1 00:00:02,680 --> 00:00:03,620 Speaker 1: Life Audio. 2 00:00:15,260 --> 00:00:18,520 Speaker 2: You're listening to Everyday Prayers with Million Praying Moms, helping 3 00:00:18,579 --> 00:00:21,070 Speaker 2: you pray God's word for your family in the areas 4 00:00:21,140 --> 00:00:24,130 Speaker 2: you need it most. I'm your host, Nicolette Bell. Here, 5 00:00:24,250 --> 00:00:27,590 Speaker 2: we believe prayer isn't a last resort. It's our first 6 00:00:27,770 --> 00:00:31,170 Speaker 2: and best response in parenting. And every day, we come 7 00:00:31,190 --> 00:00:33,690 Speaker 2: together to partner with God for the hearts of our children. 8 00:00:34,290 --> 00:00:36,250 Speaker 2: This fall, we are praying through the Nine for the 9 00:00:36,290 --> 00:00:40,130 Speaker 2: Spirit in nine weeks using devotions from our Everyday Prayers 10 00:00:40,170 --> 00:00:45,940 Speaker 2: devotional series. This week's prayer focus is faithfulness. Faithfulness is 11 00:00:46,620 --> 00:00:49,900 Speaker 2: What a good thing to think about, to talk about, 12 00:00:50,000 --> 00:00:53,600 Speaker 2: and to pray for this week. Today's devotion is written 13 00:00:53,659 --> 00:00:57,350 Speaker 2: in red by Erin H. Warren. Erin is the author 14 00:00:57,470 --> 00:01:01,130 Speaker 2: of Everyday Prayers for Faith. To learn more about Erin, 15 00:01:01,450 --> 00:01:05,270 Speaker 2: our ministry, or to grab copies of our Everyday Prayers devotionals, 16 00:01:05,430 --> 00:01:10,670 Speaker 2: visit millionprayingmoms.com. And just for our podcast community, you can 17 00:01:10,690 --> 00:01:12,890 Speaker 2: visit our mom shop and use the code FALL20 for 20% 18 00:01:12,890 --> 00:01:17,330 Speaker 2: off your order. After a quick word from our sponsors, 19 00:01:17,370 --> 00:01:18,890 Speaker 2: we'll pray together for our families. 20 00:01:23,110 --> 00:01:28,140 Speaker 1: God is faithfully present. And behold, I am with you always, 21 00:01:28,480 --> 00:01:33,240 Speaker 1: to the end of the age. Matthew 28, 20. I 22 00:01:33,300 --> 00:01:36,740 Speaker 1: mentioned in the introduction to this book that my family 23 00:01:36,840 --> 00:01:40,860 Speaker 1: was facing yet another health crisis. This one concerned my 24 00:01:40,920 --> 00:01:45,070 Speaker 1: youngest son, who was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. It 25 00:01:45,110 --> 00:01:47,870 Speaker 1: was more than a shock to us, and it completely 26 00:01:47,950 --> 00:01:52,190 Speaker 1: uprooted our whole world. The first few months were filled 27 00:01:52,270 --> 00:01:57,210 Speaker 1: with intense learning, pulling my hair out frustration and utter numbness. 28 00:01:57,630 --> 00:02:00,770 Speaker 1: We were beyond exhausted, and I was struggling to keep 29 00:02:00,850 --> 00:02:04,910 Speaker 1: it all together. In those days, I wasn't sitting down 30 00:02:04,990 --> 00:02:09,090 Speaker 1: with God and having long, sweet times in the Word. Instead, 31 00:02:09,110 --> 00:02:13,139 Speaker 1: I was leaning on the Word in me. I knew 32 00:02:13,200 --> 00:02:16,180 Speaker 1: the importance of trusting the promises of God from our 33 00:02:16,240 --> 00:02:20,060 Speaker 1: previous crisis in those days when I could hardly think 34 00:02:20,560 --> 00:02:22,959 Speaker 1: the promise of God that I kept coming back to 35 00:02:23,000 --> 00:02:27,200 Speaker 1: was this one. God is faithful to be present. I 36 00:02:27,320 --> 00:02:30,609 Speaker 1: knew God was with us. And so my prayer was, God, 37 00:02:31,050 --> 00:02:35,030 Speaker 1: don't let me miss you. Let me see where you are. 38 00:02:36,110 --> 00:02:39,850 Speaker 1: In Matthew 28, before Jesus ascends to heaven, he gives 39 00:02:39,990 --> 00:02:45,110 Speaker 1: his final charge to the disciples. Go tell. Spread this 40 00:02:45,169 --> 00:02:48,639 Speaker 1: good news. Take it to the nations. I think we 41 00:02:48,800 --> 00:02:52,200 Speaker 1: often read this and feel the sense of purpose rise 42 00:02:52,360 --> 00:02:56,480 Speaker 1: up in us. We feel emboldened and empowered. But I 43 00:02:56,520 --> 00:03:00,760 Speaker 1: would imagine that those standing there beside Jesus may have 44 00:03:00,820 --> 00:03:05,340 Speaker 1: felt pure fear. They had been walking with Jesus for 45 00:03:05,380 --> 00:03:08,900 Speaker 1: three years. He had been right there with them physically, 46 00:03:09,360 --> 00:03:13,200 Speaker 1: and now he was leaving them. They were literally watching 47 00:03:13,240 --> 00:03:19,340 Speaker 1: him ascend away from them. But Jesus leaves them with 48 00:03:19,760 --> 00:03:22,460 Speaker 1: that promise from Matthew 28 20. I am with you always. 