I felt so defeated.

I had just come home from the hospital after having our fourth child. Even with my husband home helping (a lot), I still remember feeling like I would never get out from under the needs of my children. At any given moment, one needed a drink, or help with homework, or food, or help getting dressed, or a diaper change, or nursing, or any number of other demands.  And all I wanted was one thing:

To go to the bathroom.

Alone.

That’s all. Just one simple request. But with everyone needing something and my body still recovering from my fourth C-section, I didn’t think I’d ever get the escape that I needed. At one point I remember thinking, “Seriously?! I can’t even go to the bathroom and somehow I’m supposed to find a way to have a meaningful quiet time during this season? There’s no way!”

And that’s when I discovered the need for, and the benefit of, this next 5-word prayer:

“Not my day, but Yours.”

I once read a book in which author Jerry B. Jenkins describes an interview he conducted with Billy Graham. He asked Graham how he got through those days when he wasn’t able to spend time with the Lord like he hoped.  Graham responded something along the lines of, “I’m sorry, I don’t understand the question.”

Ouch.

I used to think that if I failed to have a perfect quiet time first thing every single morning, then I couldn’t pray at all. In other words, if I wasn’t able or willing to have the dedication of Billy Graham, then I might as well give up.

But during this time, God reminded me of the psalms of King David and taught me the power of crying out to Him, especially when things were crazy. “In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help” (Psalm 18:6 NIV).

For me, crying out to God in my distress meant wrapping all of my thoughts, all of my needs, and all of my praises of the day into five simple words. “Not my day, but Yours.”

When you pray, “Not my day, but Yours,” you acknowledge several things:

• Today is God’s gift to you.
• How you live today is your gift to God.
• You’re thankful and blessed because of today.
• You don’t know what the day holds, but God does.
• No matter what the day holds, you will trust and rely on Him.

There are times when I wake up to the sounds of a baby crying or a loud crash from the kitchen or a little girl yelling, “Breakfast!!” from the top of the stairs. On those mornings, I can’t stop being a mom in order have a picture-perfect quiet time. So, rather than feeling defeated before the day even begins or resenting the very blessings that God Himself has given me, now I whisper a simple, five-word prayer in my heart to dedicate the day, and all of its craziness and chaos, to the Lord.

“Not my day, but Yours,” is not meant to be a loophole, but a bridge. In other words, when you whisper this in your heart, it’s not meant to be a magic formula that gets you out of your quiet times like a note from your mom gets you out of gym class. Rather it’s meant to bridge the gap, however large it may become, in between those precious times when you are able to spend dedicated time with the Lord.

You will experience the most spiritual growth from your one-on-one time with God, just like your friendships will grow deeper over face-to-face coffee dates. But for those times when it’s impossible to connect on that level, it’s still possible to touch base through a whisper.

“Not my day, but Yours.” It’s like your morning text message to God that lets Him know you’re thinking about Him, you miss Him, and you’re looking forward to talking with Him as soon as possible.

Q: What do you whisper to God first thing in the morning?

Read the entire 5-word prayers series

Introduction to 5 Word Prayers
1. Not my will, but yours
2. Not my timing, but yours
3. Not my day, but yours
4. Not my reason, but yours
5. Not my stuff, but yours
6. Not my way, but yours
7. Not my job, but yours
8. Not my glory, but yours