Praying, I have a lot of self-doubt when it comes to praying whether I am by myself or in a crowd. I also have known some people in my life who use prayer for sermon purposes. You know like the Sadducees that Jesus condemned with their standing on street corners loudly praying. In T.D. Jakes newest book “When Women Pray” he lists ten women of the Bible and how they prayed and in what way God answered their prayers.
In chapter 4, he writes about the women with the issue of blood. This lady has been coming up a lot in my reading and podcast listening both to sermons and just talks. I feel a kinship with the lady with the issue of blood. I have PCOS and my periods have been an issue since I was 11 years old. The embarrassment of having such a heavy period and the leakages that happen while at school made my life chaotic and challenging. Thankfully, with modern medication it is a lot better, still things come up. I digress, this woman, who lived a life of shame, embarrassment, disappointment, rejection, abandonment, and betrayal still trusted Jesus enough to just touch his garment. All she wanted was to feel normal again, to feel like a woman again, to laugh, not to worry about blood getting everywhere, to live carefree without worrying about if she is going to get blood on her furniture or clothes, and worse of all a fear of touching people and their reactions to her when she touched them. You don’t have to be a woman with an issue of her period, you can just be a woman who has a chronic illness of some kind that makes her feel like a freak. I love that Jesus called her daughter, I love that Jesus didn’t make her feel horrible or ashamed about it. He just accepted her brokenness, her uncleanness, and loved her anyway and healed her anyway with no request of being repaid.
I wish I could trust Jesus like that where I just walked up to him and touch him and expect to be healed. I wish that I could pray without feeling like a failure or like a freak because I can’t talk well with my trach or because I have no idea what I should say. I struggle with this with conversations with people too. That being said, When Women Pray gave me a lot to consider and the bravery of how these women prayed and trusted God.
I am considering choosing pray for my focus word next year. What are your thoughts on prayer and what do you struggle with when it comes to praying?
If you would like to purchase When Women Pray, I hope you do because it is worth it:
- Buy the book: When Women Pray
- Check out his website at: T.D. Jakes
I was given a copy from Faith Works. The opinions I express are my own and I was not influenced.
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