Right Where I Am

Our Father is so loving to, tenderhearted and knowing of each of us.  I was talking to Him this morning about how I can have great prayers in my head, but when I speak them aloud in a group setting they come out all jumbled and, in my eyes, senseless.  I hear others pray to eloquently and I feel so inadequate in my words.  I know in my heart that I am heard, I am loved and that God doesn't care about fancy speech and fluency.  He hears and knows exactly what I mean, and how to meet the need I am praying for.  But still I feel tongue tied and nervous.

I bought a new devotional from Ruth Myers (with Warren Myers) called "31 Days of Prayer and have been going through it most mornings.  Well today's lesson was "Pray for God's working in your church."  This is something a small group of us has been studying on Thursday mornings.  How to get along and be in unity as a church.  It's a great teaching and sometimes quite difficult to walk out as we are humans.  Cue the Holy Spirit here!!

Well at the end of the reading Ruth quoted from William Gurnall a very astute thought.  "Sometimes you hear another pray with freedom and fluency, while you can hardly get out a few broken words.  Hence you are ready to accuse yourself and admire him, as if the gilding of the key makes it open the door better."

Wow.  What a profound statement.  I know God was encouraging me, and revealing His heart to me.  He doesn't care about smooth-spoken, perfectly expressed prayers.  He sees the heart and love behind even the most crudely spoken words and in His perfect way, answers the halting, bashful prayer as well as the most eloquent and boldly spoken one.  

The Bible tells us in Romans 8:26 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.

Our words may not come out as wonderfully as some great orator or even the person city next to us in the pew, but our Lord hears them loud and clear.  

Thank You Lord!  You take even the simplest, child-like, fumbly prayer and turn it into an arrow of Your power and love for those we pray for, the concerns we bring before You and our deepest needs.  You are amazing and I love You for just the right timing of words on a page that comforted and soothed my heart.  I'm always blessed when these things occur and I am doubly blessed to share them with others.  Thank You again.