Praying for Deep Longings of Our Hearts

Do you have deep desires on your heart that bring you to tears? 

Longings so deep that you feel your heart weighed down? 

Your day can be carefree, 

and then a word, or a thought will enter into your heart, 

and you are all of a sudden overwhelmed 

to the point of tears. 

There are desires and longings that are in the deepest places of our heart, bursting up to the surface at unexpected times. And we wonder how we can go on with a heart so full of longing, and of the pain of waiting.

This is the case for me as a mom, as I pray for some family members. As my heart longs so much for them to follow Jesus, to be enveloped with His love that is beyond anything that we can even fully comprehend. A love that fills us to overflowing, and that gives us purpose and focus in every area of life.

And it may be the same for you, or it may be something different that fills your heart with longing, and your eyes with tears. You may long for a child to hold, or a husband to love, or your heart may be broken because you have lost someone very dear to you.

But - we can be encouraged as our tears come, 

as we pray, and as we wait ...

For as we wait and as we pray ... 

we are given the greatest gift of all - 

the gift of 'God with us'!

We put our hope in the Lord.

He is our help and our shield.

In Him our hearts rejoice,

for we trust in His holy name.

Let Your unfailing love surround us, Lord,

for our hope is in You alone.

(Psalm 33:20-22)

We are filled to overflowing with His presence,

and the road we travel leads us 

close to Him, and all that He has for us.

The cross you've been given -

is always God's kindest decision.

The cross you carry -

is carrying you 

toward who you are meant to be.

(Ann Voskamp)

Sometimes it is easy to despair, 

to grow weary in prayer ...

No discipline is enjoyable

while it is happening -

it's painful!

But afterward there will be a

perfect harvest of right living

for those who are trained in this way.

(Hebrews 12:11)

The longing, the waiting, the loving, and the praying ... 

are drawing us closer to Jesus than we ever imagined. 

And those deep desires that bring us to tears? 

They show us our need of Him, and we learn to run to Him ... 

finding more than we even longed for. 

For as we wait and as we pray, 

we have Him. 

Sharing my thoughts, and my tears, as I long for, and pray for some precious members of our family ... and as I remember the JOY that made the tears and the prayers in the past all worth it when some dearly loved family members returned to Him. By His grace, and His grace alone.