Pray First

This morning I was prayer journaling for a friend, and I realized, once again, how selfish I am. The sin issue for which she had asked me to pray was one that I had recognized in her prior to our discussion this week. And we had talked about it before. However, I realized that when I first noticed it, my initial thought processes were about how much those mannerisms were "unbecoming" on my friend, and how much they made her not as fun to be around. My thoughts could pretty much be melted down to how much her sin issue was an imposition to me. As I journaled to the Lord for her, I was convicted that I'd handled the situation in an unloving manner. The first thing I should have done when I noticed this area of sin in her life was pray for her. Not think about it for a week, not talk about it with other believers, or anything else...just take her to the throne of Grace. Out of all of those initial reactions, prayer is the only one of any benefit. Prayer alone is the action honorable to my friend -and the Lord. I know rebuking might be a later step, but I'm convinced it all needs to begin with prayer. So I have purposed, by the grace of God, to first respond to my friends' sin by covering them in prayer, not wallowing in selfish pity.