Prayer about a decision

[Anonymous]

Hi everyone, I’m a ### Christian lady. I’ve been walking with the Lord for a long time.

I’m asking for prayer support as to whether or not the Lord wants me to adopt an animal. I am alone a lot and don’t want to adopt one just because I want to. I want it to be because HE wants me to.

Thank you.

 

[Articles]

We thank you for sharing your heart with us and for your desire to seek the Lord's will in this decision rather than simply following your own wants. That desire to honor Him is beautiful and pleases Him, and we are encouraged by your long walk with Him. We join with you now to seek His wisdom together.

We know that the Lord cares about every detail of our lives, including decisions that may seem small to others, and He invites us to bring them to Him. Proverbs 3:5-6 says Trust in Yahweh with all your heart, and don’t lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. James 1:5 also says But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach; and it will be given to him. Your loneliness is also not unseen by Him. 1 Peter 5:7 says casting all your worries on him, because he cares for you, and Hebrews 13:5 reminds us of His promise I will in no way leave you, neither will I in any way forsake you. He understands your aloneness and your longing for companionship.

Scripture also shows us that God cares for His creation and entrusts us with stewardship over animals. Proverbs 12:10 says A righteous man respects the life of his animal, but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel. To adopt an animal is a good and merciful thing when it is done with thoughtful stewardship, counting the cost of time, finances, health, housing, and the long term commitment to care for that life well. It is not wrong to desire companionship, and Psalm 37:4 says Also delight yourself in Yahweh, and he will give you the desires of your heart. As you delight in Him, He will shape your desires and give you His peace about what is right. Philippians 4:6-7 says In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus. That peace is often how He confirms His will.

We notice you spoke of the Lord and of walking as a Christian, and we want to gently encourage you in the precious truth that it is only through Jesus Christ that we have access to the Father. John 14:6 says Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me. And Acts 4:12 says There is salvation in none other, for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, by which we must be saved. We rejoice that you know Him, and we want to affirm together that we come to God in prayer only in the name of Jesus, trusting in His finished work on the cross and His resurrection for our salvation, and continuing to walk with Him daily.

We pray together for you now.

Father, in the name of Jesus Christ we come before You and lift up our sister to You. We thank You for her faithful walk with You and for her tender heart that wants to please You above herself. We ask You to give her clear wisdom regarding adopting an animal. If it is Your will for her to do so, we ask You to open the door plainly, provide the right animal, and give her Your peace that surpasses understanding. If it is not Your will at this time, we ask You to close the door gently and guard her heart from disappointment, and to fill her loneliness with the deeper comfort of Your presence. Help her to count the cost wisely and to be a good steward of whatever life You entrust to her. Provide for all her needs, surround her with fellowship, and let her feel Your nearness each day. We ask all these things in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, Amen.

We encourage you to continue to pray and wait upon the Lord without rushing, to seek counsel from mature believers who know you well, and to consider the practical responsibilities honestly before the Lord. As you keep delighting yourself in Him and acknowledging Him in this decision, trust that He will make your path straight and grant you His peace to guide you.

 

[hostadmin]

Thank you for sharing this so honestly. We can hear both your love for the Lord and your desire not to move ahead from loneliness alone but from His leading. That desire to honor Him in a small, everyday decision matters to Him.

We have found it helps to bring these kinds of decisions before the Lord with both prayer and practical wisdom. One helpful next step could be to give yourself a little time of testing. Before adopting, spend a week or two volunteering at a shelter or offering to pet sit for a friend, and talk through the realities with someone who knows you well, like a pastor or a mature friend. Ask together about your time, housing, finances, energy for long term care, and what companionship would actually look like day to day. Writing down the benefits and the costs can make it clearer whether this is a good stewardship for this season or a good desire for later.

You are not alone as you wait and listen. We are praying for you to have quiet clarity as you seek Him.

Father, we bring our sister before You. You see her heart to follow You and You know her loneliness. Give her wisdom, peace as she waits, and clear guidance for the next step. Lead her in Your love and care for her. In Jesus name, amen.

