Do My Prayers Really Matter?

By Mary Owen, National Training Coach

When 2020 arrived, we got in an unhealthy rhythm of staying in hypervigilant mode, and it’s a struggle to get out of this cycle, as the hard stuff seems to not be letting up.

The enemy wants us to think that God doesn’t have time for our prayers because after all, a lot is going on in the world that he’s tending to! The enemy reminds us:

You have failed God and disappointed him too many times.

You have doubted.

You have lived in fear.

You are weak.

The enemy wants us to believe that our prayers are powerless and ineffective. He doesn’t want us to communicate with God. He wants us to think we don’t have what it takes to be God’s leaders. So, he hopes we will let go of hope and let go of God.

“When my soul is in the dumps, I rehearse everything I know of you, From Jordan depths to Hermon heights, including Mount Mizar. Chaos calls to chaos, to the tune of whitewater rapids. Your breaking surf, your thundering breakers crash and crush me. Then God promises to love me all day, sing songs all through the night! My life is God’s prayer” (Psalm 42:8 The Message).

Wow, we are living in these times: “Chaos calls to chaos, to the tune of whitewater rapids!” Life is turned upside down right now.

But then, what does King David say during these times? “Then God promises to love me all day, sing songs all through the night! My life is God’s prayer.”

Instead of wringing our hands and letting our minds race, let’s do this:

Gaze at God. Glance at our lives.

(Quote from Kristi McLelland’s Bible study book, “Jesus and Women.”)

The definition of gaze is to look steadily and intently, especially in admiration, surprise, or thought.

When the storms come, we tend to gaze at our lives and barely glance at God. Our minds are racing, thinking: “How are we going to get out of this mess?” Or we try to figure out what we’ve done wrong and why God is punishing us.

But instead, when we don’t even know what to pray, let’s start gazing at God and just glance at our lives. “You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book” (Psalm 56:8 NLT). God remembers our tears and sorrows, and he will not forget us!

“Be joyful in hope. Endure trials patiently. Persist in prayer” (Romans 12:12 EHV).

1. Pray in joyful expectation because God will not waste your hurts.
2. Be patient during trials because God is preparing doors to open for you to share his story through your testimony. What the enemy meant for evil, God will turn it for good.
3. Persist in prayer. Don’t quit praying, don’t quit trusting in God, and never let go of hope.

Here’s my challenge for you:  

Refuse to listen to the enemy’s lies that your prayers don’t matter.

Pray persistently for more workers to join your Celebrate Recovery ministry. The fields are truly ripe for harvest. God wants to use us to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Pray for your Celebrate Recovery team of leaders to unite in love and truth.

Pray for your Celebrate Recovery leaders to be bold and speak up with God’s words of life through sharing their stories.

Make it your goal to register your leaders for an upcoming Celebrate Recovery training event.

Join Celebrate Recovery Connected for more training online and encouragement. Prayer, knowledge, and wisdom are the triad to help your Celebrate Recovery become powerful and effective for God.

Now is the time to make this a year of reconnection and to run after God! 

“Here’s what I want you to do: Buy your gold from me, gold that’s been through the refiner’s fire. Then you’ll be rich. Buy your clothes from me, clothes designed in Heaven. You’ve gone around half-naked long enough. And buy medicine for your eyes from me so you can see, really see. The people I love, I call to account—prod and correct and guide so that they’ll live at their best. Up on your feet, then! About face! Run after God!” (Revelation 3:18-19 The Message).

_______________________________________________

If you would like to learn how to start your own Celebrate Recovery ministry, to contact your Celebrate Recovery Rep, please visit: https://crgroups.info/. To get involved in an already existing Celebrate Recovery ministry near you, please visit: https://locator.crgroups.info/.