Beyond Common Sense

Perhaps you’re unfamiliar with the acronym for the word PRAY: 

P – Praise

R – Repent

A – Ask

Y – Yield

This morning, I woke from one of those dreams that  make you mad at your innocent husband. 🙂 Poor fellow – thankfully, I awoke first for a change, and by 5:15, I was out on the couch with my dark mood.

As I talked to the Lord and looked up at the stars, I wrestled with a thousand different burdens that seemed to jump the bandwagon of despair! But then I remembered this acronym – I had jumped right to the A – ask and was pouring out all my woes to Him when I should have started with praise.

It still amazes me how everything changed as soon as I chose to forget the worries and focus on all the goodness of our Great God!  What a wonderful time I had, and as the joy returned, I thought once again about this verse:

“...for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:10

No wonder Old Scratch is always trying to rob us of our joy!  It is our strength and he knows that we are weak when the joy is gone.  So, protect that joy!  Keep it well fed and watered by remembering all the blessing of the Lord as well as “casting all your cares upon him for he careth for you!” (1 Peter 5:7)  We all have trials and temptations, but focusing on them will only lead us down the dead-end street of defeat!

So, I would like to start the “Praise Ball” rolling by sharing a praise:

1. I praise the Lord for His healing power: on Monday I could hardly get out of bed, but this morning I took Pepper for a walk!

Who will be next?  Will you encourage others with your praises to the Lord?

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