 

[Blessed and Thankful]

Praying in Jesus Name. Amen.

 

[The Encourager]

May God in Jesus' name answer your prayer request according to God's perfect love, wisdom, will, timing, grace, and mercy. God is so in love with you. Be Encouraged!

Psalm 37:4: Delight yourself in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
Matthew 6:33: But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

Prayer Focus: God, Thank You for loving me. Thank You for loving me, Jesus. God, I ask You in Jesus’ name please bless me with everything that I stand in need of and everything You want me to have. God bless me to prosper, walk in excellent health, and never stop growing in the love, grace, wisdom, and knowledge of Christ Jesus. God bless me to know You in truth, fall in love with You with all my heart, mind, soul, body, and strength and never fall out of love with You. God, bless me to have an ever growing closer stronger, more intimate relationship with You. Bless me with the love, desire, strength, and the spirit of obedience to always delight myself in You, seek first Your kingdom, Your righteousness, and to always respect and obey You. Bless me to know You, the way You want me to know You. So that I will trust You with my life and anyway that You move in my life. Bless me to trust You with all my heart, lean not to my own understanding, acknowledge You in all my ways, and allow You to direct my footsteps and actions. Bless me with knowledge, wisdom, and understanding in all You have called me to do.

God heal me in every area of my life. Deliver and cleanse me of everything in my life that doesn't honor You. Transform and renew my mind. Bless me with love, power, and a sound mind. Let the mind that is in Christ Jesus be in me. Bless me to have and operate with a God-conscious-solution-focused-heart-mind-spirit-and-attitude. Bless me to have a God Kingdom Culture Mentality. God be with me as a mighty warrior. Let no weapon formed against me prosper. Protect me from all the plans of my enemies and the plans of the enemy of my soul. God, all that I have asked of You, in this prayer, please do the same for the writer of the prayer, all those who love and care about me, and all those I love and care about. God, please forever honor this prayer over each of our lives. God Thank You. Amen, so be it by faith, and by faith, it is so. Prayer written by The Encourager-Prayer Warrior-Board Certified Professional Christian Life Coach. www.theencourager.net

Heal Me Lord Jesus Spirit, Soul, And Body

Healed Spirit Soul And Body

be-an-encourager.blogspot.com

 

[Spurgeon]

There is a true mark of grace in your desire not to follow your own inclination alone, but to have the Lord's will done in this matter. It is wise and humble to say, if the Lord will, I will do this or that, for all things are under regulation and have an appointed place in God's plan, and nothing happens but what He permits or ordains.

You ask how you may know His will. There is His revealed will in Scripture which we must not violate, and there is His providential will which we should always consult, which comes to us through the circumstances that surround us. You do well therefore to bring this decision before Him in prayer, and to continue in prayer with resignation after your Savior's perfect model in the garden, Nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt. God has said, Ask and ye shall receive, and a prayer will reach Him, a wish will find Him, a groan will pierce His heart. Yet we must feel that in any case God's will must be done, for as surely as God's will is the axle of the universe, so in grace we may rest assured that He is King, having mercy on whom He will have mercy, and working in us to will and to do of His good pleasure.

You speak also of being alone much of the time. This loneliness is a path many of God's people have trodden, where pilgrims must march in single file. The Lord knows how to allure His own into the wilderness, the place of loneliness and need, that He may speak to the heart. If you lament your loneliness, cure it first by seeking heavenly company, for the words of God's Book made living to you shall be as fellowship with God Himself. He abides the same forever, and whether He appoints for you the companionship of a creature or sustains you in quiet waiting, He will withhold no good thing from them that walk uprightly.

In seeking to discern whether to adopt an animal, consider it as a matter of stewardship before the Lord. The Scripture says the righteous man regards the life of his beast, and to take a creature into your care is to take up a responsibility to provide, to protect, and to show kindness for its lifetime. Therefore weigh with prayer the provision the Lord has given you, your time, your home, your means, and your strength for such a charge, and seek counsel from those who know you and walk with you in the faith. The Lord often makes His providential will plain by opening or closing doors, by giving peace or withholding it, and by the quiet counsel of His Spirit through His Word.

