Three Stumbling Blocks to Consistent Cancer Prayers: a Devotional
Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see - how good God is. Blessed are you who run to Him.
Psalm 34:8-14 The Message
1. You can pray sporadically, leaving less opportunity for God to consistently show you the power of your prayers.
Sometimes, as we go through struggles, it’s easy to only pray for the big things, such as healing, and forget to pray for the little things along the way. The more things you pray about, the more opportunity Jesus has to answer your prayers. Think back to past prayers you have lifted to God. Whether your answered prayers were for a child’s safety, a financial solution, or a strengthened marriage, God has shown His faithfulness in your life. Don’t wait to see God’s faithfulness. Offer prayers all along your cancer journey to give God LOTS of opportunities to prove His faithfulness.
2. You can refuse to pray and just wait for God’s blessings.
What difference does it make if you pray and are blessed by God or if you don’t pray and are blessed by God? Not bothering to pray for something you need and God blessing you with it anyway is a nice thing. You should rejoice. But how much better the blessing would have been if you had humbled yourself to ask for the blessing and was then able to also rejoice in the wonder of knowing God heard your prayer and answered it? Rejoicing in answered prayer draws you closer to God and gives you evidence of God’s intimate role in your life, which you can then share with others.
3. You can miss recognizing the good things in your life as being from God.
Back in Session 4 Day 4, we discussed the temptation to think of everything as “mine”. Learning to view all good things in your life as coming from God takes effort and practice. Don’t let that self-serving part that is alive in each of us, rob you of seeing all the ways the Lord loves you.
Which of the “Three Stumbling Blocks to Consistent Cancer Prayers" is the most difficult for you? Why?
Excerpt from Seeing God in Your Cancer Journey
“Seeing God in Your Cancer Journey” is used in Christian cancer support groups and one-to-one peer counseling sessions to encourage cancer family members to discover all that Christ hungers to give them in the midst of their cancer struggle. Beyond their salvation, many Christian seek peace and comfort from Christ during difficult times. But Jesus wants to give guidance, strength, discernment, power and courage. Seeing God in Your Cancer Journey encourages cancer family members to pray big, love big and live big because the Lord God Almighty is big enough for all that and more. Find a Bible Study using these materials here.
