A Simple Prayer

6/5/2024

Written by: April Mills

Philippians 4:6-7 ESV

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Recently I was faced with a conflict, and desperately needed the Lord to intervene in that moment. I began to pray, but I quickly became frozen in place as my mind searched for the right words. I don’t know about you, but I often am tempted to say the “right” words for my prayer to be effective. I could feel my anxiety rising, further compounding the stress of the situation. My shoulders tightened and I was entering a full fight or flight. My thoughts were tangling together when I had a moment of resounding clarity: His ability to hear and answer my prayer does not depend on my ability to pray flawlessly or impressively. When did I pick up the belief that He is limited by my broken thoughts, and lack of words? Why am I placing a man-made expectation and boundary on the Lord God Almighty, who cannot be restrained in any imaginable way? He is limitless. He is the Alpha and the Omega. He is the ever-lasting God, creator of the ends of the Earth who does not grow faint or weary, and His understanding is unsearchable (Isaiah 40:28 ESV). He hung the moon and starts in the sky, and breathed life into man. Let me assure you friend, He is capable of handling our prayers, no matter how stumbling they may be.

In that moment, I forced the loud and competing thoughts out of my mind. I made myself take a few cleansing breaths and focused on the grand majesty of the Lord and all that He is. By doing this, He became larger in my mind and the situation at hand began to shrink in the light of His holiness. I bowed my head before the throne grace, and said this simple prayer; “Lord, I submit this situation to you. I cannot fix this. I have no capability to fix this. I ask you to work in this situation in the way only You can. I ask you to intervene, and work by the power of your Holy Spirit. I trust you to work in this situation.” By praying this, I submitted myself and the situation unto His authority, His wisdom, His will and His provision. I gave up my control, my ideas of the ideal outcome, and decided to trust Him to be a good Father.

Trust is a discipline. It has to be exercised for it to become stronger and more effective. By submitting this prayer to God, and submitting it with my whole heart, I was demonstrating that I trust Him and His will above all else. This can be really challenging to our logic and emotions. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. We tend to want to keep our hands on something and work it out ourselves. Sure, we may pray about it and seek guidance and provision, but how many times do we truly let go of it? It's a difficult thing to do. We are asking an unseen God to work and prevail in a circumstance that is concerning and all-consuming to us.

One of my favorite things about our Heavenly Father is that He is all knowing (1 John 3:20 NKJV). Friend, He already knows your heart. Don’t get tripped up on trying to say everything perfectly. He knows every hidden crevice of your heart (Psalm 44:21 ESV) and his understanding of us is beyond measure (Psalm 147:5 ESV). He knows what we are going to speak before the words leave us (Psalm 139:4 ESV). It’s not necessary to heap words upon words or offer up pretty phrases or be well spoken (Matthew 6:7-8 ESV).

It’s ok to pray a simple, heart felt prayer. It’s ok to pray a short prayer, and it’s ok if you don’t know where to start. I know it can be intimidating to approach the maker of all creation, especially when your heart is broken or burdened by sin. I encourage you to press on and boldly go to the throne of grace to obtain mercy and grace to help in a time of need (Hebrews 4:16 NKJV).

And yes, The Lord did intervene in my circumstance. He showed up, like He always does, and brought forth peace and a resolution in a way that only He can. He never fails, He is never late, and He is not deaf. When you call out to Him, He will answer you. He will be with you in trouble, and will deliver you and honor you (Psalm 91:15 NIV). This is the promise of the Lord. Stand firm in it.