I wish we could sit in a coffee shop and chat today.
I’d love to talk with you about things that may be weighing you down. They always seem to lighten when shared with a friend.
I’d tell you about the year I let my problems pile up… and how all that pressure almost took me down. It’s all in chapter 9 of my book, A Confident Heart, including the story about the time I accidentally took my dogs medicine. Yes ma’am. I sure did.
At the end of every chapter, I also share a prayer – weaving my tangled thoughts and sometimes-consuming concerns with His Words and wisdom. Praying in this way helps me to take my cares to Him with confidence, knowing when I pray His Word I am praying His will for me {and others}. Here’s the prayer that was birthed out of my piling up and tumbling down year:
Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way. When concerns consume me, remind me that You are with me, holding me by my right hand and guiding me with Your counsel. Though my flesh and my heart may fail, You are the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Help me turn my burdens over to You, knowing that You will take care of me.
Because You are my shepherd, I shall not be in want. You promise that when I dwell in the shelter of the Most High, I can rest in the shadow of the Almighty. You are my refuge and fortress, my God in whom I trust. Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You preserve my life; You stretch out Your hand against the anger of my foes, and with Your right hand You save me. Thank You for making known to me the path of life and filling me with joy and peace in Your presence. In Jesus’ name, Amen. {See Psalms 139:23–24; 73:23–26; 55:22; 23:1; 91:1–2; 138:7; 16:11.}
From A Confident Heart by Renee Swope, Chapter 9
© 2013 by Baker Revell Publishing. All rights reserved.
Over the past few years God has been changing me and rearranging me. He’s taught me how to use prayer to turn my worry into worship. He’s also given me a practical way to physically hand Him my concerns! Since we can’t chat in a coffee shop today, I’d love to share them with you through this short video message:
Message Notes: You can download my “Video Message Notes” in a PDF here or in a Word doc here. They include the points of my message, verses and blanks to fill in. {If you’d like to watch more FREE Confident Heart videos based on my book, click here.}
FREE DOWNLOADS:
Download my “Printable Prayers Collection: How to Pray for Those You Love from Head to Toe.” Today, I’m offering “Praying for Your Husband from Head to Toe” {click here to download}YOU CAN also RECEIVE “Praying for Yourself from Head to Toe” and “Praying for Your Children from Head to Toe” when you sign up here to enter your name and email. Then come back so you can enter to win today’s giveaway below!
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Share one thought or something you want to apply after reading today’s devotion, blog post or hearing my video message. Click “share your thoughts” right below this post and do just that. 🙂
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Update on My Mom:
Thank you for your prayers for my mom. She’s had ups and downs but her kidney pain is less and less each day. Ive been concerned she had gotten pneumonia because she started running a fever, coughing, has had pain in her lower lung and some breathing issues {plus she has a history or pulmonary embolisms and has been off of her blood thinners for surgery.} We’ll be seeing her doctor on Monday to check on her kidney and lungs. I think she’s okay but it will be good to hear the doctor confirm that. 🙂
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My favorite part of today’s message was the visual of writing your worries on an index card and laying it at the foot of the cross. Love this and plan to start using it immediately. I am enjoying this book and this study so much. I love how Renee just keeps encouraging me to not listen to the lies and believe God’s promises. I think after nine chapters, it might even start to be sticking!! 🙂
Ever since I started reading this bible study I feel like the devil feels threatened. I had a colonoscopy and they found a growth on my appendix and cecum. I have to have it removed. I’m terrified of surgery and what this growth is. I’m 29 and feel like I’m falling apart. My son has had the gi bug for 2 weeks, I had it for 5 days. I haven’t been able to read the book in 3 weeks. This prayer is exactly what I need! Please pray!
Amber, I am praying for you. God bless you, comfort you, heal you and make your son well. You are not alone. God is with you. He will give you His strength. Philppians 4:6,7. God will give you His peace. His arms are wrapped around you. Lift your burdens up to Him.
thank you susan so much!
I’ve been meaning to share this for a week or so and am finally getting around to it. There’s a song that makes me think of this study every time I here it — Strangely Dim, by Francesca Battistelli.
