Have you ever read a Bible verse and all of a sudden it means so much more, means something so different, and it just hits you what it is really saying?! That was me today. When I do my individual Bible study and write in the Bible and write with God’s word it seems He shows me so many things.
With the Bible study we are doing of the book FerVent by Priscilla Shirer, we are learning to pray. At the end of each strategy there are Bible verses to use, to pray, to help you get started. There is another book that I personally ordered, it is called The Battle Plan For Prayer. In the back it is full of verses for wife, husband, children and the list goes on. I brought it in so others could look at it because so many of us are struggling with where to start.
We have been told to use His Word in prayer, but where do we start. How do we really do it? Do we just read it? Do we intermingle it? How do we know what we should be praying for? Can we use any verse we want or do we need to take context in account while using it to pray?
The truth is, it can be overwhelming!
Still when I talk to others about praying God’s Word the verse I typically use is Jeremiah 29:11. I am not certain why that is always my go-to, but it is. Today when I opened my Bible, it opened to Jeremiah. I flipped to Jeremiah 29 and find I had not ever done a personal Bible study with the verse I use all the time. How that is possible I am not sure but I read it from verse 11-17. However Jeremiah 29:11-14 really stuck out to me.
These Words, His Words still stand today. These Words were not just meant for those living when they were written, they were meant to stand for all time. They were meant for me and you! “For I know the plans I have for you, Amy” DECLARES the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you Amy, plans to give you hope and a future.” That is all I typically would say when I prayed that. Even then one thing didn’t stand out to me, the fact that the Lord is DECLARING this!
Do you know what declaring means? According to Merriam-Webster the first definition is: to make known formally, officially, or explicitly. Then I looked at synonyms and found the word Proclaim! The definition for proclaim (for me) fits so much better: implies declaring clearly, forcefully, and authoritatively.
He is clearly, forefully and authoritatively telling me He has plans for me. That He wants me to seek Him and I WILL find Him. That He wants me to call on Him, to come to Him, to pray to Him and He will listen to me. He is going to free me from those things that are keeping me captive.
I am someone who is loved. I am not perfect. I sin on a daily basis. Some of those sins I do knowing I am doing them. Some of those sins I am doing without having a clue. Still He says to me, “Amy, then you will call on me and come to me and pray to me and I will listen to you.” He doesn’t just say this He is DECLARING it to me!
Sometimes things hit you and you are not certain why. I am not certain why or exactly what He is telling me but I do know I am loved. He is showing me something new. Good things are coming for me, for our family. God is with us. We are seeking Him.
He is giving us blessings far beyond anything I ever expected. I have been praying for a change in me, for specific things to 
happen for our family and He is moving in me and in my life. One of the things I had been praying for is to be able to “give” more. In my head I was seeing giving as a financial thing however God had other plans for my giving right now. Later on giving may be in a financial way (and to be honest I am really excited about it) but right now the giving is of my time.
I have been praying. I have been specific. I have been writing my prayers out. I have been speaking them out. I have been seeking God in my individual Bible study. I am not perfect in any of it. It seems to come and go. I was very dedicated and then others things took over.
I did let life get in the way. I let illness, busyness, pain, and an overwhelmed life take over. Instead of reaching out to God at the time, I let Satan direct his demons to wreak havoc in our life. Not once did I blame God for what was going on, and not once did I tell Satan to get his demons out of my life, out of my home and to stop messing with my life and my family’s life!
Things are getting better. My eyes are open. I am seeing the gifts He is giving so much more clearly. I still make mistakes. I still sin. Yet I am opening up my Bible, I am writing down my prayers and I am reaching out to Him.
He is encouraging me to seek Him. He is encouraging me to pray. He is helping me to see. It may not be clear 100% but He is talking to me. He is making sure I know something is coming.
Have you ever read a Bible verse and felt like He was telling you something? Have you ever read a Bible verse and all of a sudden seen something different? Have you ever felt like He was trying to tell you something but you just were not getting it?
I would love to hear about it!
Life Synergy 