Day 11: PRAY IN THE SPIRIT
Jesus promised us that He would send the Holy Spirit into our lives as our helper, comforter, and guide. After the Holy Spirit fell on the early believers on the Day of Pentecost, they were empowered to preach the gospel, perform miraculous healings, bringing hope and freedom wherever they went. The same Holy Spirit that fell on the early believers is alive and present in us today!
Father God, we come to you today as the Body of Christ, eager for the gifts of the Spirit. As we enter day 11 of our 21-day journey, we humbly ask you to develop and empower our church members with the Spiritual gifts that build up the church. Please help us Father to follow the way of love and eagerly desire the gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy used to strengthen, encourage, comfort, and edify our church (1 Corinthians 14:1-4). Please develop our members Father to pray in tongues and to interpret what is said (vs. 13). As we pray in the Spirit Lord, help our minds to be fruitful by praying with understanding, help us to sing with our Spirit, and also sing with our understanding (vs. 14-15). In regard to evil Lord, please protects us in innocence like infants, but in our thinking Lord, please mature us in Your wisdom (vs. 21). Holy Father, please help us to effectively use speaking in tongues as a sign for unbelievers, and to effectively use prophecy to edify believers (vs. 22).
Precious Jesus, when you walked as a man on this earth, you modeled for us the relationship we should have with the Father, by going off by yourself to seek Him out constantly in prayer. Thank you not only for your example, but also for sending us Your Spirit, so that He could help us in our weakness (Romans 8:26). Thank you for giving us the Holy Spirit who intercedes for us, and who builds our faith as we pray in Him (Jude 1:20). Jesus our Teacher, please help us to comprehend God as Spirit and to reach a deeper level of worship by surrendering ourselves completely in spirit and truth (John 4:24).
Holy Spirit, thank you for loving us so much that you not only teach us how to pray, but that you also pray for us when we do not know how (Romans 8:26). Please help us to not heap up empty phrases in our prayers (Matthew 6:7), or to ask the Father for things wrongly (James 4:3), but to speak in you to God, uttering mysteries through you (1 Corinthians 14:2). Holy Spirit, we come to you today requesting that you prompt us into prayer often, helping our willing spirits to overcome our weak flesh (Matthew 26:41). As we mature in our prayer life, we ask Holy Spirit that you build our faith and our confidence to know that God hears us in whatever we ask, and that we have the requests that we have asked of Him (1 John 5:15). Help us Holy Spirit to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). We offer up all of these requests in the precious name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
