Too Blessed to Be Stressed for MomsSample

Morphing This Worrier into a Warrior

“Instead of worrying, pray” (Philippians 4:6 MSG)

Throughout history, women have been a dominant prayer force. We learned long ago that prayer is the nerve that moves the muscles in the hand of God.

Did you know that the gospel of Christ spread across the European continent because of a ladies prayer group? Yep. When Paul and Silas initially arrived at Philippi, they met with a group of women for prayer (Acts 16:13-14). This begat the first European church and the worldwide spread of Christianity. Girl power - woohoo!

Yet we still default to worry. When will we learn that worry is just empty calories? If we rehearse the worst by worrying, do we really think we’ll be better prepared? We won’t.

So what’s the antidote to worry? Prayer. Not just a wimpy little God-tweet, but the kind of intense intervention that plasters your face on a Wanted poster in hell.

Feeling a bit anemic in that area? Here are some simple ways to boost your prayer life:

1. Read the same passage from different Bible translations to broaden your depth of understanding. Discuss it with the Author (God).
2. Create your own poem or song about why your faith gives you hope.
3. Pray in a position that’s different for you—experience communication with your heavenly Father with a fresh attitude and posture. Kneel; sit under a backyard tree; raise your hands; rip through the woods praising Papa on your ATV (mine’s called Sir Lancelot).
4. Get your worship on. Dance before the Lord as David did (2 Samuel 6:14). Put on your favorite jivin’ praise music, kick off your shoes, grab the kiddos, and joyfully worship together.
5. Convert your car into a rolling Cathedral, stocked with your prayer list, praise songs, and inspirational CD’s. When you’re stuck in a traffic jam, do some church! Replace road rage with prayer and praise.

Remember, in this wrestling match we call life, prayer double-teams all limitations. Worry can’t stranglehold you. The devil can’t pin you. With the genuine “Rock” in your corner, nothing can hold you back!

Additional Elements:

BFF Prayer: Rock of my Salvation, when trouble assaults me, teach me to default to prayer instead of worry. Amen.

Digging Deeper: James 5:16 MSG

Was this plan helpful? We adapted it from the book Too Blessed To Be Stressed For Moms by Debora M. Coty.