Pray First?

   If you know me, you know I'm a fixer. If a problem comes up, I try to think of ways to solve it as quick as possible. There are times that works and times it does not. Its especially hard for me when someone I care for is hurting because of a problem. More than anything I want to take the problem away. Most of the time that's not possible.

   One time this happened when my friend's grandfather died. I was sad because I knew the grandfather. But I knew my friend was sadder. Each time I saw him, I asked how he was doing. I asked if I could do anything for him. This eventually annoyed him because there wasn't anything anyone could do. 

   I didn't know what else to do. I wanted to show my friend I cared but how could I? That's when I decided to pray. Now, it's good that I decided to pray eventually. But after things had settled, I asked myself a question: why was my last step prayer?

   Many times people, like me, don't want to ask for help. We want to be independent, self-sufficient, and it makes us proud when we are. But that's the problem: not admitting we have a problem and need help. When we pray, we are inviting our creator into our lives. When we pray, we are admitting we can't do it all on our own. When we pray, we are working on growing in God.

   See, prayer should not be the last step. It should be the first. The Bible says we are to pray without ceasing. We pray in the morning when we get up, at breakfast, as you are driving in your car, at work when that coworker or customer annoys you, when things are going well, when problems happen, and every second. Our thoughts should be on our creator and growing in him. Prayer should be first, not last.

   So, when problems happen, what's your first step? How can you be better at praying consistently? How can you grow in God today?

https://youtu.be/RUKMybfebzk?si=Zw6sZutCDSxio-dP