Author: kimmelnick

Last fall, while searching for who-knows-what on Amazon, I started seeing women’s T-shirts that were printed with “Christian-y” messages. You know the ones I’m talking about…..

Keep Calm and Pray On

Fearfully and Wonderfully Made

and the infamous,

#Blessed

I thought it would be fun to find one that expressed a “Thankful” message to wear for our Thanksgiving Day festivities. My search began. A shirt caught my eye, but the message on it was not for Thanksgiving Day. It was more than that. It was a message for every day.

It simply said, “Faith over Fear.”

I knew that was MY shirt. I ordered it (well, actually I ordered two because I couldn’t decide which color I liked best). The first week I wore it at least three times. To be honest, it didn’t look great on me. The style isn’t all that flattering for my body type.

But, I wore it anyhow.

And, every time I put it on, I was reminded of the choice….a choice that I have to make in a myriad of situations every single day. Will I choose faith or fear?

I realized that I was already making the choice but, far too often, my choice was the default option. Default relies on instinct. My instinct is often fear.

But, faith, at least Christian faith, relies on God. Faith trusts God in a way that enables us to live His way.

So, what has faith over fear meant in my life?

It’s meant reaching out in love to restore a friendship that ended in unresolved conflict.

It’s meant engaging with new people, instead of retreating to my comfort zone.

It’s meant speaking truth in love even when it’s hard.

It’s meant sharing how God is working in my life in environments that terrify me.

It’s meant pausing the urgent to focus on the important.

God has blessed these choices more than I could have imagined. And, I shouldn’t be so surprised. Fear relies on us. Fear robs us of the joy we get from trusting Him and leaves us feeling scarce. But, Faith relies on Him and on His ways. It makes life richer. Faith allows us to experience His best.

So, God did use a T-shirt to change my life. But, here’s the catch: You don’t need the T-shirt. You simply need to make the choice. Faith over fear.

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and
assurance about what we do not see.
Hebrews 11:1

To learn more about praying Scripture, check out our prayer journals.

You keep in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.  Isaiah 26:3.   Most of us would agree that the idea of peace in this life is something we long for, but often find it to be fleeting.  Yet, Scripture promises we can have this peace by keeping our minds fixed on God.

So, how do we fix on our mind on God? Perhaps one of the most fruitful ways to do this is by studying, meditating upon and praying God’s word. While we may long to know God and communicate with Him deeply, we often struggle with the disciplines that allow us to do so. But, by spending regular time with Him, we can be transformed by the renewing of our minds and can ascertain God’s will for our lives.

When we study God’s word, we learn the character of God.  We deepen our understanding of who He is and who we are.  We begin to understand more clearly what He has called us to do and we gain His wisdom.

When we meditate on His words, we embed them in our hearts and can more easily find peace, comfort and direction in our times of trial and distress.  And, when we experience times of great joy and provision, our hearts are more willingly led to praise God.

When we pray His words back to Him, we can have confidence that our prayers are rooted in the expressed will of God.  We have heard that the Bible tells us that God wants to give us the desires of our heart, but we often miss the first part of that verse.  His word tells us to, “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” When our desires and our prayers are rooted in His will and His words, we will see that we do receive the desires of our heart because our desires have conformed to His will!

Praying Through Scripture gives women a tool to develop an effective prayer life. Its unique advantage is that is based solely on God’s word. This book will teach you to pray in a way that honors God and His word. It will encourage you to record your prayers in the beautiful journal space. And, it will teach you to memorize God’s word and, in doing so, renew your mind and transform your life.