bible blog Monday January 22nd

A Prayer For Exercising Faith (Matthew 14:25-33 Peter walking on water)

 

 

 

With hearts humbled and eyes needing to be focused on you we come to you, Father, in prayer.  Lord, we know you are at work in this world even though sometimes it seems as if it is raging out of control around us.  It is so much easier to sit in the comfort of the familiar but, like Peter, you call us to join you on paths that are new, unknown, sometimes a bit scary, and sometimes paths that seem beyond our abilities.  Your word shows us though that faith does not grow or strengthen by sitting in what we feel is safety or familiarity.  We don't learn to trust you and look to you for all things when life feels smooth and easy all the time.  Because of your love for us, Lord, you call us out of the security of our comforts and strengths in order for us to exercise the faith we profess.  You give us an opportunity to experience your goodness, your grace, your power, your work in this often-stormy world.

 

But, Lord, when we do answer your call, when we do take steps of faith, it is easy to quickly loose focus and faith on you when challenges, difficulties, struggles, or the unexpected arise.  They cause us to focus on our weaknesses, our inabilities, our failures, our hurts, our losses, our lack.  When we allow our focus to shift off of you Lord then our faith follows and rather than remaining in you we put our faith in our own abilities and sometimes the abilities of others.  Forgive us for this Lord and lead us back to where you are. 

 

Help us to take the time to sit in the quiet and hear your call.  Give us the strength to meet you where you are and where you would have us be.  May we have eyes that remain focused on you and not the storms or challenges that can whirl around us.  May we hold firmly to our trust and faith in you Lord and be an example to others to not be afraid but rather to take steps into the unfamiliar or what might look like the impossible.  Help us to recognize that when we do this we are taking steps to exercise our faith, put it into practice so that it may grow in abundance and be a light for others.

 

Thank you Lord that you do not call us out on the waters of life alone but that you call us to join you there.  You will never leave us, you will never forsake us, you will always be there to help us.  Call us Lord, help us to hear, and give us the strength to be willing to move into the unknown today and put our faith into practice.

 

Amen