Category: Contentment

A Life of Wisdom

Wisdom comes from the Lord. It is one of the gifts that He promises to anyone who will ask Him and He will give it generously…and without reproach. What a beautiful picture of who the Lord is and how different He is from many of us. He gives when we do not deserve and He does not remind us that we do not deserve His goodness!

James 1:5 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.

Wisdom is the right application of knowledge in any situation. When we act with wisdom there is great benefit to not only us but to everyone involved. Wisdom sets things right side up. Have you ever felt as though your life was a mess or upside down? You need wisdom.

Colossians 2:3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

All of the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are found in Him. There is no wisdom apart from Him. When you know Him then you have access to all of the treasures of wisdom. His wisdom is a picture of who He is.

James 3:17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.

When we become like Christ then wisdom will characterize our lives.

James 3:13 Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom.

If you live according to God’s wisdom then you do not have to constantly be defending yourself to others but your life will manifest the fruit of wisdom.

Matthew 11:19 …Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”

Your life will be vindicated by its deeds if it is built on God’s Word.

Proverbs 24:3 By wisdom a house is built, And by understanding it is established;

There is no wisdom that will go against God’s Word. If someone says that something is okay or gives advice that is not in accordance with God’s Word then it is not wisdom so do not act on it even if they are in a position of an advisor, such as a pastor, a Christian counselor, etc. Examine what everyone says by what is written in Scripture.

Proverbs 21:30 There is no wisdom and no understanding And no counsel against the Lord.

He who loves herself will get wisdom. Getting wisdom is one of the most thrilling aspects of your relationship with the Lord. You will understand cause and effect. Rather than deal with the symptom of problems you will be able to understand the root of problems.

Proverbs 19:8 He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; He who keeps understanding will find good.

With wisdom you will see life more from God’s perspective. You will love life and enjoy it and want to know more of God’s ways. Wisdom makes life pleasant.

Proverb 2:10 For wisdom will enter your heart And knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;

Wisdom is how to live life in this world with less pain. Just like with any sport, the better you get at it the more you enjoy it. It is the same with wisdom, the more you apply wisdom to life then the more you will enjoy doing life.

Proverbs 10:23 Doing wickedness is like sport to a fool, And so is wisdom to a man of understanding.

May you ask Him for wisdom and be blessed. He wants to give His wisdom to you.

Proverbs 3:13 How blessed is the man who finds wisdom and the man who gains understanding.

 

 

 

A Life that Rules

We all want to rule in life. It is much easier to do things voluntarily rather than to be forced to certain actions. The Lord tells us how to rule in this world.

Proverbs 12:24 The hand of the diligent will rule, But the slack hand will be put to forced labor.

The hand of the diligent will rule in school, on the job, in friendships and in every area. If you are diligent your children, when you have them, will become like you and it is much easier to raise diligent children rather than lazy children. If you learn to be diligent, which is a discipline of your character, you will be much happier and you will be a blessing to those whom you do life with, whether on the job or in the home.

Proverbs 18:9 He also who is slack in his work is brother to him who destroys.

Slackness comes next to destruction and everyone who is slack in their work will be a burden to everyone. Also, if you are slack in the time of stress then your strength will be limited by your own doing.

Proverbs 24:10 If you are slack in the day of distress, your strength is limited.

However, there is an area that if you learn to be diligent in, then it will overflow in every area of your life and help you in your areas of weakness. We all struggle with weakness of character but if you are diligent in your relationship with the Lord then He will make His strength known through your weakness.

Deuteronomy 6:17 You should diligently keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and His testimonies and His statutes which He has commanded you.

You must be diligent in your seeking after Him. Do whatever it takes to run hard after God and to know Him and what He has commanded you to do. Get your friends to help you. Go to an older godly woman and ask her to meet with you and to pray for you. Don’t wait until someone comes to you. Seek assistance and you will find help, knock and the opportunities will open for you.

