Prayer boosts confidence. But not any ole' prayer, which is simply recited or said begrudgingly and out of obligation. I mean sincerely talking to your Father. Like - as you would an earthly father whom you are very close to, look up to, and can say anything to. Most of us have not experienced this closeness with our dads here, so it's hard for us to fully trust God and rely on His faithfulness and unfailing love. He wont ever leave or forsake us, no matter what. He is always there, and waiting for us to come back to Him so He can throw us a party! He waits and longs for His kids to return home.
The more I talk to God, and listen to Him speak to me, - as with any relationship - the closer we are. The more I thank Him for everything and trust He is active and present in my life at any moment, the more my confidence in my identity grows and what my role is. I am a child of the Most High God. The Creator of heavens and earth. There is nothing too hard for Him and nothing good He wants to withhold from me. The more confident I am, the more I will ask in faith and know it will be done.
"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." (Hebrews 11:6)
Imagine this: I walk down the street and up to a stranger, and precede to ask him to help me, to stop and listen to my troubles with my relatives over lunch, and give me a lift and some cash. If I was honest with myself, I would come to understand that I really do not believe anyone would do this for me. It would be like a 50/50 or more like 80/20 gamble. I do not have enough faith that someone would do this first of all, and by the time I got myself enough confidence to ask, I would have none left, that they would actually do all this for me without knowing me. If it happens so that in the one-in-a-thousand chance the person does do all this for me, I will be so happy, ecstatic really and overjoyed. If not, then I would be hurt and thoughts like this would overwhelm me: "no one understands me," I can't get anyone to listen to me," "why would anyone help someone like me..." you get the picture. Bottom line is that I would lose hope and feel less confident and significant. Like a salesperson right? You get about 1 out of ten sales, right? should prayer life be like this? Should we expect the LORD to answer us one out of ten times - never knowing which one time that would be? NO! He longs to talk to us and for a deep and meaningful relationship with us.
I know this though - If I walked up to my husband Daniel, and asked him this, that he would do all he could to help me. Because he loves me. And I expect him to help me in all these ways because I know he loves me, and I know he knows I love him back. And how much more does our Father in Heaven love us and has no time restrictions or a job to go to that may interfere with my request! He is waiting to be with me! Always! It's not about meeting my needs, it's about the quality time spent together. Like when you are head over heels for someone, they could ask you to change a tire, eat smelly foods, or see a movie you loathe, but you wouldn't mind since all you want to do is be with that person and are not concerned about in what manner. It's the time spent together that matters. We may gain all the wealth in the world, but to my knowledge, we will not be able to buy more lifetime. Time is indeed our most precious resource. The more time you spend with God and in His word, the closer you will be with Him. It's not rocket science.
And, it's not like God is waiting to answer my prayer if I act first and talk to Him more. It's not for Him but for me. He's trying to talk to me all the time; He is always there. Even when I am not faithful, He is. It is my faith that will grow the more time I spend with Him. And the only thing that counts is faith expressed though love. So, He is waiting to answer me, to bless me and to keep me - to use me to bring His Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. But my faith will activate the blessings. I will actually receive what He has been trying to give me all along because I will expect it. (And not to mention to hear it directly from Him who gives every good thing, and trust He will do as He said).
This is how the world will know I belong to Him - I act in love. I must grow my faith by thanking Him in all things, and praying continuously because I am trusting Him. Then, it is my confidence that will boost in who I am and who He is. It is my outlook on life that will change when I learn to trust Him and His ways. It is my life that will take a positive turn and escape the torture of trying to be good and do the right things. I will find freedom. Why? Because His Spirit is with me. His grace overwhelms me. His love rules me.
Now why didn't I view prayer like this last year?
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