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Prayers for Strength: An Excerpt from Being Mrs. Mom the Not So Average Superwoman

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Being Mrs. Mom the Not So Average Superwoman Book CoverAs you go throughout life, you will run into situations where you just won’t feel like you have enough strength to make it through.  You can try to muster up you own strength to push through, but the truth is that there is no better place to get you strength, than from God.  There are scriptures you can read, affirmations that you can say, but more importantly you should talk to God and pray for strength.  Still, sometimes you might wonder what you should pray.  Enjoy this excerpt, below of Prayers for Strength, from my book Being Mrs. Mom the Not So Average Superwoman.

 

In this excerpt there are prayers that you can pray that focus on  different areas your life, relationships, and focus.  I encourage you to make time daily to pray these prayers.  They are based on scripture and I’m sure that they will bless you.  

 

Prayers for Strength

  1. Lord, You are the source of my strength. I will sing of Your praise daily.  When life get hard and I have to walk in faith, help me to remember that you are with me and have fully equipped me for every good work.
  2. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight Lord, for you are my Strength. Help me not to be anxious or to worry about anything.  Help me to cast my cares upon you daily and to seek first Your kingdom.  You told me that you would supply all of my needs, so I look to You as my Provider.  Help me to trust you when it is hard and I am tempted to fear.
  3. God, You are my strength and power, and You make my way blameless. When I am overwhelmed and feel like I can’t go on, remind me to put on the armor of God and to remove the cape, if I have attempted to put it on again. 
  4. You have girded me with strength for the battle, Lord. You have subdued under me those that have risen up against me.  When the enemy comes in to my life and situations, like a flood, You said that You would lift up a standard against him.  Help me to trust you and stand in prayer, as I await your salvation.  Thank you for fighting my battles.
  5. Lord, I trust you for my family and my personal protection. I will not be afraid of the terror by night, or the arrows by day.  I will not fear what could be done to me.  I will not seek to defend myself.  Help me to stand on Your word and to be reminded that You have placed Your hedge of protection around me and my family.  Help me to remember that You will keep us safe from all hurt harm and danger.  Thank you for not appointing me to wrath, but instead redeeming me and my family to yourself.
  6. Father, help me to love what You love and to hate what You hate. Let my joy be found in You and in Your strength.  Be to me as you were to the Israel, a Strong Tower and Defense.  Remind me daily of your loving-kindness and tender mercies. 
  7. You have commanded me to be strong and of good courage. Help me to not be afraid or dismayed.  Help me to remember that You are with me, wherever I go.
  8. Father, You have equipped me for every good work. Help me not to take on more than you have given me to do.  Help me to walk in the Spirit and not according to the flesh.  Help me to not be deceived by the enemy, but to gird my loins with truth. 
  9. Bless me with your peace, as I make prayerfully make decisions. Help me to support my husband, encourage and guide my children, and disciple the women that you place in my path.  I desire to fulfill your great commission, but I need Your help.  Help me to accept what you give me and to rest in You, as I do your will.
  10. Father, I place all that I am and all that I have into your hands. Let me remain in right standing with you.  Let me always seek to build a relationship with you.  When it is all over, I want to hear You say that You knew me well.  I want to hear your say, “well done, My good and faithful servant.”  For this reason, I will not despise your chastisement, but instead I will embrace your leading with follow you obediently.  Give me the strength to walk out your calling on my life and empower me to be the woman that you have called me to be.

Pray these things in Jesus’ name. Amen.

I hope that you enjoyed this excerpt.  Don’t miss out on Being Mrs. Mom the Not So Average Superwoman.  I’m sure that you’ll be blessed and encouraged by it.  

Invest in What You Want: Read the Bible and Pray

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Sometimes, while going through life, it is easy to feel burned out and overwhelmed.  This is even more common when we haven’t spent the time necessary for rejuvenation, alone with God in His word or in prayer.

So many people say things like, “I don’t have time to read the Bible,” or “I don’t know how to pray.”  However like anything else in life, we must invest in what we want. 

Do you ever say these things? 

If not, what do you say? 

Do you take the time that you need to spend with God? 

Do you want a better relationship with Him?  

Do you want to hear His voice, for yourself? 

Do you want to know His will and plans for you?

Do you want freedom from stress and peace of mind?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, the answer you desire is found in God and His word.

I encourage you to take some time to read the Bible.

Yes, it’s a big book, but you don’t have to read it all in one sitting.  You could read it one chapter at a time.  You could start at Genesis and just read. 

I’m currently in a group and we are studying the Bible one chapter at a time.  However, if you’ve never read the Bible, from cover to cover,  I suggest that you start with reading the books of the Bible, first.  If you feel like you could handle both, you could read and study it at the same time, but if the idea of this feels overwhelming, just pick one thing. 

