“We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.” Romans 8:26b (NIV)
This past summer I had the privilege of serving as a chaperon for some of the fifth grade boys for our annual preteen camp. One of the highlights was free time. All the third, fourth, and fifth graders got to enjoy the zip line, the swimming pool, the water slide, the train, dodge-ball, paddle-boats, and the most amazing go-carts.
Once the gate opened for my crew to get into the go-cart action, a few of my guys couldn’t reach the gas pedal. Fortunately, the attendant came to the rescue by inserting a cushion between the rider and the rear portion of the seat. The cushion filled in the gap and enabled each of my guys to enjoy the fun on the track. Then of course, I got to race them!
When it comes to prayer, we experience a gap between our being finite and God being infinite. Because of our finiteness and fallibility we cannot perceive fully what God would desire. Therefore, we do not grasp fully what is appropriate in prayer. We are weak in that we do not know what to pray for, since the totality of God’s will is somewhat hidden from us.
The Spirit fills this lack through the ministry of intercession. Our deficiency is compensated by His sufficiency. When we don’t know what to pray, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us in ways that are beyond our human comprehension.
The gap created by our humanity is filled by the intercessory ministry of the Holy Spirit. He keeps on filling in the gap for us. When you pray, the Holy Spirit edits your prayers to bring your petitions before our Holy God.
Pursuing God,
Stephen Trammell
Executive Pastor
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