Joshua 23:11 So take diligent heed to yourselves to love the Lord your God.

You must be a woman of purpose and that purpose must be to love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and mind. If you love Him you will keep His commandments.

John 14:21 He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.

Not only will your life be smoother if you learn diligence but you will rule in this life. In your spiritual life, if you learn diligence, not only will you learn His commandments but you will keep them. When you keep His commandments He will make Himself known to you and you will receive the greatest treasure there is and that is to know Him.

 

 

 

 

A Life that Chooses Life and Peace

There are two people within the Christian. There is the “old person” which is called the flesh and there is the “new person” who is the new spiritual man that came alive when a Christian is born again. He is born spiritually. This truth is a puzzlement to an unbeliever but is a reality to the Christian. A religious man asked Jesus this question 2000 years ago.

John 3:4 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?”

Jesus answered him because he was truly seeking to know the truth. The Lord knows your heart and if you are sincerely seeking to know the truth then you will hear the truth.

John 3:5-7 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’

You must be physically born and your must be spiritually born to become a child of God and enter His kingdom. We are born spiritually dead and that is why we do not understand spiritual matters until we are born again. When we become born again then His Spirit enters into us and unites with our spirit and makes us become alive spiritually.  For this reason, no one can give us assurance of our salvation but the Spirit and He does assure our spirit that we have become His child.

Romans 8:16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,

When you become His child, by becoming born again, you have now within you the “old man”, which is your flesh and the “new man” which is your spirit. If you allow the flesh to control you then you will experience death. If by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the flesh then you will live.

Romans 8:12-14 So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

If you are a Christian then you will want to be led by His Spirit. If you are a Christian then you will not want to sin. If you will feed your spirit by spending time with the Lord through His Word and prayer and allow His Spirit to control you then you will experience life and peace.

Romans 8:5,6 For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace,

The Christian life is a process of maturing and becoming more like Christ. It takes time and obedience. We all fall but the Lord picks us up and helps us get back on track.

Proverbs 24:16 For a righteous man falls seven times, and rises again,

You will find that the more consistent you are in your quiet times with Him the smoother your Christian life will be. It is a “sweet life” to walk with the Lord. Don’t get discouraged. We all have to learn to walk with Him. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ.

Romans 8:1 Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

He loves you and He remembers your sin no more!

Psalm 103:12 As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.

 

 

A Life that Chooses Love

Life is certainly made up of choices and the choices you make determine your life. One of the most important choices that you make in life is the choice to love. This decision generally will come with those whom you do not “feel” like loving. We don’t really have to struggle to choose to love those who love us. It is those who we don’t want to or feel like loving that the choice must be made. However, as with all of God’s ways you will not regret it. You will be blessed , others will be blessed and the Lord will be glorified.

Matthew 5:47,48 If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

It is interesting the the Lord makes the connection with greeting others with being perfect. He also references the fact that the Father is perfect. In other words, the Father loves even those who do not love Him.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

The measure of your love is not how much you love those who love you but how much you love the unlovable.

Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Not only does He love the unlovely but He loved us when we were His enemies.

Romans 5:10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.

The Lord wants to teach us to love. He wants to love through us. How this happens is that we first present to Him our bodies as a living sacrifice.

Romans 12:1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.

He then fills us with His Holy Spirit and He lives through us.

Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

The Christian life is a relationship with the Lord where he takes our bodies and fills us with Himself, which He is Love and He is Truth, and He lives through us in the power of the Holy Spirit. When you learn to walk daily in His Spirit then you will be a fragrant aroma of Jesus Christ to believers and to a lost and hurting world.

Ephesians 5:2 and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.

The sooner you learn that the source of love is not the object loved but God, who richly supplies us with all that we need. He will give you His love for others.

I Corinthians 13:13 But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.

