When You Can't Fake It Anymore

Have y'all ever heard the phrase, "Fake it 'til you make it"? Have you ever felt like you were having to "fake it" when it came to your prayer life? Like you had to put on a show for other people? "Oh hey, random friends, I really do have my life together. I pray without ceasing, duh... don't you? No issues here. I'm totally good. You can be on your merry way now..." 

Yep, me too. 

Growing up in church, prayer was something that was always an important part of my life, but it wasn't until about three years or so ago that I truly feel like prayer became the most powerful, influential, and necessary part of my life. Many times growing up I felt like I was just going through the motions because that's what a "good" Christian did. You would pray and then act like you had your life totally together. When people asked how you were, you faked it and said something like, "Oh, I'm great! Life is good, God is great, no problems or issues to see here..."

My oh my, how many times have I acted like I had it all together when I was really breaking into a million pieces on the inside? How many times have I recoiled and drawn totally in so no one would see I was struggling? More times than I would like to count if I'm being transparent. 

I'm a people pleaser by nature, so there were times where I wouldn't share personal hurts or prayer needs because I was afraid what someone else would "think" of me or how they would "look" at me. I  didn't want them to know that I was struggling. Mercy me, young Claire, how wrong you were and how many times did you probably miss out on some powerful prayer meetings and unions simply because you were too scared to admit your faults and shortcomings?

One of my absolute favorite verses is 2 Corinthians 12:9, which says,

"But He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me."

I love this so much. It's so encouraging and such a great reminder that we don't have to be perfect all the time. It's okay to fail. It's okay to mess up. It's even okay if you let people down every now and then. Why? Because we are human and it's bound to happen from time to time. But Jesus knows our hearts, y'all. He knows when we are faking it, so why don't we stop thinking that our sin is "too bad" or that we are too far gone? Psh, if that was the case, we'd all be in major trouble, hehe. Jesus tells us that we can rejoice in our weaknesses and actually even boast about them because it is the best way for us to see His strength demonstrated. We just need to release it to Him. We can do nothing in, through, or by ourselves; we need His redemptive, all-consuming grace working in and through us. Grace: unmerited favor. Thank You, Jesus.

I also love James 5:16,

"Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results."

This reminds us that it's okay to admit our faults and shortcomings. In fact, God's Word says we will be healed when we do. These prayers have power and produce wonderful results. Um, yes please. Sign me up!

So all in all, what have I learned over the last three years about prayer?

• Don't be scared to admit your faults. 
• Don't be nervous to ask for prayer from others. 
• And probably most important, never feel inadequate to fall on your knees in prayer before the Father who loves you more than anything.

But there still may times that are tough. So what can we do when we don't know how to pray, what to pray, or what words to use? I want to share a few things that have helped me in hopes that they may be an encouragement to you, too.

When you can't fake it in prayer anymore:

1. Pray God's Word.
• If you feel like you literally don't have the words to pray, open up His infallible, living Word and pray it! Example: Jesus, thank You for loving me. Thank You that Your Word tells me that when I commit my actions to you, they will succeed. I pray in all things that I can rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances. I know this is Your will for me." (Proverbs 16:3, 1 Thessalonians 5:17)
2. Keep a prayer journal.
• This has been transformational for my prayer life. There will be times I meditate on one Scripture after jotting it down by hand. There are times I will study notes from a sermon or teaching. There are times I list out prayer requests and praises. And there are times where I will literally write out entire prayers. It has been such a blessing to me to go back and read prayers I wrote 2 or 3 years ago and see how God answered them in such a big way.  (I purchased my prayer journal this year from valmariepaper.com and am LOVING it! Highly recommend!)
3. Pray out loud. 
• If you ever feel stuck, literally pray out loud. I do this all the time, especially in the car. This is where I do most of my warfare prayers, and to be honest, I get a little into it... I know people look at me like I'm crazy at red lights, lol. But we should pray as if we are having a conversation with God. Because that's exactly what prayer is. Talk to Him as if you would talk to your spouse, your parent, your best friend. Because He's all those things and more. He wants to hear your heart.
4. Be specific, be bold, and ask. 
• One thing I've learned is that bold prayers honor God and that God honors bold prayers. Our prayers should be very specific, not just general, blanket statements. Call it out by name and ask Your Heavenly Father. The greatest tragedies in life are the prayers that go unanswered because they go unasked. 
5. Find a prayer partner.
• This can be your spouse, your parent, your best friend. Somebody you trust as Godly counsel. I wouldn't suggest it being any random person, but someone whose heart you know; someone you know is seeking after the very heart of God and someone who can build you up in the ways of the Lord. My husband is this person for me. Remember James 5:16 from earlier!
• Have you ever been prayed over by someone who knows and prays the Word? If you haven't... mercy, you do not know what you are missing. I LOVE being prayed over by someone who prays the exact words over me that I needed to hear in the exact moment I needed to hear it. And the coolest part is, it's not them. It's the Lord working through them.

Goodness, if I could explain to you how many times, even since grasping hold of these concepts, that I have I fallen flat on my face before the throne room. Crying out, frustrated, so in need of wisdom. And you know what? The Lord comes through every. single. time. He's waiting on us to come to Him. He wants to help us. He wants us to unlock the crazy awesome power of His Holy Spirit in us. He wants us to live a life worthy of the calling He's placed on our lives. One of my favorite things to do now is pray over other people, both behind the scenes and in person. Like the so many wonderful people who have prayed over me the last few years that I will forever be grateful for. There's truly nothing like it. 

When we give more of ourselves to God, He will absolutely give more of Himself to us. If we begin doing the little things like they are big things, God will do the big things like they are little things. The more faith we have, the more specific our prayers will be. And the more specific our prayers are, the more glory God receives. 

Praying needs to be just like the air we breath. We need to need it. We need to crave it. Our physical bodies, our souls (mind/will/emotions), and our spirits are all longing for it. Let's move mountains with our prayers, sweet friends.

Love and Blessings,

Claire 

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