Post by Zac Loh on May 10, 2008 23:01:54 GMT -5
I used to attend a prayer fellowship led by an intercessor by the name of Phyllis on Friday nights. It was in one of these meetings that I received a clear, crystal experiential revelation on spiritual groaning in prayer.
Carrying a cough, I thought that I shouldn’t strain my throat while we were having a prolonged prayer in unknown tongues. I took breaks in-between to have sips of water. Sister Phyllis urged us to press-on and that breakthrough was eminent (we were praying for the youths in our community). After a while, she stopped praying and exhorted us that we should continue to press on until breakthrough …she tried to explain the best she could on how to press on …saying that it’s like giving birth. So I imagined being in a delivery room and how the mother must have struggled and cried. Having just visited my friend Ronnie at the maternity ward where his wife had just delivered …really helped!
So I traveled, in my mind, to the government public maternity ward where delivery was more arduous and scary …this really made me more effective. I actually added heart to my prayer. And I began to groan. This was not the first time I had groaned by the Holy Spirit. But this experience was the first time ever …that I groaned from within my spirit that included the tears of my heart and the agony of my imagination!
The Lord then dropped a revelation into my spirit.
For creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation GROANS AND LABORS WITH BIRTH PANGS together until now. And not only they, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves GROAN FROM WITHIN ourselves,
Likewise the Spirit also helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but THE SPIRIT HIMSELF MAKES INTERCESSION FOR US WITH GROANINGS WHICH CANNOT BE UTTERED. Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren
(Romans 8:20-23; 26-29).
God had cursed the world in hope that the suffering people would look up to Him…who alone is the light, the solution and the answer to every need. I don’t think we would groan in heaven, but as long as we are in this fallen world with our fallen body …we need to!
We live in a fallen world. That is the whole reason for prayer. Prayer is an altar of sacrifice to stand in the gap. Moses stood in the gap for the Israelites. Job stood in the gap for his children. Jesus stands in the gap for us. And we stand in the gap for the children of the world.
God is a person. He is a God of relationship. I do not know why we are inclined to the technicalities of prayer…and lost the heart of prayer. But God is a God with a heart. Groaning expresses the intensity of a longing which is greater than mere wishing and desiring. It is the expression of the Holy Spirit. Let us add heart to our praying. Groaning expresses the heart of the Holy Spirit.
Sometimes there is no simple solution to our problems. Sometimes it is just for the fact that we are living in a fallen world. Our groaning will give birth to something that is perfect in to this imperfect world. Perfection is an attribute of God.
Our groaning moves God to act according to His perfect will. We don’t have to tell God what to do. We just groan for God to do something on our behalf according to His far-reaching purpose and plan for our lives.
But we know that His bottom line purpose and plan has always been this two-fold: to make us more like Jesus and to win lost souls (quality and quantity).
Now…we can have an insight to what Paul was saying in this verse:
My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you (Galatians 4:19).
Carrying a cough, I thought that I shouldn’t strain my throat while we were having a prolonged prayer in unknown tongues. I took breaks in-between to have sips of water. Sister Phyllis urged us to press-on and that breakthrough was eminent (we were praying for the youths in our community). After a while, she stopped praying and exhorted us that we should continue to press on until breakthrough …she tried to explain the best she could on how to press on …saying that it’s like giving birth. So I imagined being in a delivery room and how the mother must have struggled and cried. Having just visited my friend Ronnie at the maternity ward where his wife had just delivered …really helped!
So I traveled, in my mind, to the government public maternity ward where delivery was more arduous and scary …this really made me more effective. I actually added heart to my prayer. And I began to groan. This was not the first time I had groaned by the Holy Spirit. But this experience was the first time ever …that I groaned from within my spirit that included the tears of my heart and the agony of my imagination!
The Lord then dropped a revelation into my spirit.
For creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation GROANS AND LABORS WITH BIRTH PANGS together until now. And not only they, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves GROAN FROM WITHIN ourselves,
Likewise the Spirit also helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but THE SPIRIT HIMSELF MAKES INTERCESSION FOR US WITH GROANINGS WHICH CANNOT BE UTTERED. Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren
(Romans 8:20-23; 26-29).
God had cursed the world in hope that the suffering people would look up to Him…who alone is the light, the solution and the answer to every need. I don’t think we would groan in heaven, but as long as we are in this fallen world with our fallen body …we need to!
We live in a fallen world. That is the whole reason for prayer. Prayer is an altar of sacrifice to stand in the gap. Moses stood in the gap for the Israelites. Job stood in the gap for his children. Jesus stands in the gap for us. And we stand in the gap for the children of the world.
God is a person. He is a God of relationship. I do not know why we are inclined to the technicalities of prayer…and lost the heart of prayer. But God is a God with a heart. Groaning expresses the intensity of a longing which is greater than mere wishing and desiring. It is the expression of the Holy Spirit. Let us add heart to our praying. Groaning expresses the heart of the Holy Spirit.
Sometimes there is no simple solution to our problems. Sometimes it is just for the fact that we are living in a fallen world. Our groaning will give birth to something that is perfect in to this imperfect world. Perfection is an attribute of God.
Our groaning moves God to act according to His perfect will. We don’t have to tell God what to do. We just groan for God to do something on our behalf according to His far-reaching purpose and plan for our lives.
But we know that His bottom line purpose and plan has always been this two-fold: to make us more like Jesus and to win lost souls (quality and quantity).
Now…we can have an insight to what Paul was saying in this verse:
My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you (Galatians 4:19).
