The Power of a Praying Wife Devotional (28 page)

L
ORD,
I come to You with thanksgiving for all You have given us, and how You have blessed and sustained us for all this time. I lift up to You our finances and thank You for Your Word that promises You will supply all our needs (Philippians 4:19). I pray You would bless us with Your provision now. Open the storehouse of heaven and pour financial blessings upon us. Give us wisdom as to how to handle all finances, and keep us from making any foolish decisions. Bless our work with success.

Reveal to us how we can earn more and handle our finances more efficiently. Show us where we have spent unwisely and how we can cut back expenses. Show us if we are doing what You want us to do, or if You have other work for us. Open our eyes to see where we are not living Your way with regard to our finances. Convict us if we need to give more to You and to others. Teach us how to save, spend, invest, and better organize our money. I know that our true treasure is found in You. Forgive us for any times when we have not fully lived out that truth. We choose to seek You and Your kingdom first in our lives, trusting that You will provide all we need.

In Jesus’ name I pray.

52

We do not lose heart. Even though
our outward man is perishing,
yet the inward man is being
renewed day by day.

2 C
ORINTHIANS
4:16

O
NE OF THE GREATEST THINGS
about walking with the Lord is that even as you are growing older, inwardly you are being renewed every day. What wonderful hope there is in that for us all, because even on the days when we feel tired, sick, beaten down, creaky, old, or as though we are rapidly deteriorating, we can trust that because we are walking with God, we are being renewed daily in our spirit and soul.

How many times have we wives not been pleasant to be around—or at the very least, ungracious—all because we don’t feel well or do not feel good about ourselves in some way? Even if we
think
we
look
old and tired, it can make us less than uplifting to be close to. And we can feel old and tired even when we’re not actually either of those things. But one of the ways we can combat that is to find renewal in the Lord. He works that in us when we stay close to Him.

Getting old is a fact of life, but being rejuvenated in your mind, soul, and spirit is a promise of God. And it is not something you have to strive or strain to make happen. It happens automatically when you are in the Lord’s presence. As you pray and speak words to Him of worship and praise, He fills you afresh with His Spirit. And with His Spirit always comes freedom from stress and anguish, and release from self-doubt and fear. In His presence you find refreshment, rejuvenation, and restoration. Ask Him to renew you in every possible way today. He will do that. And that is no small thing, especially as the years go by.

My Prayer to God

L
ORD
, how I thank You that even though I am growing older every year, because I walk with You I am being renewed every day. Help me to not worry about the time to come, because my future is in Your hands. Help me rejoice in each day and every birthday, because it means I am becoming more enriched in my soul and spirit because of Your Spirit in me. I pray You would enable me to remain attractive to my husband. As we both grow older, help us to always see the best in each other. I pray that as I age, the beauty of Your Spirit will become increasingly attractive to him and to others. Enable me to remain young in heart, soul, and mind. I pray that my ever-renewing vitality will be something that causes him to feel younger as well.

Teach me to look to Your Word as a well from which I can draw a life-sustaining flow of Your Spirit. Whenever I look in the mirror and am less than pleased with my reflection, help me to not dwell on that, but rather to look deeper into my soul to see the beauty of
Your reflection
there. I pray Your joy and peace in me will add light to my countenance and be something my husband and others recognize as coming from Your Spirit in me. Renew me again today and every day so that I will rejoice in each new year as a testimony to Your goodness.

In Jesus’ name I pray.

53

Though we walk in the flesh, we do not war
according to the flesh. For the weapons of our
warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for
pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments
and every high thing that exalts itself against
the knowledge of God, bringing every thought
into captivity to the obedience of Christ.

2 C
ORINTHIANS
10:3-5

E
VERYONE CAN HAVE
unrest in their mind at some time. It’s part of the enemy’s plan to torment us. Mental unrest will happen when we are living in a way that is opposed to God’s ways and laws. But it can also happen when we are doing something right, such as moving out into ministry, or into the will of God and
away
from the enemy’s plan for our life. Being aware of the source of any mental unrest is important to getting rid of it.

If you are not sure if your husband experiences any unrest in his mind, ask him. Men don’t often share these things unless asked. Sometimes not even then. If he doesn’t share anything, ask God to reveal to you whatever you need to see. He will show you. Does your husband have trouble sleeping because he’s thinking too much? Is he unable to shut off his mind? Does he overthink everything? If your husband is not walking with the Lord, that is the first thing to address in prayer. But even if your husband doesn’t know the Lord, you can still pray about this. A nonbelieving husband can be set free from that mental torment when his believing wife consistently prays for him.

If mental unrest becomes an ongoing struggle that interferes with the quality of your husband’s life, it is a stronghold that needs to be broken. Speak the Word of God over him—not as a lecture but as a declaration of truth
for him.
Declare that God has given him nothing less than a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7). Pray that he will “bring every thought into captivity” in obedience to the Lord. Mental unrest has no power in light of the truth, and it need not have any part in our lives.

My Prayer to God