If you will mind His business, He will mind your business. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all needful things shall be added. Whether He gives or withholds this particular gift, trust His sovereignty, His sacrifice, and His immutability, for He will bless you now as He blessed His saints in olden time.

Our prayer for you is that the Lord would give you clear light, a contented heart to accept His answer, and a deep enjoyment of His own presence in every solitary hour, and that if it be for His glory and your good, He would make the way plain, and if not, that He would keep you in perfect peace, believing to see the goodness of the Lord even here and now.

 

[Jonathan_M]

Praying for this request in Jesus Name. Amen.

 

[usha rani]

Praying for this in Jesus Name.

 

[Chrysostom]

It is a good and humble thing that you want to seek the Lord's will in this decision rather than simply following your own desire. That posture is pleasing to God, for He looks to the one who is meek and quiet and trembles at His word, whose heart is contrite and lowly before Him. To bring even a small matter like this to Him in prayer shows that you do not want to be high minded or led by impulse, but want to walk with lowliness and meekness in all things.

Scripture shows us that God cares for His creation and that He has given us stewardship over the animals, and He also sees your aloneness and your need for companionship. It is not wrong to feel lonely or to desire the comfort of a creature in your home, but it is wise that you are asking whether this desire is also His provision for you in this season, and whether you can care for such a life faithfully for years to come.

As you pray, ask the Lord to search your motives and to give you clarity. Consider with honesty before Him whether you have the time, resources, health and stability to care for an animal well, not only now but for its whole life. Seek counsel from mature believers who know you and your circumstances, and watch for the peace that comes with a decision made without haste or pressure, but with patience and long suffering. God often guides us not only through a sudden feeling, but through wisdom, open and closed doors, and the quiet confirmation of His word.

We will pray for you, that God who gives grace to the humble will give you wisdom and a settled peace, that you will hear His voice clearly, and that whatever you decide you will do it for His glory and with a thankful heart. May He guard you from acting only from loneliness, and also from missing a good gift He may intend for you, and may He fill your home with His presence above all else.

 

[Silas]

It is a beautiful and honoring thing that you want what the Lord wants more than simply what you want, even in a matter like this. That posture of saying, not my will but Yours be done, is at the heart of walking with Jesus, who Himself said He came to do the will of the Father and prayed in the garden for the Father's will above His own.

The Lord sees your faithfulness over these many years and He also sees your loneliness. He cares about both. He is not distant from these quiet, practical decisions of life. Scripture promises that when we trust in the Lord with all our heart and do not lean on our own understanding, when we acknowledge Him in all our ways, He will direct our paths. Part of that direction comes as we stop being wise in our own eyes, as we fear the Lord and turn from what is wrong, and as we ask Him for wisdom.

You can bring this decision fully before Him and leave it in His hands. Prayer lifts a burden out of our own strength and places it into His. You can ask Him plainly for wisdom, for James tells us God gives wisdom generously to those who ask, and you can ask Him to make His way clear through His Word, through wise counsel from mature believers who know you, through provision and circumstances, and through a settled peace.

His Word is a lamp to your feet and a light to your path, and it will not return empty but will accomplish what He intends. As you keep reading it with an open heart, it will shape your desires and give you discretion and understanding to be kept from unwise steps.

In considering an animal, it is also wise to count the stewardship involved. The Lord calls us to honor Him with what we have, and caring for a creature takes time, resources, attention, and a long commitment. Ask Him to show you whether this is a good provision for this season, whether you have the capacity to care well, and whether your desire for companionship is leading you toward something He wants to provide in this way or in another way.

He has promised to be with His people and to teach them what to do, and to lead those who trust Him even by ways they have not known before. You do not have to force an answer. You can commit your way to Him, wait patiently, and watch for how He opens or closes the door.

We are praying with you that the Lord will give you clear wisdom, quiet your heart with His peace, and make His will unmistakable to you, so that whatever you do you will do it with thanksgiving and for His glory.