Let’s rewind to four years ago.
I was hosting my life group at my apartment for the very first time. I was super excited to have everyone over and to lead the study that day.
However, since I was leading... I was also responsible for closing us in prayer… which made my stomach do flip flops!
Confession time.. In the weeks leading up to the night I hosted, I took notes when the other girls closed us in prayer. Yup, I was that nervous to pray. I was extra alert & curious and wanted to make sure I "did it right."
(Have you been there, too? Or does that sound like you now?)
There is so much beauty in prayer, friends. There is so much closeness to Jesus and the Holy Spirit that we can access through prayer, and I don’t want you to miss it or be intimidated by it!
That was really the heart behind the Posture of Prayer challenge.
The intent was to encourage you to develop a habit of prayer and experience the fruit and joy that prayer brings. It doesn’t have to be scary or uncomfortable.
My hope is that the Posture of Prayer challenge reignited something in each of you that drew you closer to Him.
With all that said, I cannot believe yesterday was already the last day of the 28 day challenge!
I pray that it was a blessing to you. I know it was to me.
If you missed it & want to go through it on your own, you can grab the pretty printable here, which lists each of the 28 prayer prompts.
(The printable went live to the Grace Space Christian Coaching email family- join here if you want to stay updated on the latest & greatest from GSCC!)
As the Posture of Prayer challenge comes to a close (as is 2018!), I thought it would be a good time to reflect on the impact of these past 28 days.
Ready? Let’s do it : )
Here’s what I took away from the Posture of Prayer challenge:
Praying for others is a big blessing
I would compare this experience to volunteering... You get more than you give. It was really a joy to empathize with what these different people groups might be experiencing and lift them up in prayer & in hopes that God might move in miraculous ways.
The more I did it, the more I craved it
Does that make sense?! (At the expense of potential eye rolls haha, this is kind of what working out is like for me!). But anyway, the more I prayed, the more my heart desired prayer. I looked forward to this sweet time and was more alert & aware of other people and groups of people that could use prayer. Prayer became a bigger part of my thoughts and conversations, which was a beautiful thing.
And even with craving more prayer, I still needed prompting + a routine
Yep, full transparency… even with being a life coach and goal setting junkie- I found that it was super important to set an alarm to remind me to post and pray for the Posture of Prayer prompt. Alarms are a simple yet powerful tool. No shame in my alarm game!
Related, I've found that it's helpful to incorporate prayer into an already existing routine. For me, for example, this looks like prayer in the morning, and then with my husband before dinnertime, and before bed. (Side note… did you know that less than 1% of couples who pray together daily get divorced?! amazing)
Structure definitely helps
I found that having a plan for prayer through the prayer prompts was super helpful. I don’t know about you, but sometimes I can easily get still and talk with God while other times it can feel a little intimidating to sit down & be silent! Because of that, I purchased a Well Watered Women Give Me Jesus journal and a Val Marie Paper Prayer journal and am so excited to start them both in the new year. Full disclosure- these journals aren’t cheap (WWW’s is $35 and VMP’s is just under $50). However, if I'm being honest with myself, I can totally see how having a bit more structure can greatly enhance my prayer life & relationship with Jesus. And that, my friends, is a worthwhile investment. Wouldn't you agree?
Did you also participate in the Posture of Prayer challenge?
What was your biggest takeaway?
With joy,
Alexandra