These two thoughts and words have come to me literally every single time anyone has come to me looking for prayer over some tumultuous situation lately, whether its health, spiritual warfare, or some other crisis. I’m getting the impression that many people are getting stressed out, anxious, bothered to the point of distraction, frustrated, and frightened by either what is happening to them, around them, or to those they love, or around those they love.
Its no secret that we do live in stressful times. There’s no denying that difficult situations are befalling people. I’m no stranger to any of that myself. But the enemy of our souls is using these situations to get God’s people off-kilter in their faith journey. he’s kicking up the waves around us in an attempt to get our eyes off the Captain of our ship and onto the whitecaps crashing over the bow instead.
But we have no ordinary Captain at the helm of our lives. Unfortunately, too many people are kicking Him out of the way and trying to manhandle the wheel themselves and wondering why they can’t get clear of the rocks below. To those people who could be headed that direction, I am compelled to pray for peace over them. I am compelled to pray peace over their situations, over their emotions, over their thoughts, spirit and body. It is only when we are in a place of calm and peace that we are able to think clearly and make wise decisions based on how God leads us in those moments.
For others in this situation, I am compelled to encourage them to spend time in prayer and praise, because God says He inhabits the praises of His people, and where God is, satan cannot be. The more we draw near to God, the better we will hear His voice in troubling times, and the more easily we will discern the enemy’s needless hand from circumstances God has allowed to take place. Yes, you read that right. God does allow difficult circumstances, storms and trials in our lives to test, refine, purify, and grow our faith. Whether or not a storm destroys, or whether it refines is entirely based on how we choose to respond to it.
Learning to praise God in the storms of life has been written about by King David, lived out by Joseph and Daniel, and sung about by various names in today’s Christian recording industry. Songs such as “Praise You In This Storm”, “Just Stand”, “Through the Fire”, and others were penned by contemporaries learning this very lesson for themselves.
So may I encourage all who read this today, to pray peace into your body, mind, and spirit, to pray peace into your conscious thoughts and your subconscious thoughts. To pray peace into your emotions and relationships. May I encourage you to lift your thoughts and/or voice in praise to God when the waves are high and the winds are strong. Lifting yourself into God’s presence places you where the enemy can’t touch you, and you learn to use the winds he thought would crush you, to buoy up your wings as an eagle just as God promised in Isaiah.
Now more than ever, God’s children need God’s inexplicable peace in their lives. It is from a place of security in God’s love, trust in His faithfulness, and peace in His presence that we can better prepare ourselves for action in the arenas of live God has placed us.
Whatever you are going through right now, I pray God’s peace over you. I may never have met you, but I pray God’s peace over your conscious and subconcious thoughts, your emotions, your body, your spirit, and your circumstances. I pray for clarity, for direction, and that what is not meant for your growth as a child of God would be calmed and/or removed, that what is not necessary in directing you into position to reach out to someone else, would be calmed and/or removed, and that as you praise God in this moment, you will feel God’s presence closer than ever before.
If you aren’t sure what to sing, claim not to know any songs by heart, or just drawing a blank when you otherwise would be humming any particular tune, let me direct you to my Pinterest board, “Songs that Impact Me”. Most of those videos have lyrics on the screen so you can sing along. Take out a pen and paper and spend some time writing down all the small ways God has blessed you, from waking up, to eating a meal to paying a bill to avoiding an accident, whatever it is, write it down and include it in your moment of praise. A bird’s eye view is always easier to look at, than standing on the forest floor looking at all the trees.