My suggestion is that you start out by reading the word, one chapter at a time and that you journal about your observations and thoughts.  Write out how you could apply your readings to your life and situations.  At the end of each journal, write out a prayer to the Lord, that was inspired by your readings. 

Yes, if you journal a prayer, you are still praying.  That’s actually how I got started praying.  I’d sit and journal out my prayers.  I was afraid that someone would hear me and I only wanted God to hear me, so I would journal.  After building a relationship with Him and reading more of His word, I became more confident in my prayers.  I started saying them out-loud, but I still journal prayers.  The prayers that I would journal always started with “Dear God,” and ended with “In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

I encourage you to take the time to invest in your relationship with our Heavenly Father.  You’ll feel more refreshed and encouraged than you ever have.  He will rejuvenate you, while you are in His presence.

If you are dealing with stress, anxiety, depression, and frustration, this is the place to start.  Enter into the presence of God and allow Him to fulfill your needs.  You have a God sized hole inside of you that longs to be filled.  You might be filling up on the wrong things, and that’s why you feel the way that you do.  If you take the time to fill up on Him on a daily, and even throughout the day basis, you will find that your life will change.  Your anxiety will go away.  You won’t feel depressed.  You will be less frustrated.  

Think about it, but don’t just think about it.  Do it.  Invest the time necessary to build yourself up in the Lord, establish and continue a relationship with Him, and be strengthened through prayer. 

Praying in Faith: Cultivating Life 3-5 Minute Video

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This week, on Cultivating Life’s 3-5 minute video, be encouraged to pray in faith.  We take a look at what Jesus said about prayer.  We are encouraged not to doubt, but instead to tell the mountain to move, in faith.  

Watch this video below and don’t forget to subscribe to my Youtube channel for more updates.  

10 Prayers to Pray Over Your Children

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As a mother, with four children, I know that it is hard to send my babies out into the world.  Daycare, school, events, none of this is easy.  We are charged, as moms, with one of the best and hardest callings in the world.  We are called to nurture and love our children;  to help them become who God has created them to be.  We carry our children within our wombs, as they grow.  Once they are born, we raise them, as best as we know how, loving them and protecting them from danger.  We teach them how to live.  We show them how to love.  We train them and coach them to be who God has created them to be.  Yet, we can’t keep them in our physical arms forever.

One of the first challenges of a working mother, a mother going to college, or even one that volunteers, is putting her baby in daycare.  If a mother happens to avoid that one, she will soon face the challenge of sending her 4 or 5 year old to preschool or kindergarten.  If a mother chooses to homeschool, she still does not escape the challenge of raising her child and slowly allowing him or her to go off into the world and explore through social connections.  We haven’t even talked about high school, college, or adulthood.

We hear the news reports.  They aren’t fun to listen to or read.  Children go through so much today and it is very public.  Turn on the nightly news and hear of manipulation, abuse, scandal, kidnappings.  If one is not careful, a mother could have a panic attack trying to figure out how she could protect her babies from all of these troubles and more befalling them. Will they become sick?  She wonders, am I a good mother?  Will I do them any justice? However, she forgets one thing.  It is not her call to protect her child all of the time, throughout the entire duration life.  She is not God.  However, she forgets one thing. She is not God. Click To TweetShe has to do what the Bible says.

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.~Philippians 4:6, 7

We can all use a little peace.  Add with the stress of the world and the cares of this life, we could definitely use a lot of peace.  This peace does not just come.  You have to do something in order for this peace to even begin to come your way.  You have to be willing to give God the things that you are most concerned about.  In this case, your children and their futures need to handed over to the Lord.  I want to help with this today.

There are key scriptures that I have prayed over my children for the past 14 years.  When situations arise and fear attempts to grip me, I have to remind myself of what the Lord has said.  He would not leave me nor forsake me. (Deuteronomy 31:6)  I have had to speak, pray, and meditate on the promises of God.  I have to remind myself that God is faithful and that all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us. (2 Corinthians 1:20)  I have to praise Him, when I recognize His faithfulness.  So, what exactly does His word promise?  I am going to share 10 prayers with you that are directly related to the scriptures in the bible and God’s promises to us, who believe.  The prayers are in bold and the scriptural references follow them. When you pray these prayers, pray them out loud.  Get them ingrained in your heart, so that you pray them with faith and without any doubt. (James 1:8)

