Ultimate Breath Prayer
When I am on my way to a tough pastoral situation, my wife Brenda does a wonderful thing. As I drive off she'll catch my eye and say "I'm praying for you." It's something that really comforts me because she really knows me, genuinely cares about me, and clearly understands my strengths and weaknesses.Martin Lund started a week long series on prayer at our church in Grahamstown with this passage and these words: "Did you know that 24/7 you are a prayed-for, prayed-in, and prayed-through person?"
It is an incredible thought that God would live in us by His Holy Spirit. It is even more amazing that He would pray for us. Paul implies that it is a passionate prayer, He will groan with concern and care as He searches our hearts and brings us to God.
Our prayers are really a kind of piggybacking on a constant stream of prayer that God the Spirit prays in us. He knows my needs. He knows my successes and failures and He prays anyway! His intercession means that we are sympathetically represented to God in order to obtain assistance and favour.
This gem on the Spirit's intercession comes to us in the context of Paul talking about present suffering, the world in labour pains, and the call to hopeful patience. In the midst of these challenges there is this stunning assurance: Even when we don't know what to pray for, there is SomeOne who prays for us!
I also love the fact that the Hebrew and Greek words for "Spirit" can also mean "wind" or "breath".
This gives us the ultimate conclusion for our series on "Prayer like Breathing" - The Spirit - the "breath" of God - prays in us, through us, for us. If we are attentive, prayer can be for us to unfurl our sails and to be carried along by what He's already started!
| 26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will. (Romans8:26-27) |
I hope you've enjoyed this series on prayer, and that, most importantly, you grown more comfortable and confident in the beautiful gift of prayer. Much love, Theo
