When our hands are tied: P.R.A.Y.

Do you ever face life situations where you absolutely can not do O-N-E thing to change your circumstances?  Or, ever done all you can do, and still nothing is resolved?  How about times when your life is directly affected by someone else – maybe even someone you don’t know and certainly can’t influence?

When our circumstances are difficult and our hands feel tied, and when it seems that there is nothing we can do to help ourselves or our situation,  we are not without hope.  There is still one thing we can do.  And it’s no small thing.  It takes guts, restraint, patience and trust. 

What can we do?  We can P.R.A.Y. 

I’ve employed this method for many years, and found it to bring great peace to both my heart and my mind.  If you find yourself in a situation where someone else’s decisions are affecting how you work or how you live (or even more difficult: how your loved ones work or live), P.R.A.Y. and then watch what God will do.  (The Lord gave this to me as I was reading in Psalms.)

Remember: God sees all, knows all, loves all, and works all things out – somehow – for His glory – which is also His best (good) in each life.  God even uses those who aren’t seeking Him to somehow accomplish His work in the lives of those who are.  That’s just how God works.  And I find great comfort in that!

P – Pour out your heart to God.  Tell Him all about it.  Dump the details at His feet.  (Of course, He already knows each detail, but it is for our benefit that He tells us to come to Him and pour out our hearts to Him.)

R – Release “it” to God.  Once it’s dumped at His feet – picture “it” – the situation or the decision makers – at the feet of Jesus, who loves you so.  You can trust God with that situation.  He can do more than you could ever imagine to do in, through, about, and around it.  Take your hands off, and release it into His All-Capable hands.

A – Ask God to bless the person or situation.  This is a biggie.  Especially if you are struggling with bitterness over how something or someone is handled.  Asking God to bless the person or situation requires that our focus switch from “what I think is best” to “what God knows is best”.  It may require going back to the Pouring out and the Releasing stages several times to be able to honestly Ask God to bless the offending person/situation.  But it’s worth it!

Y – Yield to the leading of the Holy Spirit in your own life.  In other words… say Yes to obedience.  Make sure that you are in right relationship with God, confessed up, and ready/willing to say “yes” to whatever it is that God asks you to do.  This may bring on a fresh battle with pride – but with God’s help, Humility (and you) can win!

Friends, I’m positive I’m not the first person to come up with an acrostic to the word “pray”, but the Lord unfolded this to me about my own hand-tied circumstances, and I’m praying that it will be a help to some of you, too~

When your hands are tied: P.R.A.Y.  and then watch for what God will do.  He is powerful and He is very kind.

Much love~
Jennifer