49 00:03:26,070 --> 00:03:28,669 Speaker 1: He may have been leaving them physically, but He was 50 00:03:28,770 --> 00:03:32,610 Speaker 1: not leaving them alone. He promised to be with them, 51 00:03:33,050 --> 00:03:37,600 Speaker 1: and He promises us that too. The story of the 52 00:03:37,660 --> 00:03:40,320 Speaker 1: Bible is the story of the God who longs to 53 00:03:40,380 --> 00:03:43,560 Speaker 1: dwell with His people and wants His people to dwell 54 00:03:43,600 --> 00:03:46,820 Speaker 1: with Him. He wants to be with us, and through 55 00:03:46,860 --> 00:03:50,430 Speaker 1: the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, He has 56 00:03:50,490 --> 00:03:54,670 Speaker 1: made a way for us to do this. In her book, 57 00:03:54,950 --> 00:03:58,730 Speaker 1: Even Better Than Eden, Nancy Guthrie further explains this truth. 58 00:03:59,720 --> 00:04:03,440 Speaker 1: The great passion of God's heart, as revealed from Genesis 59 00:04:03,460 --> 00:04:06,280 Speaker 1: to Revelation, is to be at home with His people 60 00:04:06,380 --> 00:04:11,100 Speaker 1: in a place where nothing can separate or alienate or contaminate, 61 00:04:11,560 --> 00:04:15,860 Speaker 1: enjoying a face-to-face relationship of pure joy with no goodbyes. 62 00:04:16,850 --> 00:04:19,430 Speaker 1: In fact, one of the most amazing things about the 63 00:04:19,470 --> 00:04:22,270 Speaker 1: story we read in the Bible is that it is 64 00:04:22,570 --> 00:04:25,469 Speaker 1: much more about God's desire to dwell with His people 65 00:04:26,050 --> 00:04:30,190 Speaker 1: than about His people's desire to dwell with Him. No goodbyes, 66 00:04:30,730 --> 00:04:36,130 Speaker 1: no separation, with us always. I prayed to see God 67 00:04:36,270 --> 00:04:40,160 Speaker 1: in my most desperate moments, and God graciously answered me. 68 00:04:40,710 --> 00:04:44,310 Speaker 1: I cannot explain the supernatural strength that we seem to 69 00:04:44,430 --> 00:04:49,510 Speaker 1: have despite our physical and mental exhaustion. I could literally 70 00:04:49,690 --> 00:04:53,190 Speaker 1: feel God holding us up. One of the early days 71 00:04:53,410 --> 00:04:56,630 Speaker 1: on this journey, I had had enough. I was overwhelmed, 72 00:04:57,070 --> 00:05:00,050 Speaker 1: and my husband and I had just had a little discussion, 73 00:05:00,070 --> 00:05:03,190 Speaker 1: and I needed a break. So I did what many 74 00:05:03,270 --> 00:05:08,539 Speaker 1: of us women do in a tense situation. I went shopping. 75 00:05:09,860 --> 00:05:12,140 Speaker 1: In my head, as I drove there, I was debating, 76 00:05:12,540 --> 00:05:14,800 Speaker 1: what would I say if I ran into someone I knew? 77 00:05:15,320 --> 00:05:17,940 Speaker 1: Would I tell the truth when they politely asked, how 78 00:05:18,040 --> 00:05:21,820 Speaker 1: are you? I turned a corner in the office supply 79 00:05:21,860 --> 00:05:25,180 Speaker 1: section and there was an old friend from church. She 80 00:05:25,200 --> 00:05:27,560 Speaker 1: was the kind of friend you couldn't hide the truth from. 81 00:05:27,580 --> 00:05:31,820 Speaker 1: I started crying right there between the pens and the 82 00:05:31,860 --> 00:05:35,060 Speaker 1: craft supplies, telling her everything that had happened that week. 83 00:05:35,940 --> 00:05:39,120 Speaker 1: And she in turn gave me the exact encouragement from 84 00:05:39,170 --> 00:05:42,880 Speaker 1: the Bible. I needed that day. I could have lied 85 00:05:42,920 --> 00:05:46,719 Speaker 1: to her. I could have chosen to walk away, believing 86 00:05:46,760 --> 00:05:49,800 Speaker 1: it to just be a coincidence, but God had answered 87 00:05:49,839 --> 00:05:52,670 Speaker 1: my prayer. He reminded me that He was right there 88 00:05:52,700 --> 00:05:57,590 Speaker 1: with me. God's reminders can be timely words from a friend, 89 00:05:57,830 --> 00:06:00,750 Speaker 1: a text with the Bible verse you needed in that moment, 90 00:06:01,370 --> 00:06:04,710 Speaker 1: or an unexplained peace or strength that couldn't come from 91 00:06:04,870 --> 00:06:10,170 Speaker 1: anyone else but God. God's promise in Matthew 28, 20 92 00:06:10,170 --> 00:06:14,150 Speaker 1: is echoed in Hebrews 13, 5, where he says, For 93 00:06:14,230 --> 00:06:17,570 Speaker 1: he has said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. 