The worries and cares of life are another thing that can put a kink in our spirits. They can choke out the Word of God in our hearts and undermine our faith. They can overwhelm our minds and leave us powerless in prayer.
The Bible says that worry is a sin. So when we find ourselves knotted up with anxiety about our finances, our children, or anything else, we must follow the instructions in 1 Peter 5:7. We must get in the presence of God and cast all our anxieties, worries, and concerns on Him so that the rivers of the Spirit can flow freely through us.
We simply don’t have time anymore for dry spells and distractions in prayer. The day is growing short and there are still multitudes of spiritually thirsty people who are dying to know Jesus. There are billions who haven’t even heard about Him. And He loves every one of them just as much as He loves us.
God has a reservoir full of prayers that need to be prayed for them in this hour—prayers that will thrust us out as laborers into the fields and equip us with the supernatural wisdom and power we need to bring in the harvest. But to pray those Spirit-led prayers, we must make sure we are Spirit-fed believers. We must watch over our hearts and keep the kinks out of our prayer lives.
We must drink deeply and often from the fountain of God so His rivers can flow full and free to the dry and thirsty world He loves so much.
Scripture Reading: Mark 4:1–20
On the chilly March night in 1972 when Lynne Hammond took her first step into a life of Spirit-led prayer, she had no idea what was about to happen. All she knew was the hunger in her heart for God wouldn’t let her sleep. In the few short months she’d been born again, her desire to fellowship with Him had grown so strong she could hardly contain it. “Help me, God!” she cried. “I want to know you. I want to be able to talk to you. Please, teach me to pray!”
Suddenly, a heavenly presence flooded the room. Lynne sensed waves of spiritual fire sweeping over her and a beautiful language began to flow like a river from within her. Although she’d never heard of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, she knew instantly, without a doubt—this was God!
What began that night soon blossomed into a life of prayer that ultimately became a ministry of prayer when, in 1980, Lynne and her husband, Mac, founded Living Word Christian Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Under Lynne’s leadership, the prayer ministry at Living Word has become an internationally recognized model for developing effective pray-ers in the local church.
A teacher and an author, Lynne publishes a newsletter called Prayer Notes, has written numerous books, and currently serves as the national prayer director for Daughters for Zion. Her passion for inspiring and leading others into the life of Spirit-led prayer continues to take her around the world to minister to believers whose heart cry, like hers, is “Lord, teach me to pray!”