We circled around. Beautiful women, vibrant and full of life, circling each week to talk about God, to share prayer and praise. The chatter was fun and then it happened, the laughter and noise was interrupted with one simple question.

“Who has prayers and praises?”

Deafening silence.

I’m not sure why this is always the first response but we can silence a group of giddy girls with this question every time. Maybe it’s just a polite way of not speaking first in a room full of gals. Perhaps some things are pressed deep and hurt deep.

This night a small voice opens, “you may have seen the news”.

My mind wanders, “what have I missed”?

She continues on the brink of tears, “my daughter’s friend was killed while visiting in the Caribbean”.

We pray. We lift those mourning.

More than once this week my seemingly simple questions have been met with tears slipping from eyes and words that break any compassionate heart. Earlier it was a father who explained his middle child died of liver cancer at the age of 21. My question? “How are your children, are they all grown up”?

He talked. I listened.

“She fought hard for five years. She did everything she could”.

I looked deep into the eyes of a mourning parent and inquired about his spouse.

“She’s making it”.

I promised to pray and I promised to share with other girls I knew would pray.

Who has prayers and praises?

We all have stories. We all have concerns. We all have broken and hard. Do we have prayers and praises? Or do we have deafening silence? Do we live trapped in the silence because we hold in what God wants us to cry out?

I talk with God. He understands my lack of understanding. He grieves when we grieve. When our hearts break, His heart breaks. In fact, I expect, we cannot even comprehend the depth of God’s grief anymore than we can comprehend the depth of His love. I talk to God, but not nearly enough. Sometime I talk, but I forget to listen. I forget to wait. I forget to trust. Sometime I live in deafening silence because I hold in what He wants me to cry out.

The Psalms remind me to pour out my heart to the One ready to pour in His love. The One ready to hear every fear, record every syllable. The Psalms remind me to:

Cry Out ~ Wait ~ Trust

When the world seems to be falling apart around you… Cry out.

When you need answers… Wait.

When your heart needs a place to rest… Trust.

Break the chains of silence! Open the floodgates of prayer! Unlock the power of God!

Cry out to the One who holds the world in orbit.
Wait for the One who has your best in His plans.
Trust the only One who hears every cry and knows every moment you wait.
God will respond. He will bring you out of any pit. He will place you on a solid foundation. He will give your heart a new song!

1 I waited patiently for the Lord;
he turned to me and heard my cry.
2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand.
3 He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear the Lord
and put their trust in him.
Psalm 40:1-3

Who has prayers and praises?

Lift them high! Break the silence.

~ Jodie

Let us pray for you! If you have something that’s locked in silence we hope you will break the chains of silence and open the floodgates of prayer. Leave a comment and we will pray for you.