Although the Word of God is without question the foundation of our prayer life, there are some things we must pray about from time to time that it does not specifically explain.
Many events that surround the Second Coming of Christ, for instance, and what needs to happen to prepare for it are left as mysteries to us. While the Scriptures shed some light upon those matters, we still know about them only in part. So if we are to pray effectively about them, we must have lots of help from the Holy Spirit. We must have specific revelations and leadings from Him.
No problem there, right?
The Bible assures us that the Holy Spirit is always ready and able to come to our aid. He is more than willing to teach us everything we need to know.
But as most of us have discovered, when it comes to following the leading of the Spirit, there’s a hitch. We sometimes get our own thoughts and opinions mixed in with the Spirit’s leadings. Inadvertently influenced more by our humanity than we are by divinity, we can wind up praying our own will instead of the will of the Lord.
If you want to see how easily that can happen, think about Peter. He was one of Jesus’ foremost disciples. One of the three men who was closest to Him during His ministry on earth, Peter received one of the most vital, Spirit-inspired revelations of all time. While other people speculated about Jesus being Elijah, Jeremiah, or John the Baptist reincarnated, Peter tapped into the hotline of the Holy Spirit and declared: Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of the living God.
What a moment of triumph it was for Peter! Even Jesus commended him for receiving that revelation. Peter had it on the highest authority; he had heard from God!
I don’t know this for sure, but I’d guess he felt pretty good about himself after that. He figured he knew now how to be led by the Spirit. He thought he had the inside track.
But, as the Bible says, pride goes before a fall. So just a few verses later, we find Peter rebuking Jesus for saying He was going to die on the cross. Peter—all full of self-assurance—assumed he was still hearing from heaven. He thought he was spouting the will of God.
But he was wrong and Jesus let him know it in no uncertain terms. He called him a mouthpiece of Satan and said, in essence, “Peter, you are in My way. For you think just like every other person. You mind the things of man and not the thoughts of God.”
Ouch! I know a little about how Peter must have felt right then. Most likely, so do you. We’ve all accidentally disconnected from the leading of the Lord at times. We’ve all prayed (or spoken or acted) according to our own human thoughts and understanding thinking we were being Spirit led.
But, thank God, we don’t have to stop praying just because we miss it now and then.
Peter didn’t. He kept on going in ministry in spite of His mistakes—even though some of them were MAJOR—and the whole Church was blessed as a result.
If Peter can do that, so can we! We can keep on following the leading of the Holy Spirit in prayer while staying humble and attentive, trusting that if we miss it, the Lord will do for us what He did for Peter. Through His written Word or by the inner witness of His Spirit, He will set us straight and get us back on track. Like the good Father that He is, He will correct us and help us become the heavenly minded pray-ers that in our hearts we long to be.
Scripture Reading: Matthew 16:13 – 23
Excerpt permission granted by Lynne Hammond Ministries
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!”