  1. Lord let my children be taught by You and give them great peace.  Let all who have a hand in teaching them, be ordained by you.   Isaiah 54:13  “All of your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children.”
  2. Lord keep my children safe from all hurt, harm, and danger.  Place your hedge of protection around them.  Let no evil befall them and no plague or calamity come near to their dwelling.  Keep them safely under the shadow of Your mighty wing of protection.  Psalm 91:10  “No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling”  (I recommend that you read all of Psalm 91)
  3. Lord bless my children, for they are the fruit of my body.  Give them increase as you have given increase to me.  Deuteronomy 28:4  “Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, the produce of your ground and the increase of your herds,  the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks.”
  4. Lord help my children to be strong and courageous.  Let no man be able to stand before them, all of the days of their lives.  Be with them as you were with Moses and remind them that you will never leave them or forsake them.  Bless them with the fruit of the spirit.  Let them not be overtaken by fear, but instead allow them to live in power, in love, and with a sound mind.  Joshua 1:5  “No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life;  as I was with Moses, so I will be with you.  I will not leave you nor forsake you. ” Galatians 5:22-23; 2 Timothy 1:7; 1 Corinthians 15:33
  5. Let each one of my children, (Insert names here), increase in wisdom and in stature and in favor with You, God, and with man, even as Jesus did.  Let them keep good company because you said in Your word that bad company corrupts good character.  Luke 2:52  “And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.”
  6. Father, all of the days of their lives, give them a heart to delight themselves in You, Lord; and give them the desires of their hearts.  Psalm 37:4 “Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.”
  7. As they grow and learn, give them wisdom Lord.  No matter if they turn to the right or to the left, let their ears hear Your voice behind them saying,  “This is the way; walk in it,” and may they follow you all of the days of their lives because you are their Shepherd. Isaiah 30:21 Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”  Psalm 23
  8. Father I ask you to forgive all of their iniquities, heal all of their diseases, redeem their lives from destruction,  clothe them with lovingkindness and tender mercies, satisfy their mouths with good things, and renew them continually.  Psalm 103
  9. Help them to retain the knowledge of You, God, and do not give them over to a reprobate mind.  Instead, keep their minds, by the power of your Holy Spirit.  Let no weapon formed against them prosper and every tongue that rises up against them in judgement be condemned.  Help them continually to put on the armor of God that they may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.  Ephesians 6:10-18; Romans 1:28; Ephesians 1:13; John 17:11-12; Isaiah 54:17
  10. Help me and those that you have ordained, to train them up in the way that they should go, so that they will not depart from that way, when they are older.  If you have it for my child/children to be married, prepare a spouse for my child and prepare my child.  I pray that they would both love you, Lord and not be given over to sinful pleasures or the works of the flesh.  I come against the spirit of fornication, sexual immorality, divorce, confusion, rejection, and separation on behalf of my child and his/her future marriage, right now.  In the name of Jesus, I tell these mountains to move and I believe that they shall be moved.  In Jesus name, I pray all of these things. Amen   Proverbs 22:6; 2 Corinthians 6:14; Acts 10:2; Ephesians 5:18; Matthew 22:37; Matthew 21:21; 1 Corinthians 6:18-20; Hebrews 13:4; 1 Corinthians 7:2

Rest assured that God will hear each one of your prayers. Click To Tweet Pray them in faith, knowing that He cares about you and everyone & thing the you care about.  I tell you this; the Lord is faithful.  He is not a man that He should lie and like one of my favorite scriptures says, if you put your faith and trust in the Lord, you will not be put to shame. (Romans 10:11)

I would recommend that you pray these prayers over your children daily.  Watch as the Lord fulfills His promises to you and your children.

I hope that you were blessed and encouraged by this.

Did you know that I am working on my first book?

You can find out more below or by checking out the PreOrder My Book page

Being Mrs. Mom: A Christian Woman, Wife, and Mother Living in the 21st Century Book Cover Being Mrs. Mom: A Christian Woman, Wife, and Mother Living in the 21st Century
Makeda Rodriguez
January 7, 2017

Do you enjoy reading my blog?  Well, I know that you will love reading my upcoming book.  It is currently available for preorder.  You will find more encouragement like this, within its pages.  Read more here

How To Get Focused

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There are times in life where it feels like the waves of life come crashing in on us…

It can feel like someone has suddenly rained on our parade…

We can even feel stuck…

Do you know the feeling?

I do.

I have been in that place before.  In thinking about those moments, I realize that there are two option that I have.  I can choose to let life have its way and stay down in the dumps or I can choose to be active and do something about life.

In moments like this, I run to God.  I run as fast and as hard as I can because, whether the situation is big or small, I feel like I am suffocating.  Gasping for air, I reach my hands up an pray that He feels me reaching, drawing, pulling near.  Somehow, in the midst of my desiring a sense of relief, feeling overwhelmed, and stressing… I feel his presence.

This was one of those days.

