Rediscovering Prayer

by Addison Bevere

November 19, 2023

Separator Words with God by Addison Bevere
Am I Thankful?

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts . . . . And be thankful.”

— Colossians 3:15

Back in the day when texting first became a thing, one of my brothers sent a mass text to everyone on his phone. We all know that mass texts are a bit of a no-no now, but this was the Wild West of text, and most people weren’t even texting.

Because it was going to everyone, he spent some time drafting the perfect message, something that was short, sweet, and specific to the Thanksgiving season. What he ended up sending was “Am I thankful.”

Of course, what he meant to write was “I am thankful for you,” but that’s not what he sent, and to this day we still get a good laugh out of it, occasionally saying, at the most random of times, “Am I thankful.”

But I think he was onto something—maybe he just needed to change the period to a question mark. I mean, we should all regularly ask ourselves, “Am I thankful?”

Scientists, doctors, spiritualists, and secularists all agree that gratitude is good for you, that it has integrative and healing properties. Practices like keeping a gratitude journal and avoiding negative language are encouraged by wellness experts . . . and they’re not wrong. Like many universal truths, the effect of thankfulness can be discerned by observing Nature and her ways.

But gratitude is much more than a trendy mechanism for mood improvement. God designed thanksgiving to be a method of spiritual warfare.

As a teenager, I’d get annoyed when my parents asked me to tell them three things that I was grateful for. C’mon, Mom, why are we doing this again? Life’s hard right now, and you don’t understand. Plus, you’re old and out of touch with the world.

I thought my mom was asking me to deny my pain and struggle, pretending that everything was just dandy and that seemed inauthentic and pathetic. I wanted to hold onto my misery because it felt more real than anything else.

What I didn’t realize was that my mom wasn’t asking me to deny the pain, but she was challenging me to defy it. She was teaching me that gratitude isn’t disingenuous, rather it’s the gateway to authenticity. In its own way, Scripture tells us that it is only through the sacrifice of thanksgiving that we can discern what is ultimately true about God, ourselves, and whatever we’re facing.

Response

Have you viewed thankfulness as just a good idea instead of an act of warring worship? There is an oppressive spirit that seeks to blind us in our brokenness, blocking the pathway of wholeness and redemption. But Scripture tells us that expressing “unreasonable” thanksgiving is, in fact, the most reasonable thing we can do. This week, let’s be those who open our mouths and lift our hands. As we do, any garment of heaviness will become lighter in the light of Ultimate Truth (Isaiah 61:3).

Closing Thoughts

There is much evil in our world, and it’s tempting to let the darkness overtake us, whether the darkness is within or without. That is why our prayers must articulate both our pain and praise, allowing them to fuse and form a sound that defies the Enemy and declares the peaceful rule of Christ’s faithfulness in our hearts, homes, and world.

Praying with you,

Addison

Separator Words with God by Addison Bevere

P.S. Christmas is just around the corner. I’d be thankful if you picked up the Words with God book for the people on your list. I think they’d be thankful too. Just click here.

Sunday Entries

On most Sundays, I share a short prayer guide, offering words and practices that will help you see, hear, and experience more of God in your daily life. I’d love for you to join us.

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The Entries

Sin does its best work in the dark. It fractures, separates, distorts, dealing in deception and delusion. Sin is powerful but it doesn’t stand a chance against the light. When brought into the light, its holes are exposed, and those holes become portals, if you will, for us to receive God’s redemptive holiness, a wholeness only made possible by grace. Within the light, even sin must bow its knee, surrendering to God’s plans to redeem, restore, and transform.

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Have you ever noticed that thanksgiving has a buoyancy to it? When you’re around people who practice costly gratitude, life feels lighter, even when it’s heavy.

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There is hope, though. According to the proverb, while anxiety might weigh us down, just a single good word can reverse its effects, offering us courage in exchange for despair.

Continue Reading →

06.11.23

“I’ve been thinking a lot about circles lately. So much of life is defined by circles—our days, week, months, and years form circles for us to move in and through. We’re constantly reminded that the end of a thing has a way of taking us back to a beginning. It would seem the cosmos announces the Circle as God’s shape of choice…”

Addison Bevere is the COO of Messenger International, a ministry founded by John and Lisa Bevere in 1990 that exists to develop uncompromising followers of Christ who transform our world. Messenger is dedicated to providing people with access to life-transforming messages regardless of their location, language, or financial position.

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Addison Bevere

Husband, father, author, poet, speaker & follower of Christ

addison-thumbnail-2021
Addison Bevere

Husband, father, author, poet, speaker & follower of Christ

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