Day 08- Short term goals for this month and why

If I told you all of my short term goals this month you may freak out... I have laundry lists of things I (or Joe) need to do as I'm a huge list maker... However, I'm going to tell you on of my long term goals for eternity...

Prayer

Every morning I wake up at 5:30am, 30 minutes before I really need to wake up to get ready for work. I open my bible and my current study and read away... Somehow I 'forget' to pray!?!? How can I understand his word without him removing my veil and opening my eyes for what's intended?

"Sometimes it's so hard to pray, when you feel so far away "(Let The Waters Rise)... Many times when I pray I feel like I'm talking to myself and there is no one there listening... I think that's why I sometimes just stop... My cry out is to be heard by the grace of God... Pslam 39:12, states, "Hear my prayer, O LORD, listen to my cry for help; be not deaf to my weeping. For I dwell with you as an alien, a stranger, as all my fathers were".

Let The Waters Rise by Mikeschair

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2RP6DRVWpU

Our 'Obstacles'

One of the biggest obstacles to prayer is our schedule. We always say we have a hard time finding time to pray. We needed more sleep this morning, we are busy in family/friend activities after work, we stayed up to late, this TV show is too interesting, etc... Where are our priorities? Each day we stop to eat, wash our hands, go to the bathroom, watch the news, watch a television show, exercise, etc. Some how these things have become more important than building our relationship with God. We forget that the here and now are only temporary and our eternal treasure is in heaven.

In Matthew 6:19-24, it states, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness! 'No one can serve two masters. either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannon serve both God and money.'"

Another obstacle is concentration. We start out in prayer and then our minds begin to wander and we forget that we were even praying... I personally need to find a quiet place, make prayer list, and pray when I am most alert...