Pray While You’re Prey Devotion, Part IVSample

The Workout Quote from Pray While You’re Prey: “There are times when we need to be all by ourselves, so that God can get through to us. I am still learning to accept that.” I have never really been an athletic person. I love watching sports, but the fact that I hate sweating pretty much hinders any actual playing of sports. I have come up with pretty much every excuse in the world as to why I do not work out. I have gone through different weight cycles in my life. First, I was a stick figure until I was about 22. Then, I got married and gained about 20 pounds. Then, I got divorced and I lost 185 pounds (that’s a joke; you can laugh). Every time I gained weight again, it got more and more difficult to lose it and keep it off. Eventually, I just decided on an acceptable weight and I figured out ways to stay as close to that weight as possible. Emotional fitness seems to be a little trickier. I have had three really big breakups, and, just like my weight cycles, each time a major relationship ended, it was more and more difficult to bounce back. I have discovered, though, that emotional strength and physical strength are both byproducts of what you take in and how you exert your energy. When I spent all of my energy just trying to find the next mate, it was exhausting. There were times when I thought I would never survive being single. However, when I started getting a daily diet of God’s Word and started focusing my energy on using the gifts He had given me, I started to feel stronger and stronger. I still have some down days, but those are the days when I need to do a little more intense workout; I need to pray more, read more, listen more. I have read Philippians 4:13 all of my life, but in my seasons of singleness, it has had more relevance to me than in any other times. Where I am weak, God is strong, so as I continue to use His Word and prayer to emotionally and spiritually workout, He gives me the strength I need to make it through each day. He helps me to not focus on singleness, but on the work He would have me do for the Kingdom. Just like I don’t care to sweat in a physical workout because it makes me feel yucky and gross, there are times when I don’t feel like being alone and I am mad because I feel yucky and gross, but being alone is exactly where God needs me to be, so that I can live my best life. He needs my focus and attention, so that I can be fruitful and fulfill His purpose for my life. So He will give me all the tools I need, if I will use them, to gain the strength it takes to keep pressing. And He will do the same for you if you will allow Him to lead your emotional and spiritual workout. Prayer Thank You, God, for accepting me as Your own, and as such, giving me everything I need to survive. Please forgive me for paying more attention to what others think I should have or what I think I need. Lord, please help me to listen to Your voice and to engage in emotional and spiritual workouts when I am feeling weak. In Jesus’ Name, Amen