 

 

 

A Life with Stability

We all long for stability in our lives. When your world is shaken it is a frightening feeling. The Lord promises His children stability so that no matter what happens in your life you will have a calmness within. You will not have to fear the times present nor the times future.

Isaiah 33:6 And He will be the stability of your times, A wealth of salvation, wisdom and knowledge; The fear of the Lord is his treasure.

The Lord will be your stability and His Word is the foundation of a life that will not be shaken when the instability comes.

Luke 6:46-48 “Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when a flood occurred, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built.

The Lord tells us what to do so that we will not tremble or be dismayed.

Joshua 1:8,9 This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will act wisely. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

The Bible says that what the wicked fears will come upon Him. The wicked have a lot of fears because they do not seek the Lord not listen to His Word. They want to be in control but most of life is out of our control.

Proverbs 10:24 What the wicked fears will come upon him,
But the desire of the righteous will be granted.

The wicked flee when no one is pursuing. Guilt causes a person to run away from life and also to have unfounded fears.

Proverbs 28:1 The wicked flee when no one is pursuing,
But the righteous are bold as a lion.

The Lord says to be strong and courageous. Boldness, strength and courage is what should characterize our lives for we have One who is always with us and will never forsake us.

Hebrews 13:5 …for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,”

When we are stable in our faith then not only will we have much joy but we will bring joy to those who have taught us in the faith.

Colossians 2:5 For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ.

A Life that is Comforted

One of the blessings of being a child of God is that we are never without comfort. He is a God and Father of comfort who comforts His children in whatever struggle we have.

II Corinthians 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,

He comforts us so that we also may be able to comfort others when they have the same or similar struggles.

II Corinthians 1:4 who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

The Lord comforts us when we are depressed. Depression is an affliction. The Lord comforts us in our afflictions.

II Corinthians 7:6 But God, who comforts the depressed,

The Lord comforts us through His Word and His Holy Spirit. Go to Him in your pain. He has not left you alone. He said that He would not leave us without comfort. The word orphan literally means “comfortless”. He said He would not leave us as orphans but He would send the Holy Spirit to comfort us.

John 14:16-18 I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you. “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

The Lord unites us through our struggles and through our comfort, that we might be one in Him. We need each other.

II Corinthians 1:6,7 But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer; and our hope for you is firmly grounded, knowing that as you are sharers of our sufferings, so also you are sharers of our comfort.

Is there anyone in your life who needs comfort? We are the body of Christ. We are His heart, His hands and His feet. The Lord has allowed you to go through suffering so that you might bring comfort to others in the same affliction. When we suffer we become aware of the suffering of others. Someone else will be comforted through your love and refreshed through you.

Philemon 1:7 For I have come to have much joy and comfort in your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you, brother.

We are comforted through the faith in the Lord of our brothers and sisters in Christ. The Lord is using you and you are not always aware of it. Keep standing firm in Him.

I Thessalonians 3:7 for this reason, brethren, in all our distress and affliction we were comforted about you through your faith;

When you spend time with Him and walk with Him then you know His love and experience His comfort. You also receive hope through His grace and are strengthened for every good work and word that He has called you to do.

II Thessalonians 2:16,17 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace, comfort and strengthen your hearts in every good work and word.

 

A Life of Belonging

One of the most precious truths that become ours when we become a Christian is that we belong to Him. We become one of His sheep and He becomes our Shepherd. Of course, we become His child in reality but the Lord uses the picture of the Shepherd and the sheep to show how much He cares for us. We all long to belong to someone and when we come to Him then we belong to the Good Shepherd who laid down His life for us.

John 10:11 I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.

Before we become a sheep we first become a lamb for a lamb is a baby sheep. Being the Good Shepherd, He cares tenderly for the lambs and before they learn to walk He carries them just as a mother tenderly carries her newborn babies close to her.

Isaiah 40:11 Like a shepherd He will tend His flock, In His arm He will gather the lambs And carry them in His bosom; He will gently lead the nursing ewes.

