We are all called to pray but if you don’t know God’s will, how to pray, or what you ought to pray, prayer can be intimidating.
However, you don’t have to know the perfect will of God to pray the will of God. You only need to pray according to the truth of His word, what you know of His character, and what is revealed to you by His Spirit. Then put your confidence in God, knowing that He hears and accepts your prayers and He will answer you.
In the Story of Ruth, when Naomi left Moab she had no hope for a better future for herself, in Moab or Bethlehem, but she still had enough confidence in God to pray for her daughters-in-law. Before Naomi began her journey back home, she put her prayers and petitions before the Lord:
Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, ‘Go, return each of you to her mother’s house. May the Lord deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me. The Lord grant that you may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband!’ Then she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept. (Ruth 1:8–9)
Naomi prayed according to what she knew about God’s mercy and His will, and she left the rest to Him.
Naomi prayed that the Lord would show kindness to Orpah and Ruth. She prayed that He would give them new husbands and that they would find rest with their husbands. Naomi did not how God would do it, but she knew that a loving God would want these young women to have husbands, another chance at love, a family, and children. She knew that it wasn’t in God’s character to punish them for the sins or the mistakes of their husbands but to show mercy to widows and orphans.
When you pray according to God’s will in this way you won’t always get the answers you want in the way and time we hope for them, but you can be sure that God will answer you.
The Lord answered Naomi’s prayers through Boaz. When Naomi saw that Boaz favored Ruth, she realized the Lord was answering her prayers in His own way and His own time, above what she asked for.
And her mother-in-law said to her, ‘Where have you gleaned today? And where did you work? Blessed be the one who took notice of you.’ So she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked, and said, ‘The man’s name with whom I worked today is Boaz.’ Then Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, ‘Blessed be he of the Lord, who has not forsaken His kindness to the living and the dead!’ (Ruth 2:19-20)
The Lord blessed Naomi through her own prayer for Ruth, who continued to care for her mother-in-law after she married Boaz.
The Lord wants to answer your prayers. However, this requires you trust God even when you cannot understand Him. Like Naomi, you will need to open the eyes of your understanding to see the Lord working out the answers to your prayers according to His own plan.
Beloved, if you want to learn more about Ruth and Naomi’s journey with God and how they stepped into His love, acceptance, and beauty through prayer and faith you can find out in my book, A Call to God’s Daughters to Step Into His L.A.B. Love Acceptance Beauty – Based on the Book of Ruth.
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