“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 NIV

As believers, we have the most wonderful and amazing privilege of being able to communicate directly with the Creator of everything, with God our Father, through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Think about that for just a minute. When Jesus died for us, the temple veil separating the Holy of Holies from humans was torn from top to bottom. God removed the barrier. God invites us into His presence, into a relationship with Him, into prayer.

What makes our prayers powerful, is not us, it is the limitless power of God. I am reminded of His power whenever I play with our black Lab, Traveler. It was about a year ago that she was diagnosed with mast cell cancer. At that time, our vet gave her six to twelve months. To see the full story find “Answered Prayers!” in April of last year under Blog or “God Answers Prayers!” in For the Kids. Traveler, our Sugar Bear, is still with us. Thank You, Lord! God demonstrates His power through our prayers.

I can not count the number of times when my anxiety was replaced by God’s peace as I prayed. Both of my children studied abroad in Europe during college. They were so far away, what if something happened? But as I prayed with the Lord, and shared my concerns and worries, and unburdened my heart, peace seemed to just rest on me. His power comforted me. God protected them when I couldn’t.

This week, let’s go to God our Father in prayer. Recognizing that we have an amazing God, praising His Holy name, accepting His unconditional forgiveness, thanking Him for all our blessings, sharing our burdens, casting our worries on Him, petitioning Him for others and ourselves, and waiting patiently for His power and peace.

I thank God for each of you! And I thank you for joining me this week as we appreciate our privilege of prayer and rely on the promise of the power of our wonderful Father God.

Blessings and prayers for each of you!