Have you ever felt the awkwardness of not being able to put your thoughts into words when talking with someone?
What a comfort to know that we do not have to feel this way talking with our heavenly Father. As holy and majestic as he is, we can approach God in confidence because Jesus’ sacrifice cleared the way. Even though God knows our every thought before we say it, he wants us to tell him. And even when we are at a loss for words, the Holy Spirit will intercede for us. This is just one of the many ways God demonstrates that he cares about his children.
God longs to hear from us, because he created us for relationship with him, and he wants us to recognize our need for him, because he is God Almighty.
When talking to God, we express our concerns, pour out our feelings, admit our wrongdoings, seek help, and praise him. When talking with God, we also listen to him. We hear his own words and those he inspired by reading the holy Bible. We can also listen to the Holy Spirit who brings to our mind what God desires for, or commands of, us.
There is an intertwining of what we say to God and what we hear from him. Perhaps when we are feeling a lack of what to say, we have not been listening enough to him. The more time we spend in his presence through the written Word, the more we realize what we can talk about in his presence: his greatness, his provisions and goodness, our confession of sin, and our need for his wisdom and help.
In the Psalms, David’s prayers express his gratitude, wonder, confusion, heartache, and love for God at various times in his life. We, too, can pray with such passion. Our prayers can be modeled after someone else’s; even Jesus told his disciples to pray to the Father in the form of what we call ‘The Lord’s Prayer.’
When we read God’s Word, we find his promises, truths, and character. We can pray those back to God, confident that we are praying his will. As verses are prayed, our mind and heart attend to God’s will for our life. When using the Heart Training books, a weekly Bible verse is prayed, studied, and memorized.
The power in God’s words is evidenced as we meditate on and apply them, because the Holy Spirit is at work in our life surrendered to the Lord.
If you have Keep on Track, did you know that all the verses’ prayers are also at the back of the book? Using this prayer guide is a helpful way to keep the verses’ concepts in your mind even after you finish the book!