Combining a Housekeeping Day with Purposeful Praying

“Pray without ceasing.”
1 Thessalonians 5:17

I just found myself with a home needing housekeeping and my heart needing purposeful praying. That’s when it came to me. A good solution might be to combine both needs this week. I know we’re instructed in Scripture to “Pray without ceasing.” and I try to pray often each day. However, with all that is going on around the world, at home and abroad, I’m heavy hearted with burdens beyond what my current faith can carry. I know God cares for everyone and the turmoil, tragedies, and troubles we are all facing. I’m sure He knows what’s going on. It just seems appropriate to send more sincere and specific prayers to Him right now than the everyday, “Thank you for our lunch…” prayers we often limit our daily prays to.

We’ve been sick at our house. You know the kind of sick. The kind where one family member gets a sore throat and, the next thing you know, everyone in the house has been down and out a couple of weeks with the “crud”— colds, flu, bubonic plague, or some kind of jungle rot. The house morphs into a nest of nasty tissues, tangled blankets, piles of laundry, dirty cups, water bottles, medicine bottles, and unrecognizable, puny people in two-day old pajamas. It’s a sight and one day you have to get up and out of it. Today’s the day. It’s time to dig out, clean up and get back to living, with or without these irritating, lingering coughs.

While we’ve been sick, we’ve had time to keep up with the news and hear the hurts and heartaches of the nations. Normally, we would discuss it and say a prayer. But, this time, I want to go a little further and deeper with my prayers. This time I feel the need to be very specific and not blanket-cover the needs. During this “cleaning day” of prayer, I’m going to pay close attention to my words, the needs, the people, the requests, and the Creator, who I’m bringing these prayers to.

When we’re sick and tired and see needs all around us, the best thing we can do is turn to God once again and, then, set about to clean our own house. If you find yourself overwhelmed and in need of prayer or a good house cleaning, you are not alone.

Feel free to join me on your housekeeping day for a purposeful time of prayer. We can all pray in our homes for the burdens on our hearts while we do our day of house chores. Who knows, it may make us all feel a little better and our homes will be more “livable” too.

If you are not sure how to pray or, what to pray for, start with the instruction God gave regarding prayer…

“After this manner therefore pray ye:
Our Father which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done
 in earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil:
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory, for ever.”
Amen.“

Matthew 6:9-13

BRINGING IT HOME

Do you “purposefully” pray? Who do you pray to? What do you pray for? If your heart is heavy with the burdens of this life, will you join me?

(I’d truly love to see some of your answers in the comments. Wink!)

Growing With You,

Smiles, BRC