read something in the Bible, you should say: “Thank You, Lord. I believe it. If God says He will prosper me, I believe it (see Jeremiah 29:11). If God says I will reap what I sow, I believe it (see 2 Corinthians 9:6). If He says to pray for my enemies, I believe it, and I am going to do it (see Matthew 5:44). If He says to call things that are not as though they were, I believe it, and I am going to do it (see Romans 4:17 KJV).”

If you choose to start believing God’s Word, even before you see your circumstances change, then you will have joy. Simply believe God!

Father, help me to simplify things today by simply believing Your Word. Thank You for the promises You have given me as Your child. Today, I choose to simply believe that what You have said is true in my life.