Casey Wayne

Life can feel overwhelming, heart-breaking or stressful at times. We all struggle to stay strong through trials and we all need encouragement or direction sometimes. In those moments when we feel like we are drowning or unsure of where to go next, God is with us through the storm. Our best strategy to keep hope and faith in good times or bad is to maintain our relationship with our Heavenly Father. Here are 6 tips for us to connect with God in our everyday life, even when it can be busy or chaotic. We are called to worship, prayer and read God’s Words to pursue Him fully.

WORSHIP TIPS

Hebrews 13:15 Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name.

TIP #1: PUT ON A SONG-Whenever you feel the weight of the world, play worship music. Still need to keep busy? Play it while you make dinner! Put it on in the car on the way to soccer practice. Kids going crazy? Put on a song for all of you to sing/dance to. Really overwhelmed to the point of tears? Take a breath. Put on a song and commit to those few minutes of peace with God. We spend so much time trying to multitask and become overstimulated. So stop what you are doing and give yourself the grace of time…time for just one song to reconnect you with the greatest source of peace and comfort.

TIP #2: MOMENTS OF LIFE-A great way to feel connected to our Savior is to train ourselves to love more like Him. Challenge yourself to look for ways that you can love others like Christ. And don’t underestimate the small openings. Letting someone ahead of you in line, thank a cashier using their name, or text/call a friend that’s on your mind. All these things, though small, can make someone feel seen and loved in the midst of a busy day.

PRAYER TIPS

Romans 12:12 NLT Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying.

TIP #3: IN THE SMALL MOMENTS-We often pray in the big moments when we recognize we need Him in big ways. But God wants to hear us in those small moments too. Talk to Him about everything, in the everyday stress. Don’t be afraid to say it out loud. I know it’s not always a good time or place, but if possible, say it where you can hear your words being lifted to the Lord. It’s powerful for you to hear and also for others to hear. I frequently pray while in the car, anytime we have an ambulance or fire truck go by. I’ve started saying a prayer out loud for those who are in trouble and now my daughter bows her head with me. It’s a beautifully simple moment where I can model my faith in God to her and hopefully rid her of that instinct to be too afraid to pray.

TIP #4: PRAYER JOURNAL-If you are someone who tends to have your mind wander while you try to pray, I’d highly recommend writing prayers in a journal. It helps my mind focus on my words and exactly what I want to talk to God about. The bonus with this is that you can go back and mark any answered prayers with a highlighter. So any time you are struggling to remember God’s faithfulness you can look back at everything He has already done. It is an amazing reminder of where you have been and what God has helped you walk through already.

2 Tips for how you can connect with God by reading His Word…

Scripture is so important for us to read. The stories and verses are packed with so much for us to learn and explore as we continue our walk of faith. It is important for us to be in God’s Word consistently so we know who He is and what He is calling us to do.

TIP #5: MAKE VERSES VISIBLE-Write a Bible verse on a post-it and stick it to your mirror. Save one as the screensaver to your phone. Have a “Verse of the Week” board. Switch them out, finding special verses that speak to you during certain struggles. Even better…try to memorize some that touch your heart. Set yourself up to be reminded of God’s love and wisdom in all those small moments in your day. And if you can memorize them, they can be amazing mental reminders in any moment of any day for you or even others you can share them with!

TIP #6: DEVOTIONALS-If you don’t have one or read one…I cannot recommend anything more! It is so crucial we take even just one minute of our day reading and reflecting on God’s word. They are such a quick and easy way to direct our thoughts back to where they should be. I spent years making excuses, telling myself I didn’t have the time, or if I can’t do it in the morning it’s not worth doing. It doesn’t matter what time of day you do it or if you miss some days in between. God will always be there. I even started keeping one upstairs and one downstairs to prevent any excuses from doing it anytime of the day. Some days/weeks I still struggle to make it happen. Like any other habit we just have to commit to doing it…one day and then another and then another. There are so many options now (book, podcast, emailed to you, on IG even). Find one that works for you!