Last night I grabbed dinner from Panera Bread.

I stood in the line and tried to keep my eyes on the cashier taking my order.

I knew that if I looked down, I’d be in trouble.

I knew that if I looked down, I might lose focus.

I knew that if I looked down, I might throw resolve to the wind.

Panera has the best doggone chocolate chip cookies.

Top rated. Head of their class. Best of show.

And those chocolate chip cookies have eyes.

If I looked at them, my fear would be that they looked back at me.

Each one of those morsels of wonderful goodness pierce to the very core of my natural life-long cravings and beckon me.

They literally stare me down and call my name. How can I refuse?

And many times, I don’t.

Panera Bread chocolate chip cookies aren’t my only weakness.

Nestle, Pillsbury, and my own melt-in-your-mouth-made-with-a-hershey-bar cookies will get me too.

I promise myself I’ll only eat one only to realize that I just ate the cookie friend of another cookie left on the pan or in the bag or box and I want them to be together.

I digress.

This is not some literary attempt to make you feel sorry for me. Nor is it an effort to draw an association among those of us who live (and die) by various iterations of chocolate and have us singing kum-ba-yah around the fondue pot.

The point is that weaknesses are real.

Everyday you are I are fighting something.

And… many of you, like me, are fighting a ferocious struggle with the #FATDEMON and while you are holding out to win the war, you have lost your share of battles over the years.

Alright, so maybe the cookies don’t stare at you.

Maybe weight gain isn’t your issue.

Maybe you don’t have regular clashes with your cravings.

But I know that there are lots of things that can weigh you down and keep you from the best version of yourself.

Maybe you wrestle with your reactions…

Maybe it takes everything in you and all you’ve got not to make choices based on your emotions.

Without discipline, a woman can let her heart mislead her.

Ask any woman who has stayed too long in a bad relationship.

 

Maybe you struggle with managing your money…

Maybe financial freedom escapes you because you can’t put the credit card down or stay out of the stores with the best weekend sales.

Without control, a woman can pay her way right into the poor house.

Ask any woman who has floundered forever between robbing Peter to pay Paul or living from one check to the next.

 

Maybe you battle with your beliefs…

Maybe you want a more intimate relationship with God.

Without resolve, a woman can let busyness, entertainment, or one more minute of sleep keep her from spending more time feeding her spirit..

Ask the woman who realizes that it’s been 10 years of habitually letting the snooze button, one more sitcom, or one more involvement or situation rob her of precious moments spend with the God of the universe.

 

For me, last night it was those doggone cookies.

What is for you?

What is it that you desire more than the distraction right in front you?

 

How do we get more of what we want?

How do we get closer to our goals?

How do we find our way to the best iteration of the unique creation we were designed to be?

Keep your focus. Keep your resolve. Keep your eyes fixed forward.

And if you have to…

Deny.

Nobody likes to acknowledge it but it’s the truth..

Anything worth having is going to require you to deny.

Deny yourself of what you want now for want you want later.

 

 

DENY

 

 

What do you desire?

What are you actually willing to release or delay so that you can have it?

Deny.

Everyone has something they say they want more.

The question is are they, am I, willing to do what it takes to get it.

 

Are you struggling with self-discipline, control, or restraint?

It’s OK to admit it.

It’s OK to pray about it.

So let’s pray.

For ourselves.

For each other.

We serve a God who knows, the desires or our hearts, and knows that we need Him and the power that He supplies to conquer whatever it is that we end to crave.

We just have to ask.

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Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me,

he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.

Matthew 16:24 

 

It’s a beautiful thing to see women praying for each other.

So here we go…

As always, feel free to pray about A-N-Y-T-H-I-N-G

But if you are helped by having a topic to focus on for prayer…

Deny.

Again… feel free to pray about anything that concerns you.

But if today’s prayer focus resonates with you, pray in that direction.

So how exactly does this work do you ask? Keep scrolling for the details…


So excited about prayer this weekend!


Help spread the word!

 

If you are new to our prayer on Fridays or need a little refresher here are the details…

 

1) Post YOUR prayer.
First, scroll to the end of the post to find the section for comments.  Keep scrolling to the end of the comments to find the empty box where you can leave your prayer request. Click “Post Comment”.

2) Pray for someone else.
Then, look above you in the comment thread for the person who posted just before of you.  Hit “reply” and pray for them.  That way we make sure that everyone gets covered!

Please don’t feel insecure about your ability to pray for another sister or feel that her request is above your spiritual “pay grade.” Just pray with your heart.  God hears. He works with the words that we have and then He takes care of the rest.

3) Post your pic!
Make sure we can “see” you! Go to Gravatar.com so that others can see your face in the comments! (It’s easy! Just click on the green button labeled “Get your gravatar today” )

4) Pray more
Once you have left your prayer request and prayed for the person above you, if you have a few minutes feel free to reply and pray for any other comment/prayer you see in the thread.

 


 

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