Here is link to it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5qD9HOoGpQ
And the lyrics, copied and pasted from azlyrics.com, since they aren’t on the video:
FRANCESCA BATTISTELLI LYRICS
“Strangely Dim”
I’ve had all these plans piled up sky high
A thousand dreams on hold
And I don’t know why,
I got a front row seat
To the longest wait
And I just can’t see
Past the things I pray
Today
But when I fix my eyes on all that You are
Then every doubt I feel
Deep in my heart
Grows strangely dim
All my worries fade
And fall to the ground
Cause when I seek Your face
And don’t look around
Any place I’m in
Grows strangely dim
Sometimes where I stand
On this narrow road
Is in a raging storm
Or a valley low
But oh
When I fix my eyes on all that You are
Then every doubt I feel
Deep in my heart
Grows strangely dim
All my worries fade
And fall to the ground
Cause when I seek Your face
And don’t look around
Any place I’m in
Grows strangely dim
I don’t know, I don’t know
What tomorrow may hold
But I know, but I know
That You’re holding it all
So no matter what may come
I’m gonna fix my eyes on all that You are
‘Til every doubt I feel
Deep in my heart
Grows strangely dim
Let all my worries fade
And fall to the ground
I’m gonna seek Your face
And not look around
Til the place I’m in
Grows strangely, strangely, strangely dim.
I feel like chapter 9 was an answer to so many prayers. I worry about many things and constantly tried to fix my problems. I love the idea of asking God what his heart is about the situation and surrendering it to Him. I am experiencing so much growth thru this book. I am so excited to have a confident heart!
I have been feeling extremely overwhelmed over the last week and a half. I got behind because of this. I sat down this morning recommitted to getting on track. I realized I am over a week behind. I finished up Chapter 8 and I think I will skip over Chapter 9 for now and read that later. I want to stay with everyone else and understand what is going on in this study. Please keep me in your prayers that I can make time each and every day to be with God!
Glad to hear about your mom:) I love that prayer, it is perfect for my life right now. I love to read all of the emd chapter prayers over and over when I feel too lost to find my own words. thank you:)
Thank you for the word of encouragement. As I listened, I feel like Mary’s sister, asking why am I left to do all the work alone. I do expect alot of myself and alot of the things I was doing I thought were for God but they actually were for self gratification and now I see why my worries overpowered me. I hope and pray that anyone whom is reading this pray for my strength, so I can be able to stand alone and not worry about having to depend on another to help me through, to remain focused on Gods help alone. It’s funny how in church yesterday the pastor spoke on dreams and how three things can prevent them from coming forth; people, life and time. Wow all of those are my worries, what a confirmation this was for me. Have a blessed week to all 🙂
Thank you for sharing this, Renee. I didn’t realize how overwhelmed I was feeling until I read your prayer and God started ministering to me. God bless you!
Renee,
I’m praying for your mom. I too suffer from kidney stones and know how painful this can be, May the Lord sustain your mother at this time, keeping her free from pain and provide total healing. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.
Renee,
Thank you for all that you share with us through your book, your blog posts and the video messages you share. God’s timing, as always, is so perfect. Last night I was having one of those times when all life’s responsibilities and concerns were piling up causing me to worry. Today’s message was exactly what I needed to hear. The idea of actually physically giving our cares to God is something I am going to start using right away.
Thank you! Funny thing how God puts in front of you the words you need to hear just when you need to hear them
To God be the glory for His timing. As I left church yesterday, I was so convicted of what God has asked me to do that I wasn’t doing… Casting all my cares upon Him was the last thing I thought He’d show me. I always gave Him my husband and eveything else. But not once had I broken it down like this from head to toe! Wow! My God, my God… Thank You for working through Renee to remind me of what You’ve laid on my heart some 3 years ago. I did it today, I asked 6 close friends to join me in a 7 days prayer session to pray this very prayer to God for the gift He’s given us in the form of a husband.
Our pastor yesterday wasn’t able to finish His sermons as prepared because the Holy Spirit took control and he paused and said come to the alter for prayer all who have not been doing what the Lord has asked of you. I could not understand why I was so stricken by those words and was one of the first person to stand at the alter in tears. I didn’t know that it was for this small group of 7 women to pray for our husbands with a purpose structured from “head to toe.” I am so moved by God’s timing Renee. Thank you for being I obedient.
I pray for the strength and peace of your mom and family as God restores her health in entirety.
