Jesus, help me not be one who receives the seed that fell among the thorns. Help me not be a person who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful (Mat 13:22).

Jesus, this third reaction is all about me and what I consider most important. The worries of this life: If I find myself to be a worrier about life’s problems most of the time, then I may have some weeds in my life. The deceitfulness of wealth: If I find myself being overly concerned about getting, spending, and saving money most of the time, I may have found the root cause for my suffering and pain. But, help me understand that just because this is a problem in my character it doesn’t mean I HAVE to stay this way.

Jesus, You, the Bible, these studies, and other Christians are available to help me win this battle. But, the question I face is, do I want to be set free from these concerns and worries? Since DESIRE is the difference between me getting healed from my struggles with life and me staying defeated by it, give me that desire to be healed. Since You won’t set me free from something I don’t want freedom from, teach me that desire makes all the difference between me winning or losing.

Jesus, it is normal for me to fall under the pressure of life’s problems and money issues from time to time. Even when I have been a Christian for a long time, I will have to deal with these issues. But, teach me the difference between me being a person who will CONTINUE to lose the battle against my problems with life, and me being a CHRISTIAN who will EVENTUALLY win against it. Show me that the difference comes through me being a Christian that receives a powerful WANTING to do, think, feel, and say good things. That powerful WANTING will enable me to learn, understand, and change into a person free from the things that are causing me pain because of my problems with life.

Jesus, You are looking for a DESIRE in my heart to feel, think, do, and say the right things. If I DESIRE (WANT) to live according to the right things, You will keep working with me until I win. I am used to BEING RESPONSIBLE for solving my own problems. People in the world have trained me on how to solve various problems; but, I have to take their training and do it myself. Help me realize that if I am dominated by worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth, it is probably because I THINK that if I don’t worry, come up with my own plan, and set my own goals, I will get hurt.

Help me see that I need Your power to deal with these intense situations. Set me free from world training that puts all the pressure on me for trying to solve all my own problems. Teach me how to yield to You and Your power so I can be set free from my struggles with life. Show me how to be taught in these studies but to not try to follow them through my own strength. Lead me into the way to yield to Your supernatural power that makes everything possible for me.

Jesus, since You were raised from the dead, and since You are the head of a living “religion,” Christianity isn’t about what I can do for You, it is about what You can do for me. If Christianity were dead and You were dead, then it would have to be about me helping myself. Christianity would be like world training and other religions, I would be given the rules, principles, and philosophies and then I would be responsible for carrying them out.

Jesus, if I am infected with worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth, then all I have to do is allow You to help me be born again; and then, You and I will work together to defeat this issue. Teach me that You will provide me with the knowledge, understanding, wisdom, and power; and then, I will be able to do something I wasn’t able to do before. With something as powerful as worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth, I wouldn’t stand a chance of winning over it. But, with You working with me and through me, I will win.

Jesus, help me understand that weeds are a lot different from hard dirt on the path or rocks in my garden; weeds are alive and can grow back into my life. It is possible for some people to mistreat me again and cause me to want to harden my heart. But, there are ways for You to keep that from happening to me. However, weeds have seeds floating through the air; they have stickers that stick to my clothing and to animal’s hair; and they can grow from the roots that I don’t quite get out when I pull them up.

Teach me that there are things called temptations that come into my mind and come through my eyes and ears. They are like those weed seeds that float through the air. You will have to help me not get drawn back into the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth. Teach me a way to stay in constant contact with You so when temptations come my way, I will work together with You and win over them.

Jesus, help me understand that all Christians struggle with being walked on, with people’s opinions, with worries about the pressures and problems of this life, and the temptations that come concerning money. However, none of this has the power to FORCE me away from Your help. No matter how many times I fail, as long as I continue to DESIRE Your help to give me the proper perspective concerning the issues of life, You will give it to me.

Jesus, I make a lot of mistakes; but teach me that as long as my “desire” is pointed in the right direction, You will NOT consider me as having failed You or You plan for my healing and my life. You will keep giving me Your provisions and will be willing to seal me inside of Christianity so You can give me all its benefits. You WILL heal me from being damaged by the problems with life, as long as I keep WANTING Your help, provisions, and power. I just have to allow You to set me free from the CAUSES that problems with life have their roots attached to.