The Shepherd carries the newborn Christian close to Him until they become strong enough to learn to walk and then as a good parent, He teaches them how to walk. Just as a toddler must first learn to step out in faith, so too, the Christian learns to step out in faith. When a toddler falls, the parent comforts and encourages the young child to continue until they can walk on their own. So too, the Shepherd tends for the lambs until they grow and become sheep. As sheep they are still dependent on the Shepherd but it is in a healthy developmental way.

Psalm 23:1-3 The Lord is my shepherd,
I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside quiet waters.
He restores my soul;
He guides me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.

Once the lamb has grown and is a sheep then the Lord guides them. They are not needy for He supplies what they need. That is the meaning of the sheep not being in want. He will make them, at times when it is needful, to lie down in green pastures so that they can be fed with green, nourishing grass. Notice, He does not make them lie down in the desert or on the weeds. No, He is a Good Shepherd and cares for the sheep. Also, the sheep need the still waters to be refreshed and so He leads them beside quiet waters so that their souls may be restored. Sometimes we don’t like the slower times in our lives but it is for our good. We need the down times so that we can be strong and refreshed for the busy times.

Psalm 23:4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil, for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

He will be with you always. He says that He will never leave you or forsake you. The Shepherd is always with you. Do not be afraid even when you walk through the valley of the shadow of death.

Hebrews 13:5 …for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,”

In His prayer for His disciples before He went to the cross Jesus prayed that they would be protected from evil. You do not need to fear evil.

John 17:15 I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one.

No one can take you from Him or pluck you out of His hand. You belong to Him. You are secure in Him forever.

John 10:27-30 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”

When you belong to the Lord then He wants you to “be longing” for Him. He is good and He longs to show His love to you.

Isaiah 30:18 Therefore the Lord longs to be gracious to you, And therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; How blessed are all those who long for Him.

 

A Life that Reaps What is Good

The Bible says that God is not mocked. We all reap what we sow in life. We can reap good or we can reap bad, either way, we reap what we sow. Many of our blessings or struggles are the result of what we sowed earlier in life and it could have been many years earlier.

Galatians 6:7,8 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.

You can be a Christian and still experience death to your soul, which is your mind, will and emotions. For this reason, the Lord says to receive the Word implanted into your life which is able to save your soul. When you sow to the flesh then the corruption you reap is death to your soul. It brings you guilt, grief, destruction and corruption.

James 1:21 Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls.

When you are a Christian and you sow to the Spirit then you will reap eternal life.

Romans 8:5,6 For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace,

Eternal life is knowing the Lord.

John 17:3 This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.

When you sow righteousness, which is a right relationship with the Lord and the outcome is obedience to His Word through His Spirit,  then you will reap steadfast love.

Hosea 10:12 Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap steadfast love; break up your fallow ground, for it is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and rain righteousness upon you.

When you sow righteousness in others, which is leading them to a right relationship with the Lord through His Word, then you will be called a peacemaker.

Matthew 5:9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

When you are a peacemaker then you will be called a Christian and will be known as His child.

James 3:18 And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

His Word is sown in peace which produces His righteousness.

Romans 1:16,17 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “But the righteous man shall live by faith.”

Are you sowing the good Word in the lives of others?

John 4:36 Already he who reaps is receiving wages and is gathering fruit for life eternal; so that he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together.

The more you sow the more you reap. Sow a little then reap a little but sow abundantly and you will reap abundantly.

II Corinthians 9:6 Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

The more you sow then the more He supplies what you need and He will increase the harvest of righteousness.

II Corinthians 9:10 Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness;

 

A Life that Avoids a Life of Sorrow

It is our choice in life if we want to experience unnecessary sorrow or experience and live in the love of God. Sorrow is a part of life but much of the sorrow that we experience is because we either don’t want to or don’t know how to experience the love of God. How can this be?

