A Prayer to Release the Idea That I Can Do it All on My Own
By Alisha Headley
“And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in your weakness…(2 Corinthians 12:9a)
We live in a culture where the word “self” is often praised. We see it all over social media, highlighted in books and articles, and it’s been coined this generation’s slogan, and emphasized by motivational speakers and influencers. We hear words such as self-help, self-care, and self-sufficiency as the common theme. These words at first can seem empowering, but they lead to life based solely around ourselves in our own strength and in our own sufficiency. It feeds us the lie that we only need ourselves and we can do it all by ourselves, therefore we push God out.
Often times, we may experience burnout or exhaustion trying to depend only on ourselves. When we depend daily on ourselves, it can lead to us daily denying our need for Jesus.
In today’s verse, it is talking about the opposite of self-sufficiency. As a Christian, the more time we spend with the Lord to understand the gospel, is the time when we begin to understand our great need for a Savior. It is that moment when we find ourselves in our depleted efforts to save ourselves, that we realize our true need for God. Today’s passage talks about how God is enough, and that He is more than enough. It is in our weakness, our exhaustion, and our own efforts, that we realize that “His strength is made perfect in our weakness”. Christ is sufficient for us, and we will always come up short, when we are trying to do it in our own strength.
We must go to the Lord in our inadequacies to relieve us of the exhaustion in trying to do it on our own. We must read His word daily and implant His truth and His ways on our heart, rather than telling ourselves what culture tells us as we attempt to find the inner strength. It is God’s strength that will make our weakness perfect. We cannot do it all on our own in our own strength. It is “in His strength, that we can do all things.” (Philippians 4:13)
Let’s pray.
Dear God,
Thank you for leaving us with the Bible for such wisdom like in today’s verse. Thank you for the reminder that for all the things we are striving after to do in our own strength, you never designed for us to do so. You designed us to be dependent on you and your strength. Forgive us for relying on ourselves and being sucked into what society tells us and the enemy drives into us, that we can do it all on our own. Lord, we need you. “Apart from you, we can do nothing” as John 15:5 tells us.
We ask that you would remind us of our inadequacies and we ask that you forgive us as we humbly come before you confessing we have relied on our own self for many things in our life. Remind us to abide in your Word daily to remind us of our unfailing need for you. May your word continually speak to us, and reassure us that we are not enough on our own, but we are enough in You. The more we rely on you and your Word, the less we will rely on ourselves. It is in You, that we are more than enough, and we thank you for this beautiful promise today. We love you, and we are so thankful for your word.
In Jesus’s name,
Amen
Photo credit: ©SalemDesign/BethanyPyle Stock footage Soundstripe.com & Photo Canva.com
Alisha Headley is a writer + speaker who has a desire to meet the everyday woman in her everyday life with biblical truth. Stepping into her true calling, she left the corporate world behind as a former-financial VP to love on her family as a stay-at-home wifey + dog mama, while also being able to pursue her passion as a writer. Healing from a chapter of life consumed with lies she once believed about herself, she is inspired to point women to Christ to experience the freedom + power to overcome those lies with the truth written in God’s word. In her free time, Alisha enjoys road trips around the country, working out so she can eat her favorite foods, and creatively styling her outfits with a craft for fashion. Alisha is a proud wifey and dog mama living in Scottsdale, Arizona.
You can follow her blog by visiting her website or connect with her on facebook + instagram.
Editor's Note: We're proud to announce we've just launched a new nighttime companion to Your Daily Prayer: the Your Nightly Prayer devotional. You'll soon be able to subscribe to receive Your Nightly Prayer via email, or as a podcast, but for now you can find it on the website at crosswalk.com/devotionals/your-nightly-prayer. We hope it's a relaxing and soothing way to wind down your day with rich meditations on who God is.
Related Resource: Jesus Calling - Stories of Faith
Kerry Washington. Andrea Bocelli. Reba McEntire. Mark Wahlberg. Tony Dungy. Matthew McConaughey, What do all of these people have in common? They are all people of faith who have leaned on God in both the good and challenging times—and they’ve shown up to tell their story of faith on The Jesus Calling Podcast. The Jesus Calling Podcast provides a place for people from all walks of life to share the heartaches, joys, and divine moments that keep them going.
Inspired by Sarah Young's classic devotional book, the Jesus Calling podcast has brought encouragement and peace to millions. New episodes drop every Thursday! Listen today on LifeAudio.com or wherever you find your podcasts.
Now that you've prayed, are you in need of someone to pray for YOU? Click the button below!
