Find a quiet place
The biggest thing about finding a quiet place to pray is to get a brief dose of the Holy Spirit of God and catch your breath. Getting an opportunity to breathe in deeply and breathe out in a breath prayer can calm you and allow you to hear His voice. Deep breathing also calms your brain.
Where can you find a quiet place in your surroundings? Outside on your front porch? Taking a walk in your neighborhood? In your bathroom?
Journal your thoughts
After getting calm with your breath prayer, you can spend a few minutes, jotting down all that is in your head, like a brain dump.
6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. (Phillipians 4:6, NLT)
By doing this brain dump, even for a few minutes, you get in touch with what is really going on inside. And you no longer have to keep track of those random thoughts.
Ask for His perspective
Ask Him how He sees your day ahead. What strength and power might you need?
How do You see the day, Lord?
I have been practicing this awhile, asking God, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit how He sees my day ahead. I get such interesting answers. Here are some excerpts from my journal:
I am showing you the way. I have given you your path. Do not veer off of it.
Then another time, I felt He said,
Do you trust me? Rest, Nancy, rest. Lean into Me.
What word seems to keep popping up for you that He keeps bringing across your radar? Trust is my reoccurring word.
Pause a moment and rest
Before exiting your quiet space, take a moment to pause in the quiet and rest. Let whatever He has said to you resound deeply into your heart. I confess after I hear His words, I am tempted to rush off to the next thing.
Pause a moment and savor His lavish love.
Remember Him throughout your day
Whatever you have learned in the quiet moments, how will you remember the rest of the day? For me, that can be the hard part. I confess I do better on some days than others.
I would love to know how you remember Him the rest of your day. I have an alarm on my phone to pause. I have an app on my phone called The Pause by John Eldridge to help me pause.
I do better some days than others.
Luckily, every morning is a new morning.
Great is his faithfulness;
his mercies begin afresh each morning. (Lamentations 3:23, NLT)
God reminded me of His new mercies recently. In a short video clip I needed to do for my church , I regrettably didn’t pray before doing it. I got it completed and sent off.
However, as I was praying the next morning, He gently chided me for not praying before doing it. Ha! How could I have forgotten, especially since the verse in my prayer on the video was about power, love and self-discipline!
7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. (2 Timothy 1:7, NLT)
So I prayed, redid the video, which not surprisingly was much better and sent it off. I am sure God was smiling. I am glad He doesn’t say, “Told you so!”
Give prayer a try
If you are not a regular praying person, I would encourage you to give it a try. Find even a few moments to unload the weight you are carrying. Try out the breathe prayer and asking the question to God.
What do you have to lose?
Prayer can be a two-way conversation with God that builds strong relationships and better day-to-day living. I am a certified spiritual director, someone who comes alongside people who are seeking to hear and see more of God in their lives. I love creating spaces for you to hear God’s voice.
I would love to walk along with you. Contact me and stay in touch with my Facebook page at My Sacred Moments. I would love to pray with you and for you, especially in these challenging times. I look forward to hearing from you.