Prayers for my New Future:

I was just proposed to on Sunday! I love Cole Thomas, my new fiancé and future husband.  I have a lot of excited energy and anticipation for the next few months that are coming before the wedding and the new future takes place.  I believe it is important to pray all the time and over everything.  However, I am a big believer in praying over the big life alternating moments.  When approaching these life changes, it can be easy to let fear override all other emotions, so that is why prayer is so vital.  

Because I have some readers who may be curious and because I want to write about it, I will talk about how Cole asked me to marry him.  He brought me to visit UNI, which is the college where I graduated, after homecoming weekend.  We went up to the campanile which is the bell tower in the center of campus.  Even though I was a student for four years, I never got to go inside.  It was beautiful in the campanile.  It was awesome to see through the windows, to see the whole campus from around the campanile, and it was really awesome to see the organ-like instrument where the music is played once a week.  Then Cole and I went down the steps on our own while the instrumentalist stayed upstairs to “tidy up.”  At the bottom of the campanile, he proposed while his dad taped the whole thing.  Then at the top of the campanile, the song “Yellow” by Coldplay played, which is my favorite song.  It was the most perfect and beautiful day, and I am so blessed Cole did that for me.  

I wanted to take this time to pray over our upcoming future.  I know not everyone reading is going to be in the same life situation when it comes to these romantic relationships.  I have some readers who have been married for a long time, those who are single, and maybe even some who are going through a divorce.  However, I know each and every one of us are going to be approaching major milestones in the future, even if we do not know when.  This could be graduating from school, starting a new job, starting a family, losing a family member, etc.  This could be any new change in the very real future. 

Dear Lord, 

I praise you for your perfect love and holiness.  You are completely perfect and never sin, yet continue to love your people when we sin and when we choose to turn away from you.  I appreciate the grace and mercy you have given your people.  You have a perfect plan for your people’s futures.  We don’t always know your plans.  We don’t always know your next steps, but we can be confident in your love and sovereignty.  

Thank you for the individual blessings you have given me.  Thank you for the years of growing and learning I was able to have amidst my singleness.  Thank you for the love I have learned to grow for others through the various forms of relationships.  Thank you we have encouragement from those around us who love us and care about us.  

Thank you for bringing Cole into my life.  Thank you for helping me trust a man.  Because for a long time I was really very fearful and anxious to really trust someone to come into my life and love me like he has shown.  I didn’t think I would ever find anyone who could love and cherish me.  Then after some time in prayer and through talking through feelings of insecurity with my therapist, I discovered I can have the ability to trust someone else into my life. 

Please Lord help Cole and I in this next stage of our lives.  Please help us to continue to grow in our love for you and our love for our church community we have found.  I pray we continue to individually prepare our hearts and minds to now become one unit. I pray we are both individually and as a couple receiving regular advice for how to best approach situations in our marriage. 

In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

My challenge for you this week is to spend time in prayer for any new things or new steps you are going to be taking in the very recent future.  Again, it is very important to spend a great deal of time in prayer for anything, but whenever you spend time in prayer over the future big events, it can help your overall anxiety.  Remember what is said in 1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18 says, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”