Jesus, keep taking me through each of God’s power-attitudes. During this study on mourning, I ask you to add some more training on The Six Biblical Principles by looking at PRAYER. First, I ask you to use the textbook page to explain the truth about God’s power-attitudes of mourning. Then when we get to next page, I ask You to use the workbook page to help me invite God and His power-attitude of mourning into my life through PRAYER. Even though this isn’t a new thing for me, let this time be me giving a little more attention to the PROCESS of prayer.

Jesus, I am worn out from groaning; all night long I flood my bed with weeping and drench my couch with tears. My eyes grow weak with sorrow; they fail because of all my foes. Away from me, all you who do evil, for You, LORD have heard my weeping. You, LORD have heard my cry for mercy; You, LORD accept my prayer (Psa 6:6-9). I and the people around me have damaged my heart. Since my heart can’t be talked to and reasoned with, I and other humans can’t help it feel better; instead, it tries to heal itself. Show me that it has built up walls of protection that are totally inadequate for helping me with life. But, help me see that these walls can hinder me from being able to submit my attitudes and character to You.

Jesus, I could go around weeping, growning, complaining, having a heavy heart, and doing my best to get myself feeling better; or, I could pray and take it to God. Teach me that mourning involves praying to God; it is a matter of me telling Him how I feel. As You and the Holy Spirit start taking me back over my mistakes, failures, errors, sins, and abuses, the memories are going to bring out sadness, feelings of guilt, feelings of remorse, feelings of shame, and many other negative emotions. But, make it clear to me that IF I PRAY, mourning will bring supernatural healing to my heart.

Jesus, help me understand that the walls and defenses that my heart puts up are rigid and unyielding. They don’t have the ability to tell the difference between things like good criticism and bad criticism. My heart has just developed defense mechanisms against CRITICISM. Teach me that, that closes the door to the correction, training, healing, and cleansing of God. When You try to help me submit to right, good, and righteous attitudes and character, my heart sees it as criticism and blockes it off. It may defend itself with anger, it may just ignore anything new, it may try to justify its old ways, or it may go into a major down spin of guilt and shame. Help me now take advantage of God’s power-attitude of mourning; let it melt these heart-walls and make it possible for me to submit to You.

Jesus, the world taught me to believe in myself and I accepted it. It made perfect sense to me that if I didn’t believe I could do it, I wouldn’t even try. So, I started trying to believe in myself so I could get the courage to at least do my best to win at something. Help me see if I just believe in my own abilities and evaluation and have self-esteem and confidence. Help me see if I believe in what others think of me and have people-esteem and confidence. Show me if I consider myself capable, if someone else tells me that I am valuable and capable. Show me if I am a person who looks at my accomplishments or lack of accomplishments and evaluates my capabilities and value and have accomplishment-esteem and confidence. But, as a Christian, help me get ALL my esteem and confidence from God and therefore have God-esteem and confidence.

Jesus, I can do EVERYTHING through You, Who gives me strength. Make it clear to me that Christianity takes supernatural power and abilities. I won’t be able to do these Christian things using my efforts, my confidence, or my faith in myself or faith any other person; but, I will be a VERY successful person in human life and in eternity if I get help from God. Teach me that the way for that to happen is for me to accept a change of esteem and confidence. If I believe I am a bad person when I do bad, then I will resist mourning. If I am going to get healed, You have to take me into examining my past deeds without ME seeing MYSELF as a bad person. Help me understand that some of my deeds were wrong, bad, and evil; but, none of them are who I am, what I am worth, or what kind of person I am.

Jesus, I now invite You to use mourning to show me a better type of attitudes and character. Help me see that my current attitudes and character need changing; AND, help me be WILLING to change them. God You demonstrated Your own love for me in this: While I was still sinners, Christ died for me (Rom 5:8). Make it clear to me that I was MUCH more valuable to God than I was to myself or other people, EVEN while I was still a sinner. Before I did anything good, believed in myself, got other people’s approval, or accomplished anything great, God placed a value on me that I need to accept into my esteem and confidence. Help me do that now.

Jesus, teach me that Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads me to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings me death (2 Cor 7:10). In order for me to submit my attitudes and character to You, help me be open to truth. Show me that if my heart is sealed off because it is busy protecting itself, then those wonderful things You are trying to get me to submit to, can’t come in.

Jesus, You are using the prayer of Mourning to help me see what has been wrong, bad, and evil in my thoughts, feelings, words, and deeds. Make it clear to me that it is not to hurt me, condemn me, or make me feel inferior. Show me that You aren’t attacking me, You are asking me to join You in attacking wrong, bad, and evil things that are substituting themselves for right, good, and righteousness in my life. Teach me that for me to submit to You, I must SEE why my heart is opposing the attitudes and character You are wanting me to submit to.

Jesus, You said in John 16:33 (NIV): “I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take HEART! I have overcome the world.” Help me understand that my heart is afraid; it is very concerned that it might get hurt again. It doesn’t understand that You are going to protect it by using Your knowledge, foreknowledge of the future, understanding, wisdom, and power. My heart is still trying to protect itself. Help me use the prayer of mourning, I will bring Your loving, peaceful, caring hand into my heart. Show me that, that experience will help my heart trust, believe, and relax in Your care.