Yesterday was lovely…a day to experience and share love…

Today reality hits…the new week reminds me of educational deadlines, choices, and requirements.

I had one child that didn’t feel well last week and now another woke up not feeling well this morning.

Laundry, dishes, meeting, papers, deadlines…these things and more attempt to weigh me down, but suddenly…I am reminded that although it feels like a lot…there are things that could make my life a lot worse.

I am grateful…

Still I will not minimize my own struggles…we all have them.  We all have our moments and in order to become better we have to identify what they are.

When I said “My foot slips,” Your mercy, O Lord, held me up.  In the multitude of my thoughts within me, Your comforts delight my soul. ~ Psalm 94:18-19

Will I let the fear of failure, the fear of not meeting the standard stifle me…stunt my growth, cause me to stand motionless…stressed…

Dare I say no?

Yet if that if that is my answer there is something I must do…

You give power to the faint; and to those who have no might, You increase strength. ~Isaiah 40:29

Father, I need your strength.

That mental struggle…It can drain us…the cares of this life coupled together with the outer circumstances that press in on us.  The relationships…the give and take…the desire to do and not to do…the requirements, both imposed by others and self-imposed…the calm and strife…all of this…becomes a burden…

“Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you, and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for our souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. ~Matthew 11:28-30

Rest for my soul…a lighter burden…

Today, like so many other days that have come before…I choose His way over mine.  I choose to breath and take in the rest that God has offered.  I choose to listen to the Holy Spirit within me that says I can and I will…the voice that says that there is no need to be afraid…

Today I choose which direction my ship will move in and I pray for the tools, the confidence, the strength, wisdom, discipline, the faith, and courage to do what I have to do…

Let us not minimize where we are in life.  Instead, let us approach each struggle with faith in God knowing that He cares about everything that we care about. (1 Peter 5:7) With the strength that we receive, let us move forward first from within…that is when we will begin to see the results that we desire.

It is my hope that my story encouraged you in some way and that I offered steps to help you overcome your struggle and get focused.

  • Run to God
  • Identify the struggle
  • View the struggle as it is in your life (don’t minimize it or make it bigger than it really is)
  • Make a choice to direct your own ship
  • Pray for direction
  • Plot the course and take action

Do you ever find yourself in this place…telling yourself that your struggles aren’t so bad because of how they compare to the rest of the world’s struggles, but never facing them head on to make the appropriate changes?  How do you deal with life’s struggles? Did you find this helpful?  I’d love to hear from you.

 

Encouraging Myself Monday: Taking Time To Focus And Reflect

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IMG_0086.JPGSometimes life gets challenging.  Obstacles arise and we find ourselves in the midst of being shaken.  Not knowing what to do or how to react, we can easily put ourselves in the wrong predicament, if we are not careful.  This is why it is so important to have a time of prayer, reflection, and contemplation in our lives.

The above example doesn’t mean that we have something horrible or devastating happening in our lives.  Instead it is just a normal occurrence to have life challenges that cause us to act, or in some cases react.

Well, I don’t know about you, but I wish I knew what to say and do all of the time, but I don’t.  Since I am aware of this, I don’t try to figure things out all on my own.

There used to be a time when I didn’t have a friend to call on in a time of need.  In those situations, I learned to journal about my situation.  I would pray that God would give me wisdom.  I would read my Bible and once I believed I had an answer, I would act.  Those days were hard, and I must admit, there are still times when I am unable to ask anyone , but God for help.

I’m glad that God is always there

He says that he will give us wisdom if we just ask for it.(James 1:5)  When we feel lonely, He tells us to draw close to Him and He will draw near to us. (James 4:8)

I thank God for those times when He shows Himself strong in my life.

I am also very thankful for the friendships that I have now.  I am able to call on a few women to pray and offer sound counsel.  The Bible says that there is safety in counsel (Proverbs 24:6), but I never realized how safe it could feel until I had it.

Now when I have those challenging moments, I don’t abandon what I have always known.  I still take time out to focus on what is happening in my life and around me.  I journal about the issues and cares that are upon my heart.  I pray and ask God for His infinite wisdom.  I look for Him to move in my life.  I also call for a praying, God-fearing, wise woman to assist me.

This morning I took the time to do this and some how, now that I’m done…the sun is shining a little brighter.  My smile is a little bigger and my load is a little lighter.

What do you do when you are faced with life’s challenges?  Do you journal or do you reflect on life in another way?  Do you pray about the situation and wait on God to answer you and give you direction?  Do you have a friend to call on or are you in that stage of life that I described earlier, where it’s just you and God?

I’d love to hear from you today…

This is just me, hoping that I am encouraging you as I am encouraging myself…

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