Psalm 32:10 Many are the sorrows of the wicked, But he who trusts in the Lord, lovingkindness shall surround him.

The wicked person trusts in himself and wants to “be the master of his own destiny”. The godly person trusts in the Lord and wants the Lord to guide their life and be their Lord and Savior. Many are the sorrows of the wicked. You may get your “own way” but the price that you pay will be great sorrow. The person who trusts in the Lord will have great joy and experience much lovingkindness.

Psalm 16:4a The sorrows of those who have bartered for another god will be multiplied;

One of the amazing aspects of the Lord is that He gives us a free choice. We don’t have to worship Him. We can worship whoever or whatever we want, whether it is an idol fashioned by hands or if it something else such as money, material things, houses, cars, sports, people, beauty or anything else that we allow to control our lives and determine our direction in life. If it controls our happiness then it has the capacity to bring us sorrow and it will in just a matter of time. If God controls us then He will give us joy.

Isaiah 53:4 Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted.

Jesus took our sin and our sorrows that we might have His righteousness and joy, which are everlasting. He is eternal and what He gives to us is eternal. When we give our sorrows to Him then He takes them and gives us eternal life. We realize that we have placed our hopes and joy in what can never satisfy and we come to Him and give Him all that we had earlier put our trust in.

II Corinthians 7:10 For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation, but the sorrow of the world produces death.

Are you sorrowful? Have you thought that someone or something could satisfy you and then have realized that person or thing can never fill your heart? Come to the Lord. He will take your sorrows and give you joy. He wants you to live in His love. Abide in His love and your cup will overflow with joy.

John 15:9-11 Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.

The secret to avoiding a life of sorrow is to abide in God’s love. The way we abide in God’s love is to first give our hearts to Him and then once we have surrendered to Him and been born again, we are to keep His commandments. Jesus kept the Father’s commandments and did exactly as the Father commanded Him. He did not tweak it by saying, “God really did not say this or mean this…” Yes, if He said it in His Word then He means it. Keep His commandments and your joy will be made full.

 

A Life of Prayer

Prayer can be outlawed but it can never be stopped because the Lord made us to pray. It is a human instinct to pray. Sometimes people may get confused as to the One and only True God and so they will pray to a god that they have made, either in their minds or with their hands. However, there is only One God who hears and answers. There is only one group of people that He attends to their prayers.

I Peter 3:12 “For the eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous, And His ears attend to their prayer, But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

Don’t get discouraged in your prayers. He hears them and answers them but He is not limited by time. It may just be a matter of time before you see the answer.

Luke 18:1 Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart,

We are to ask the Father in Jesus name and He will hear us.

John 16:23 In that day you will not question Me about anything. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you.

The Lord wants us to devote ourselves to prayer.

Acts 1:14 These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer,  along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.

Our prayers for the nonChristian should always be for their salvation.

Romans 10:1 Brethren, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for them is for their salvation.

We should pray for our spiritual leaders in our churches and missionaries.

Romans 15:30 Now I urge you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God for me,

Pray for other Christians.

Ephesians 6:18 With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints,

Pray for yourself. He cares for you.

Philippians 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Always remember to give thanks in your prayers. He has done so much for us.

Colossians 4:2 Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving;

Pray for everyone and especially for your leaders.

I Timothy 2:1 First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men,

Pray that the Lord will save you from death, not just spiritual death, but death to your soul.

Hebrews 5:7 In the days of His flesh, He offered up both prayers and supplications with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His piety.

If you are struggling in your Christian life then go to one who can pray for you. The Lord has called us to pray for each other.

James 5:16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.

Finally, the end is near and you want to be found faithful in prayer. Prayer is talking to the Lord. Just talk to Him from your heart. He would rather you pour out your heart to Him then not pray at all or struggle with saying the right words. He knows your heart and He loves you. He wants to hear from you and He will hear you.

I Peter 4:7 The end of all things is near; therefore, be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of prayer.