Pause: A Month of Prayer in Five Minutes a DayNäide

Proclaim

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” (Phil. 4:6)

Prompt

Just like I start my day with morning prayer, I end my day with—you guessed it—evening prayer.

It doesn’t have to be anything fancy, though my evening prayers have gotten more elaborate as the years have passed. You can simply thank God for another day of life and the blessings He’s given you.

But one thing I've been working hard to incorporate recently is confession. During my evening routine, I've started writing down all the sins, struggles, and doubts I've experienced throughout the day on a whiteboard in my closet. This practice of confession is during what I would call my prayer time. As I write each of them down, I ask God to forgive, heal, and help me to not repeat the same sin.

The act of acknowledging my sins in writing helps me give it all to God so that he can lift them off of me instead of me carrying them around in my head and heart.

Prod

Confess your sins to God right now - write them down on a sheet of paper, lift them to God, and dispose of them. They aren’t yours anymore!

Praise

Listen to “Better Word” by Leeland

Pray

Jesus, your blood heals my every wound. Jesus, you are making all things new. Thank you for taking my sin and shame and casting it from east to west. Today, forgive me and heal me as I confess [NAME YOUR CONFESSIONS]. I give this all to you because you’re a safe place. Amen.