Days 8 & 9: Your Great Name

Rise up, ladies! It's time to get up and face the day!

I am going to keep this brief this morning. I want to focus on the first part of how to pray effectively. Earlier this week I told you about a man (Moses) who changed the mind of God solely based on his obedience and prayers. Today, I want to tell you (based on Mathew 6 and the Lord's Prayer) the first step to powerful prayers that push through the roof instead of seeming to just bounce off the ceiling. It begins with your view of God.

Remember I asked you, "Who is God to you when you pray?" Well, if we respect and revere God, then we *should* be letting him know first and foremost in our prayers. Jesus modeled this in his prayer in Matthew 6:9-13.

Pray like this:

Our Father in heaven, 

may your name be kept holy.

May your Kingdom come soon, 

May your will be done on earth

as it is in heaven.

Give us today the food we need, 

and forgive us our sins,

as we have forgiven those who sin against us.

And don't let us yield to temptation, 

but rescue us from the evil one.

Matt. 6:9-13 (NLT)

Step 1: Tell God how great he is to you! Simple, right? Well...we often are rushing so quickly through this process and jump straight into the "I need's" and the "Forgive me's" that we fail to simply recognize and give accolades to our Creator and Savior for being the incredible God he is. So this morning as you pray, thank Him for being Him. It doesn't have to be filled with the "thou's" and "thee's" and Hebrew words that you don't know the meaning of, for then it becomes just rambling. Just state your heart. That's it. 

While you are searching for the right words, take a listen to Natalie Grant's song "Your Great Name" over on our playlist to the right. Sing it out if you want. It's a perfect rendition of expressing the awesomeness of our God. Love it! 

Delight in the Lord, ladies. Rise up, and allow him to take on your day head on. Don't forget to pray for the kiddos!