Hope is the Peanut Butter, Pray is the Jelly

Hope and Pray go together like peanut butter and jelly.  Both are good on their own, but together they make a killer combination.  I have heard those two words used together for as long as I can remember, “Well, I hope and pray that it happens…”.  Combining these two actions might just be the key to opening any locks in our mindsets.

This morning, I (Kim), sent my youngest child to her last day of her senior year in high school.  I have already sent one child off to college, and now it’s almost time to do it again.  It was a teary morning after she left.  There is a lot of transition coming up in the next few months for us, and while I trust God and know that He has all of us under His wing, I am only human, and even Jesus wept.

There are lots of things I hope for in the lives of my children as they begin their adult lives.   A walk with the Lord, success, confidence, happiness, love, strength to overcome adversity, endurance, and strong will are just a few that I think of immediately.  I also ask God to deliver these things into their lives.  I wish he would deliver all of them NOW, but He doesn’t work like that.  Even though, my requests aren’t answered on demand, I know with confidence that God hears them.

Being confident that God hears you is important.  We aren’t supposed to be wishy washy in our faith, but straight up sure that our Father knows what is best for us.  When we approach him with confidence it pleases Him, yet we still must be humble and ready to yield to God’s will.  Our hope comes from knowing that God wants the absolute best for us.  He’s seen the whole movie of our lives.  He knows how it ends.  He knows all of the plot twists and characters intimately.  It gives me hope that God has that knowledge about my two precious kids (young adults), and even though I might fail, He is the ultimate parent knowing what is best for them. 

So, I will continue to P.R.A.Y.

Praise- Thank you, Father God, for the blessing of being a mother to these kids.  Thank you that they are healthy, and have good hearts, and that they know You.

Repent- Forgive me when I fail to reflect your love and light to other people, especially to my family.

Ask- Please don’t let go of them, but pull them close to you filling their lives with success, confidence, happiness, love, and strength keeping them healthy and making wise decisions.

Yield- I ask these things for them if it is Your will, and if it isn’t, give me the strength to parent them with grace and forgiveness.

Amen.

Passages to Ponder:

I John 5:14- And we are confident that He hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases Him.

Ephesians 3:12- Because of Christ and our faith in Him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence.

Hebrews 10:23- Let us hold tightly without wavering o the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep His promise.

Contributors:  Karen Bromby and Kim McClure