“The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry,’Abba, Father.’ The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.”- Romans 8:15-16
In Chapter 1 (“The Necessity of Prayer”) of Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God, Timothy Keller states that the psalmists of the Old Testament didn’t merely identify, express, and vent their feelings. They also processed them with brutal honesty. Southern writer Flannery O’ Connor (A Prayer Journal) wrote with such honesty:
“I do not know you God because I am in the way.”
Flannery understood that her only hope was to constantly reorient her soul through prayer. Yet the realization of the depth of our sinful nature comes gradually, as Ms. O’ Connor stated in her prayer journal:
“It does not take much to make us realize what fools we are, but the little it takes is long in coming. I see my ridiculous self by degrees.”
However, the Spirit of God offers us the assurance of God’s love, enabling us to approach and cry out to God as our loving Father. St. Paul writes in Romans 8 about that profound experience of God’s reality. Only through prayer can the heart experience of the Gospel’s power happen.
Today’s question: Following your ministry downsizing or vocation loss, how has prayer deepened your heart experience? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “An intelligent mysticism”