Romans 8:26-30
In certain ways we are weak, but the
Spirit is here to help us. For example, when we don’t know what to pray
for, the Spirit prays for us in ways that cannot be put into words. All
of our thoughts are known to God. He can understand what is in the mind
of the Spirit, as the Spirit prays for God’s people. We know that God is
always at work for the good of everyone who loves him. They are the
ones God has chosen for his purpose, and he has always known who his
chosen ones would be. He had decided to let them become like his own
Son, so that his Son would be the first of many children. God then
accepted the people he had already decided to choose, and he has shared
his glory with them.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
This
morning, it hit me that I had not offered more than a quick prayer to
God in the last several days. When I would notice someone on Facebook
who was ill or having surgery…or hear that someone I knew lost a loved
one…I would say a quick, “LORD, please be with So-and-So.” I prayed for
a couple of dear friends who are battling cancer…and for my mother and
her husband as they traveled to a family reunion. And I prayed several
times that the children would take good naps or be in good moods!
I
often use my workout time in the pool as “prayer time”…a block of
almost an hour when I can fully just be with God as I move around in the
water. But pool time this week was spent getting Nathan used to the
water…and playing with Timothy and Zola after their swim lesson. And as
I read this passage again today, I felt God saying, “I’ve gotcha! I’ve
known your thoughts and understood your intentions…and it’s all good.”
God knows that I love Him…and I love my time of meditation with Him.
But He has also felt my silent prayers…the thoughts that I couldn’t put
into words. I know that He has strengthened me and lifted me countless
times in just this week…and that gives me tremendous comfort and
encouragement.
There have been a few public and personal
situations lately about which I have not really had a clue how to pray.
Some left me completely numb…while others, like the Charleston and
Chattanooga shootings, left me confused. How do you pray in these
situations? What do you ask God for, aside from comfort for
those who are grieving? How do you talk to God about the assailants…and
how do you ask Him to help you sort out your feelings about it all -
and continue to represent your Christian faith well? For many, it’s a
huge dilemma. Yet Paul tells us that God knows us by name…and He
understands our thoughts, our fears, our challenges, and our deepest
conflicts and confusions.
This is a message of hope and
encouragement. To think that we can be so real with God that we need
not be ashamed when “life” gets in the way - and for whatever reason, we
aren’t able to fully verbalize our thoughts and feelings to Him - is
incredible! Of course, we should not make this a habit…but isn’t it
wonderful to know that Someone loves us so deeply and profoundly that He
can read our minds and act on our behalf, even when we’re not really
sure what we need?!
Do YOU know God in this way? Have you given
your heart to Jesus and surrendered completely to His will? Do you have
this intimate connection with Him…and do you truly feel it? Will this
be the day that you “come clean” with God and lay it all on the
line…that you say to Him, “Here I am, LORD…warts and all…can you fix
me?” Will this be the day that you trust Him to do this…and so much
more? Don’t you want it to be?
©2015 Debbie Robus
No comments:
Post a Comment