Thank You Lord for all the nudges in the right direction that leads us right back to You and what you required of us… Casting all our cares upon You, because You care and promised to take care of them. Hallelujah! Hallelujah to the Only Wise & True God who never makes a mistake.
Praying for you and your Mom, Renee. I hope the doctor’s appointment goes well tomorrow.
Also, thanks everyone for your comments, reflections and reminders. They are very helpful for me to read and meditate on. The idea of letting go of our worries and giving them to God sounds so simple and yet can be so challenging to put into practice. Praying for all of us in this regard.
I enjoyed revisiting this video. I remember it from the last time I did this study — specifically the exercise of giving your worries to Jesus via a table top cross at night. The physical act of writing down my concerns and putting them on the cross had a supernatural effect on my ability to trust and let go. Looking back, I am in awe of how God lovingly took care of each concern, one by one. I am full of awe and thanks as I write this.
Since then, God has been working more on my heart and my understanding of how to let go of control and TRUST Him. For me, part of Trusting Him has been learning how to open my heart to receive His ever-present Love and Grace vs. shutting my heart and trust down as I once did in the home in which I grew up. This has been both a terrifying and exhilarating process at times. I am grateful for God’s steadfastness and for the ways in which he is growing me.
I let all of my life’s pressures get to me last Sunday. Yes Mother’s Day. The worst I’ve done like that in along time. So much so in an angry burst I managed to break the glass on my cooktop stove. It made me stop and cry out to God for help. It was like he took my hand sat me down and said read this. I found myself reading Chapter 9 of this book. A feeling of calmness came over me. It was like a friend was right there beside me saying I understand how you feel. We can get through this together.
I thank God for blessing you with the gift to write this book and sharing it and your life with us. Thank You.
With mine and God’s love
Katherine
Praying for your mom Renee! And for you… and your family!
Much love and prayers,
Susan G.
I want to apply the – Stop worrying – Start praying – Keep thanking God every single time I start to worry! 🙂 Thanks Renee! Each chapter just gets better than the last one! 🙂
Praying for your mother Renee. Hope Monday brings good news. I love the idea that you can choose either to worry or pray, that you can’t do both. Just saying that makes things better : )
So well spoken, Renee. And a very timely message for me right now. I’ve made too many commitments, and have some unspoken prayer requests that I need to give to God and fully put my trust in Him to see me through each situation. I praise God for your obedience to minister for the Lord in the way He works through you!
Sometimes I wonder if one of the reasons we were placed on this earth was to discover Him….He places a gift before us, beautifully wrapped, but we are too afraid to open it because we are too distracted with the things we can try to WRAP OUR MIND around rather than UNWRAPPING HIS GIFT which is directly before us: His PEACE, His LOVE, His GRACE, His JOY, His SINGING, His PEACE.
Right there, His Hands are holding the present and we run away and say we have to fret over this, or go do that, or see what knowledge we can collect to feed our mind with more worries. It is an ADDICTION, perpetual worry seeking.
He still woos us. It is a progressive thing…never overnight, never to a point of accomplishment, but hoping that we’d come back for more of Him. It is the garden of Eden all over again – what would you rather hold in your hand – HIS GIFT or the ONE WE PLUCK with our own hand.
He doesn’t mean for us to be discouraged when we fall – He is just helping us learn more about Him, and more about ourselves and how much we want to grow. But it still feels sad, knowing that we could have been enjoying His gift for sooooo much longer, and been soooooo much happier, if only we chose it sooner.
Philippians 4:6-8
DIRECT COMMAND:
DO NOT be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
THE GIFT:
And the PEACE of God, which transcends all understanding, will GUARD your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
This is beautiful Pillar! Thank you for sharing. Holly
I remember there was a time in my life where I would allow the cares, concerns and worries of this world to choke the Word of God. With me meditating on them instead of the Word of God I began to doubt. Then one day the Holy spirit reminded me that we serve an Ever-Loving, Speaking, Hearing, Living, Awesome God, and there is nothing that He can’t do or fix. Then He said I had a choice. I could choose to continue to worry and be disobedient and draw farther away from God because God’s word specifically tells us not to worry, or I could trust the only Ever-Loving, Speaking, Hearing, Living and Awesome God who not only would bring me through, but also draw closer to me and reward me because I am diligently seeking Him and not the cares, concerns, and worries of this world.