94 00:06:18,560 --> 00:06:21,200 Speaker 1: When we face hardships and feel like God is absent, 95 00:06:21,339 --> 00:06:23,720 Speaker 1: we can know beyond a shadow of a doubt that 96 00:06:23,779 --> 00:06:26,419 Speaker 1: he has not left us or forsaken us. He is 97 00:06:26,480 --> 00:06:31,700 Speaker 1: with us always. Psalm 143, 5 says, I remember the 98 00:06:31,740 --> 00:06:34,760 Speaker 1: days of old. I meditate on all that you have done. 99 00:06:35,560 --> 00:06:39,200 Speaker 1: I ponder the works of your hands. When you are 100 00:06:39,279 --> 00:06:42,300 Speaker 1: tempted to believe that God has broken this promise to you, 101 00:06:42,420 --> 00:06:45,500 Speaker 1: go back to these verses and remember that God is 102 00:06:45,600 --> 00:06:49,210 Speaker 1: faithfully present. Keep a list of all the ways that 103 00:06:49,230 --> 00:06:51,210 Speaker 1: you have seen him with you so that you can 104 00:06:51,290 --> 00:06:55,470 Speaker 1: recall his faithfulness. Ask him to open your eyes and 105 00:06:55,510 --> 00:06:59,169 Speaker 1: to see his tangible presence with you. Would you pray 106 00:06:59,210 --> 00:07:03,840 Speaker 1: with me? God, I know that you are faithful. and 107 00:07:03,860 --> 00:07:07,060 Speaker 1: you are faithful to be with us. Let us not 108 00:07:07,220 --> 00:07:10,200 Speaker 1: miss you in the moments of our days. Help our 109 00:07:10,340 --> 00:07:14,130 Speaker 1: eyes search for you and see you. Help our ears 110 00:07:14,230 --> 00:07:18,810 Speaker 1: to listen and to hear you. Help our hearts and 111 00:07:18,910 --> 00:07:22,450 Speaker 1: minds to hold fast to the truth that you never 112 00:07:22,570 --> 00:07:26,020 Speaker 1: leave or forsake us. Thank you for making a way 113 00:07:26,080 --> 00:07:29,360 Speaker 1: for your presence to be with us always, even to 114 00:07:29,400 --> 00:07:33,020 Speaker 1: the end of the age. In your name I pray. Amen. 115 00:07:33,610 --> 00:07:35,670 Speaker 2: As part of our Fruit of the Spirit prayers and 116 00:07:35,750 --> 00:07:39,450 Speaker 2: everyday prayers for the school year book club, Tara Cole 117 00:07:39,550 --> 00:07:43,070 Speaker 2: and I created a free car conversations guide for your 118 00:07:43,130 --> 00:07:46,650 Speaker 2: family to use this fall. The car is sometimes the 119 00:07:46,690 --> 00:07:50,990 Speaker 2: best place for our most precious conversations with our kids. 120 00:07:51,490 --> 00:07:53,770 Speaker 2: As we are praying through the Fruit of the Spirit, 121 00:07:53,950 --> 00:07:57,320 Speaker 2: our hope is that you can have meaningful conversations with 122 00:07:57,400 --> 00:08:01,000 Speaker 2: your kids about what living out these fruit looks like 123 00:08:01,100 --> 00:08:03,929 Speaker 2: in their daily lives. Tara and I created a series 124 00:08:03,990 --> 00:08:06,390 Speaker 2: of quick questions. She wrote some for the older kids. 125 00:08:06,610 --> 00:08:08,890 Speaker 2: I wrote some for younger kids. And we share a 126 00:08:08,950 --> 00:08:12,010 Speaker 2: prayer that you can share with your children about each 127 00:08:12,090 --> 00:08:15,350 Speaker 2: of the fruit of the Spirit. Download your copy for 128 00:08:15,430 --> 00:08:17,970 Speaker 2: free on our website or the link in our show notes. 129 00:08:18,680 --> 00:08:22,680 Speaker 2: Until next time, friends, the Lord bless you and keep you. 130 00:08:23,740 --> 00:08:26,620 Speaker 2: Make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. 131 00:08:27,380 --> 00:08:30,160 Speaker 2: May the Lord look with favor on you and give 132 00:08:30,220 --> 00:08:30,680 Speaker 2: you peace.