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A few years ago, the family was finishing up our restaurant meal. My husband and I were visiting our oldest son who had just started a new job at Teen Challenge, which rehabilitates those struggling with drug or alcohol dependency. Chris was in charge of a group of men who were putting their lives back in order. They cooked meals, chopped and delivered wood, and studied the Bible together. As Chris described his responsibilities as a leader, we sensed he was struggling with his job. As he talked, he began to sound more and more overwhelmed. The atmosphere in the quiet restaurant began to feel gloomy and oppressive as we listened to the frustration in his voice. I could feel the insurmountable negativity my son could not shake off.
We should pray, I thought, but I didn't know how to pray.
I knew it was God's will that our son do his job with faith and confidence. He had all the resources of heaven at his disposal. Somehow, momentarily, he had taken his eyes off God, and bogged down in inevitable challenges. But how to put this into words?
“And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don't know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words.” ( Romans 8:26 NLT)
I began to pray quietly under my breath, using the words of the prayer language Jesus had given me when I was baptized in the Holy Spirit. “And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God's own will.” (Romans 8:27 NLT) Although I didn't understand my words, God did, and my prayer reached its mark with speed and efficiency. As I prayed, the atmosphere in the room began to change and lighten. Our son stopped his negative talk; there was a definite turning point in his demeanor.
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere (Acts 1:8 NLT)
The day of Pentecost was a turning point for the early followers of Jesus. As the believers met together, "everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages." (Acts 2:4 NLT) From that day on, the disciples went forward in power and boldness. A turning point in my life came when I was filled with the Holy Spirit.
As believers, Jesus already lives in you through the Holy Spirit. Ask the Lord to fill you, to baptize you with his Spirit for power and boldness to witness for Him. Ask Him to give you a prayer language for those situations when you don't know how to pray.
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Holy Spirit. Thank You that through Him we can have power and boldness in our Christian lives. Fill us to overflowing, we pray, in Jesus' name. Amen.
Alice Burnett
Red Deer, Alberta, Canada
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