5 Keys To a Glorious Prayer LifeSample

Day 3: Lord, Pray Through Me and Intercede for Me

We need God for everything. Without Him, we can do nothing; and that includes praying. We literally cannot pray without His help—and if we try, we don't even know what to say in our prayers. 

However, there's a solution for all this. Did you know that God Himself has promised to pray through us and intercede for us as we pray? It's true!

Romans 8:26-27 tells us all about this amazing promise: 

“Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. 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" (Romans 8:26-27). 

This passage means that Holy Spirit helps us pray, even when we don't know how to pray.

Whenever I go to the Lord to pray, I always preface my prayers with a "prequel." Before I even try to empty my heart to the Lord in prayer, I confess first to Him that I don't know how to pray as I ought! 

Then, I tell Him that I believe His promise. I acknowledge His promise that His Holy Spirit will intercede for me and through me so that the Father's will is done as I pray. And finally, I ask Him to do just that.

If I forget to ask the Lord for help in this way, my prayer time usually feels just awful.

Without asking for the Holy Spirit's help with my prayers, I usually feel confused when I start praying. My mind wanders; I sense no power in prayer; and I feel like I'm not really reaching God.

However, everything is totally different if I pray for the Holy Spirit to intercede for me!

When I remember to pray this simple prayer—"Lord, pray through me and intercede through me—I can feel Him answering. I can feel Him praying through me, and there is a marked difference:

• Suddenly, prayer flows.
• I feel focused as I pray.
• I can sense the power, faith, and unction of God rising up in my gut as I pray!

When the Holy Spirit helps you pray like that, you notice the difference. 

This kind of focused, concentrated, Spirit-led prayer brings a glory into your devotional time that you couldn't have imagined before. When this happens, you know that it wasn't "just you" praying those prayers. You also know that the Holy Spirit is translating anything you may pray that isn't just perfect into completely perfect prayers that move Heaven and shake the earth.

Are you ready to ask God for the Holy Spirit to pray through you and for you? 

Here's a sample prayer you can use to ask Him this:

"Heavenly Father, in Jesus' name, I thank You for Your promise to help me pray. I need Your  help, Lord, and I thank You for being so willing to meet me at the point of my need.

Abba Father, right now, I take You up on Your promise from Romans 8. Right now, I ask in Jesus' name that Your precious Holy Spirit would help me pray: 

• I pray that Your Holy Spirit would pray through me and for me.
• I ask that You would fill me with Your own words to pray back to Yourself, so that Your Kingdom can come and Your will can be done in my life.
• I ask that the Holy Spirit would pray through me with moanings and groanings which cannot be uttered. 
• And I know that You who search the hearts will know what the mind of the Spirit is, for He makes intercession for me according to Your perfect will. 

Thank You, Father, for hearing and answering my prayer. In Jesus' name, amen." 

When you ask the Holy Spirit to pray through you and intercede for you, He will help you every time—and you will begin to see a marked difference in your prayer life. So remember these two prayers we have prayed so far, and check back tomorrow for the third prayer!