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Your Quiz Result: Perfectionism
Perfectionism is the enemy of progress. Especially when it comes to growing in confidence and joy in our prayer lives.Do you often feel like you have to have just the right words when you talk to God? Or that if you just knew exactly what to say, surely he would listen more? Are you terrified to pray out loud in a group?Sometimes prayer can feel overwhelming, and you're left scratching your head wondering if you're "doing it right." I've been there, my friend.It can be paralyzing to think about all the things I might not be saying right, or all of the things I'm forgetting to say. It's enough to make you want to throw in the towel before you even start!But God doesn't want our conversations with him to be filled with anxiety and frustration. And thankfully, they don't have to be.But sometimes we can use a little help to push past the thoughts in our head that keep us stuck in the spin-cycle of perfectionism, and that's why I wrote Praying is (not) Hard. Here are just a couple of quick tips from the book, and if you want to dive deeper and find even greater freedom in your conversations with God you'll definitely want to check it out! Two quick tips to help you push past perfectionism...1. Define "Success"Our heads can be filled with all kinds of ideas of what a "successful" prayer looks and sounds like. And surprise! Some of those ideas might not even be biblical. It can be very helpful to grab a pen and piece of paper and write down everything that you believe makes a prayer "good".Maybe it's:--Praying for 30 minutes or more--Always knowing what to say--Never making excuses or getting distractedIt could be a bunch of things, but seeing them written down in black and white will give you a chance to evaluate what's truly good and biblical and what's just unhelpful and holding you back.2. Short & SweetIf you struggle to say imperfect words to God, there's a simple, but powerful one-word prayer you can try. Jesus.That's it. Just say the name of Jesus. And if you're thinking, Erica, that's not a prayer, it's a name, I think you'll be interested to hear Bob Goff's thoughts on it. He says, "Jesus isn't wowed by fancy words. Matter of fact, he said his name has all this kind of power. So what if we just [say] this...'Jesus!' And if you're not impressed by this prayer, you haven't experienced the power of Jesus's name."I couldn't have said it better myself. If you want more practical tips like these (and many more), be sure to check out my book, Praying is (not) Hard, for more tips and help to let go of perfectionism. You might find Chapter 11, which is all about the length of our prayers, especially helpful! And keep reading to check out the other great (FREE) resources about prayer available on my website.Let me introduce myself!Hi, friend, I’m Erica Barthalow 👋 author of three books, (Holy Doubt, Praying is (not) Hard, and Fulfilled-a Christmas devotional), and founder of A Beautiful Word Co.I’m a lover of God and beauty, but I’ve certainly faced seasons where life wasn’t so lovely. You can read about it in my book Holy Doubt. As a writer, I like to write about the things no one is talking about in church; things like doubt, and finding it hard to pray. My newest adventure is A Beautiful Word Co. I’m going to be honest, I haven’t always loved God’s word like I do now. But these days I’m finding it to be one of the greatest sources of beauty and joy in my life! Whether in my writing or my art, my goal is to connect you with the beauty of God's word, in a beautiful way, so you can live a beautiful life. Looking for a few more resources on prayer? Check these out...1.The Prayer Personality SeriesCheck out this five-part blog series that breaks down some ways you can use your unique personality (the way God made you) to connect more with him! You can also find out more about this in my book, Praying is (not) Hard2. Take the Prayer Personality Quiz Use this fun quiz to find out which prayer personality you are, and then use that info next time you pray!3. Pray with Purpose: 4 Simple Steps to More Powerful and Impactful Prayers Check out this popular blog post and get some more helpful tips to fuel your prayer life.I'm so happy to have you here! If you want to dive deeper into all 7 of the things that might be stalling your conversations with God, then you have to check out my book, Praying is (not) Hard! It will change the way you think about prayer forever. But don't take my word for it, check out some of the reviews on Amazon. P.S Get 15% off the ebook on the Google Play store for a limited time! Just click here and use code: KY9S079QUDRFXBlessings,Erica