According to the Cambridge Dictionary, just, as adverb, is defined as “only; simply; and used to reduce the force of a statement and to suggest that it is not very important.”
I was listening to the audio book of Everyone Always by Bob Goff, earlier this month and in it he said something that really convicted me—he said that the Christian’s favorite word is just.
“Dear Heavenly Father I just come before you today…”
“I just lift up my family right now…”
“I just bring before you…”
“If You will just bring a hedge of protection around…”
From that moment forward, I began to notice how many times I say the word just when I pray—on average about 15-20 times.
I began to realize that using the word just in my prayers isn’t a sign of humility, but rather it actually is almost a sign of me doubting that God will do what He has promised in the Bible He will do.
It’s not really a sign of humility—it’s really closer to a sign of a lack of faith. And that is certainly not something that I want.
Yo, God has called us to come before Him with big and bold prayers and it is shown time and time again that God answers them. Sure, His answer may not look exactly like how we want it to look, but He does answer them.
I got a tattoo month 3 of my Race, while in Bulgaria, which says, “Live Audaciously.” Originally, I got it as a reminder to myself to live out my life believing that God can do the impossible and to not have a fear of man for looking crazy while doing what the Lord has called me to do.
But over the course of this month, I have realized that God has also called us to live audaciously in our prayer lives too—to not just go before Him in prayer; but to boldly go before Him and pour out our hearts to Him.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:6
“The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” James 5:16
“Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” Romans 12:9-12
“And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.” Ephesians 6:18
“If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” Matthew 21:22
Now don’t get me wrong, praying to God and being careful to not use the word just does not mean that prayers will suddenly be answered. However, for me, I realized that when I pray and use the word just I am using it as a cop-out for if God doesn’t answer my prayers the way that I want Him to answer them.
So I have been challenging myself this month to begin to eliminate the word just out of my prayers and to go before God with a renewed boldness and expectancy.
If any of this speaks to you, I want to challenge you to try to do the same thing.
With lots of love and prayers,
Bethany
