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Rejoice in the Lord always. 
I will say it again: 
Rejoice! 
Let your gentleness be evident to all. 
The Lord is near. 
Do not be anxious about anything, 
but in every situation, 
by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
Philippians 4:4-6 NIV
And then, pray.
As I sit with this verse this morning I realise that I simply do not pray enough. 
I'm like one of the 9 in Luke 17:17.
Paul's not ordering us to, or making rules, he says:
Lean into God
Live out his grace as you can
Know that the Master is near
Bring the things that are pushing in on us, our fears, our losses, grief, hurts, the things that worry us, and pray.
In every situation.
Pray.
Petition.
Requests.
Bring it all. 
Bring it all with thanksgiving.
Some days it seems that there's nothing to be thankful for...right?
We can get stuck in our thoughts or things seem overwhelming, and maybe the mistake we make is that we read these verses and think it's all on me, when maybe it's about us. 
Together we bring the things that are pushing in on us, because with one or two trusted people in the room (or on zoom) we will find thankfulness, and hope, 
as we pray.
#lockdownlessons
#inthistogether

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