Above all, taking up the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; with all prayer and requests, praying at all times in the Spirit, and being watchful to this end in all perseverance and requests for all the saints
Ephesians 6:16-18 (WEB)
“The prayer that pierces Heaven must first pierce your heart.” Puritan, Thomas Watson
Is that quote by Thomas Watson just a platitude? Maybe it sounds like easy advice. Does anyone really know what the Puritan from so many centuries ago meant? Oh, I think he really had keen insight. He had obviously tasted the depths of despair.
Have you ever been driven to prayer in a soul crushing way? The sorrow is so deep that your chest physically aches. You can’t even speak the words that are in your heart. Or maybe there just aren’t any words.
The Spirit is what drives believers to their knees in these times. Not for punishment, but for assurance. He is deep in the tears that won’t let you catch your breath.
The memory of that kind of prayer occurred for me about twenty years ago. The prayer was over someone that I loved who was suffering but there was nothing I could do to help. All that I could do was watch the misery.
On a particular day, I knelt beside my bed for over thirty minutes, filled with deep sorrow and tears. I wanted to speak; I knew only God could help me find the words. Yet no words came. Eventually, I composed myself and got up.
Feeling no peace at first, I turned to leave the room. Then something stopped me. There was no physical Presence. There was nothing mystical or strange. No audible voice suddenly resolved my sorrow.
But in a single instant, I knew the Presence of the Holy Spirit was not just in the room, but in my heart. He always is of course, but this was different. This was such a real sense of His Presence.
“..the Spirit himself makes intercession for us with groanings which can’t be uttered….”
Romans 8:26 (WEB)
In that moment, it was as if Jesus put His arm around my shoulders and conveyed a sense of peace that my loved one would be okay. He didn’t promise healing or a rapid recovery. I didn’t feel His arms around me. There was simply the joy of His peace.
The promise in Romans 8:26-27 came alive to me in that moment. It is that promise assuring every believer that we are helped in our prayers.
“…the Spirit also helps our weaknesses, for we don’t know how to pray as we ought.
But the Spirit himself makes intercession for us with groanings which can’t be uttered.
He who searches the hearts knows what is on the Spirit’s mind,
because he makes intercession for the saints according to God.”
Romans 8:26-27 (WEB)
I watched over the years as my loved one was not healed, but God has taken such care of this soul that I love. And that dear soul loves God, imperfectly, but truly.
God is a promise keeper. He has guarded my soul as I struggled so hard that day. He has kept me at peace, though not every day with that loved one has been easy. There have been other tears over that soul. But not disbelieving tears. Just empathetic tears that I would have for anyone in pain.
Through that experience the Spirit has taught me how to be open and talk to Him. He has taught me that there is more than one way to pray. He has enriched my faith by my daily prayer life.
He gives me joyful things to pray about, too, the loves and friendships in my life. He has taught me to accept His loving burden of praying for others. And praising my Savior is a most fulfilling part of my prayer life.
I hope that if you are missing out on these precious times of talking with your Savior that you will start to work on that. At first it will seem awkward. But one day, you will be talking to Him like an old friend and the thought will dawn on you, “Why did I wait so long?”
What are you waiting for? Go find a quiet place and sit before the Lord. Let the Holy Spirit start helping you start on a joy that you will never regret.
Peace, perfect peace. In this dark world of sin?
The blood of Jesus whispers peace within.1
How beautiful are the feet of those
who share the Good News!
Isaiah 52:7 (Paraphrased)
World English Bible (WEB)
by Public Domain. The name “World English Bible” is trademarked.
- Peace, perfect peace. In this Dark World of Sin?
Henry Bickersteth
Ca. 1825 ↩︎
Getting the Seed out of the basket and into hungry hearts. Matthew 13 