Turning Worries Into Prayers {A Heidi St John Giveaway!}

“Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow.  It empties today of its strength.” ~Corrie Ten Boom

Has that old friend… I mean, enemy… the one called Worry… woken you up at night, too, reader?

I worry when there’s too much to do.

I worry when I don’t do enough… and disappoint someone.

I worry when the computer won’t work.

I worry when there’s a clerical error with our bills.

I worried when she was a little lonelier than I thought she’d be.

I worried when his return to work wasn’t quite as quick as it should’ve been.

I worried when she asked me the hard question.

I worried when they held on too long… or not long enough.  I worried when they climbed too high and I worried when they sat on the sidelines.

In short, I worry every time Reality and Expectation are not inseparable friends as I’d like them to be, but distant relatives.

Someone has said that in a time of war, it is wise to know your foe.  So… who is this Foe?  What is Worry?

Worry is the opposite of Trust.

Worry wears me down.

Worry blurs my vision.

Worry aches at my heart and makes my feet heavy.

Too heavy to walk, too heavy to run, too heavy to dash into the arms of my Savior…

The Savior who said, “Don’t let your hearts be troubled.  Trust in God, and trust also in me” (John 14:1).

The same One who said, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28).

The One who is my Shepherd and Who’s good enough to provide me with rest.

He doesn’t just lead me to the water… He leads me to still water (Psalm 23:2).         

And I am in awe as I lay my heavy burdens down and look up at my Savior.  And wonder…

What if all those times Reality punched Expectation in the throat… were chances to trust Him?

What if all the fears and failures… are lessons in my own weakness?

What if all the aches and pains… are opportunities to remember how He ached?  How He endured pain?  For us?

What if all the worry… is an invitation to draw near to His strength?  To come to Him? To PRAY?

We mommas need all the reminders to pray we can find on our helter-skelter days.  We need felt reminders, spoken reminders, written reminders.

We need reminders… but we don’t like to think that there could be a method to our prayers.  Yes, prayer is just talking to God, opening up and being honest with Him, simple as that.  There’s no wrong way to pray.  And yet… in any battle, it makes sense to have a strategy.  A plan.  And that’s why I’m glad my friend Heidi St John has written her newest book: Prayers for the Battlefield.  It’s more than just a reminder to pray… it’s a strategic reminder.  Heidi doesn’t just take the lid off of topics that many modern-day Christians deem too heavy to discuss; she teaches us how to pray through them.  With Scripture.  After all, as Heidi has said, we were born on a battlefield.

And if you wonder if this author is the real deal?  I can tell you, because I’m lucky enough to be homeschooling in community alongside the St Johns, and I’ve seen how Heidi pours herself out for our local families.  I’ve seen how she injects hope into every woman she meets.  I’ve seen her kids’ faces light up when they talk about their mom.  Yes, they are a family, and this is a community, that’s been blessed by the power of prayer, and by the love and protection of a God who hears us.

Here’s a pile of copies of Heidi’s new book at our Resource Center.  (Look at all that purple and gold!  Isn’t it pretty?)

I love it so much that I’m giving away a copy, here, on the blog.  To enter to win, simply leave a comment below, letting me know why you’d like to read this book!  A winner will be chosen at random Monday morning.

You may also preorder here! Officially releasing on September 18th.  And we’ll lift up our families to the best Father who ever was, we’ll praise Him and pray to Him, and our whispered offerings will be sweeter than the sweetest purple, more fragrant than the loveliest rose…

Be blessed, friends, and join me in laying our burdens at the feet of the One who always cares…

Join me in turning every worry into prayer.

 

Clinging to Him,

Laura