May 26: 1 Thessalonians 5:17 — When Prayer Becomes Breath (Today's Reading: My Utmost for His Highest)
"Pray without ceasing . . ." 1 Thessalonians 5:17
Chambers says the way we think about prayer is all wrong. Prayer is not something that we have to plan to do at a certain time, in a particular place, or in a specific way. Prayer is something we can do all the time, like breathing.
We do not have to concentrate on our breathing—it simply happens. You can intentionally breath, yes, but if you do not think about it, your body continues to breath without your assistance. That is the way prayer in your life should be: unceasing thoughts of God throughout your day, a constant turning of your mind to the source of love and care that is keeping you.
Once you turn your life over to God by surrendering your will to Him, the Holy Spirit does a new work inside of you. He will change you, and sometimes you will be completely unaware of it. The Holy Spirit does not change you completely overnight. This work is personal, it is deep and meaningful, it is holy. This will take time and careful work on His part. He may need to bring things up for your remembrance and do works in you that require a releasing of old wounds or fears, and you may go through some storms along the way. But just hold onto God and He will bring you through it to the other side, and you will be glad. His work will reveal itself in you. All of it takes time—and I am not sure if there is ever an end to our spiritual growth.
The Holy Spirit brings you to surrender...all He needs from you is willingness. Because you have surrendered your will, the Holy Spirit now has full authority—granted by you through your surrender— to complete His work in you. Therefore, part of that work is to sustain you, strengthen you, and keep you. And He will keep you in surrender. You do not have to strive and hold onto it with a tight grip, nor do you have to fear losing it. Once the Holy Spirit has led you into surrender, He maintains your spiritual life for you. He maintains it all without much assistance from you at all. You simply do your part, which is: stay willing, obedient, and surrendered. Which is not hard... because since you said "no" to self, sin, and will—through surrender—the Holy Spirit helps you stay willing, obedient, and surrendered. If I could surrender, anyone can—because it's the Holy Spirit who makes it possible.
I was worried that I could lose my surrender—that I might mess up somehow, do something wrong, and lose it. But I discovered that one of the works of the Holy Spirit in this new life of mine is for Him to maintain my spiritual life for me. I do not have to struggle to keep myself in surrender or strive to maintain my spiritual stance. My desire to stay surrendered is, in itself, a work of the Holy Spirit. If I had to maintain it all by my own strength, then it would become a new burden—one that I am not equipped to carry. Surrender means I stop carrying myself. So from now on, I see myself as held in the strong arms of the Lord... and that reality makes me cry with gratitude, relief, and love... for Him.
Prayer is one of the things that the Holy Spirit will help you maintain. This is the relationship that you do not have to think about—it should be as natural as breathing. But you are welcome to think about it all you want to. I think about it a lot. I am still in awe of this new life of mine.
When you love someone, you naturally think about them all the time; it happens without intentional thought. The Holy Spirit will help you maintain this connection. The Spirit Himself keeps your heart turned to God. As long as you are living the surrendered life, you are in the loving care of the Holy Spirit, and He is going to help you maintain this relationship, which is called unceasing prayer.
He will bring to remembrance the things you need to remember, and He will nudge you and remind you of things you need to do. These communications are usually very gentle and quiet, not dramatic at all. If you are not paying attention, you may miss them. They are internal and easy to miss or ignore; they may only last a second and do not get repeated. These nudges are invitational, not commands. You are nudged towards something—a remembrance, a thought, an urge to act, or a correction. You do not have to follow through on these. Such as when your conscience alerts you to something and the Spirit gives you details on how to correct it—you can make a choice not to do so. I almost always do, though.
We can talk to God, think about God, turn our thoughts to God. We can pray for others and pray for strength. We can praise Him, thank Him, and just rest in the knowledge that He is here with us right now and always, as the Holy Spirit. Let Him guide you throughout your day. Most of the time you are going to be unaware that He is there, but there will be other times when His presence will be made known to you by a nudge, a thought, a confirmation word about something from a complete stranger or from a Christian person in your life. God is active in your life even when you are unaware of it.
Do not ever think that you are not loved, or that He has forgotten about you, because it just is not true. God is aware of you. God loves you. You are not forgotten, you are not behind. You are right where He wants you to be.
Let Him have the reins of your life and let Him make decisions for you, He will give you the best that He has for you.
Does God answer prayers? Jesus didn't talk about unanswered prayers. He said God hears, God knows, and God answers according to His will. Jesus lived with certainty that God answers all prayers that are prayed according to the will of God. The timing is God's timing, though, so you may have a prayer from 50 years ago that He answers tomorrow...but one you prayed yesterday gets answered today. It is all in God's timing, and we do not have a map of that timeline for reference, so we just have to be patient and wait on God's timing to arrive. And it will... be right on time.
Inhale: Lord, I want to stay,
Exhale: in your loving arms.
Ephesians 6:18 — pray at all times in the Spirit
John 15:4–5 — abide in Christ; apart from Him we can do nothing
Galatians 5:16 — walk by the Spirit
Philippians 2:13 — God works in you to will and to act
Ezekiel 36:26–27 — a new heart and Spirit given by God
John 14:26 — the Spirit brings things to remembrance
Romans 8:26–27 — the Spirit helps us in our weakness
Psalm 37:23–24 — the Lord upholds those who stumble
Isaiah 41:10 — God strengthens and helps you
Psalm 55:22 — cast your burden on the Lord
Matthew 11:28–30 — His yoke is easy and His burden light
1 Peter 5:7 — cast all your cares on Him
Psalm 139:1–5 — God sees you and knows you completely
Deuteronomy 31:8 — He goes before you and will not forsake you
Romans 8:38–39 — nothing can separate us from His love
John 10:28–29 — no one can snatch you from His hand
1 John 5:14–15 — confidence that God hears our prayers
Matthew 7:7–11 — ask, seek, knock; the Father gives good gifts
Ecclesiastes 3:1 — God’s timing in all things
Habakkuk 2:3 — the vision awaits its appointed time
Psalm 27:14 — wait for the Lord
Galatians 6:9 — do not grow weary; in due season you will reap
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