INTRODUCTION (Part 1):
What is a self-reflective prayer? It is an opportunity to purge our thoughts and feelings at the foot of the cross and preach the Gospel to ourselves to calm our minds and soothe our troubled hearts. Self-reflective prayers are meant to confront the enormity of trials and counter spiritual warfare with the absolute truth of Holy Scripture. Not a day goes by where we are not immersed in a spiritual battle¬, for war which rages in the spiritual realm carries far greater implications than we realize. As such, we must not only acknowledge that war exists but prepare for battle by learning how to cleanse our minds with Jesus’ Gospel of salvation.
Satan is a mastermind who tempts us to wallow in guilt, shame, and regret. He knows that if we dwell upon our unworthiness, we will yield to sin and give up on God. For if we believe all hope is lost, what need is there to repent? That is the crux of the enemy’s tactic, and we are wise to guard our hearts from believing such lies. We are never too far gone for the grace of God to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. It may not feel like it in the moment, but His mercies are new every morning and we must wait in expectant hope for the sun to rise once again. When it does, the clouds of darkness will dissipate and burn away from our conscience like morning fog in the sunrise. No longer will we be bound by sin but set free to worship the Lord.
Lament-inspired prayers are deeply personal. All we need is to be humble, vulnerable, and teachable by God’s grace. Keep in mind, we are not meant to camp out in the valley but to resist acting as if everything is fine when clearly it is not. Such prayers face reality head-on with wisdom from God’s Word to cleanse our minds. They answer misperceptions with absolute truth and help make sense of our trials. Truly, we will never experience reprieve from Satan’s schemes if we are dishonest with ourselves. However, we will never discover freedom if we do not bow our knees at the foot of the cross either.
“Ploof’s approach to writing this book is raw, honest, and transparent. The author is honest about his emotions, questions and doubts, and encourages the reader to be as well. This will be new territory for most people. There is nothing sugar-coated with his approach. However, the focus is not on venting, but on lamenting. Venting may feel good, but lamenting takes the person past venting to the throne of God in worship. Ploof takes the reader from the raw emotions, questions and doubts into the presence of the sovereign Creator of the universe, the King of kings, and the Lord of lords. He brings together the emotions, questions and doubts we all feel with biblical truth and practical application. The 100 prayers, listed by headings the reader will easily identify with, can be read straight through, or could be used for particular situations the reader may be experiencing.”
INTRODUCTION (Part 2):
This anthology of 100 prayers is meant to help us begin the process of self-reflection, confession, and meditation. They are not exhaustive prayers but personal examples to point us in the right direction as we express our hearts to God and face reality. The worst thing we could do in our journey of faith is bottle-up our emotions. The enemy thrives in environments where absolute truth is nowhere to be found. If we never address our thoughts and feelings, there is no need to remedy them. Therefore, we must meet the Lord in the valley of despair and allow Him to minister to our broken hearts.
God does not call out to us from the mountain’s peak to meet Him there when we get our act together. Rather, He walks with us in the valley so we will not be consumed. The Father’s love for us knows no bounds. It is supernatural and holds the power to cleanse us from sin and lead us home to everlasting life. Whether we realize it or not, the prayers we often utter are similar to prayers of lament. However, we tend to leave out one factor when we purge our hearts of raw emotion: absolute truth. Without it, we are merely venting our spleen and are subject to unrealistic expectations which lead nowhere but keep us continually frustrated, bitter, and discontent.
Self-preaching must be the backbone of our prayers, for it centers our minds on the truth of the Gospel and guards us against temptation. Without the sword of the Spirit, we have no other way to defeat the enemy. Therefore, we must abide in Christ each day as the Spirit wages war against the forces of darkness on our behalf. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). As such, let us not forget that He is the answer to our problems and will make all things new for those who trust in Him alone for salvation. However, we must come to Him in humble reverence to find healing for our weary and troubled souls.
