Quote from Forum Archives on November 6, 2002, 3:46 pm

Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>

Dear friends,

I'd like to share with you from Oswald Chamber's, "My Utmost
For His Highest", because in today's message, once again, the
topic of prayer and the power of the Holy Spirit emerges. We've
had quite a bit of discussion about that, and many of you have
sent in your comments. That's good, I think that God wants us to
think about Him, grow closer to Him, personally, and get to know
Him intimately, closer even than family and dear friends.

I find it amazing to think about the Spirit of God. I often
have no idea whatsover what is best for me, in fact, I seldom do,
except to know and trust that God knows best and will meet my
needs. Yet the Spirit of God not only knows, but He steps in and
intercedes on our behalf. That is why it is so devastating when
we shun the Spirit of God and leave no place for Him to work
within us. I don't know which of us feels worse... each of us,
for the blessings and presence of God that we miss out on, or the
rejection that God feels when we ignore Him. It pains me greatly
to even think of the many times I have done this to my precious
Lord!

Even so, Lord, come. I confess that I am needy. I confess
that I have insensitively shunned You and turned my back on You,
and that I have treated many people in the same way. I repent,
making no excuses for my behavior, only asking for Your
forgiveness and asking for Your strength to renew my own broken
spirit, which is empty and incomplete without You! Heal the pain
of the loss between us. As King David said, "It is against You,
and You alone, that I have sinned". David also pleaded: "Do not
cast me from Your Presence, but renew a right spirit within me".
I echo David's prayers today in my own life, and thank You from
the bottom of my heart for the intercession that You offer,
beautiful, wonderful Spirit of the Living God!

Your Brother in Christ,
Brian

The Unrivaled Power of Prayer

"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" (Romans 8:26).

We realize that we are energized by the Holy Spirit for prayer;
and we know what it is to pray in accordance with the Spirit;
but we don't often realize that the Holy Spirit Himself prays
prayers in us which we cannot utter ourselves. When we are
born again of God and are indwelt by the Spirit of God, He
expresses for us the unutterable.

"He," the Holy Spirit in you, "makes intercession for the
saints according to the will of God" (8:27). And God searches
your heart, not to know what your conscious prayers are, but to
find out what the prayer of the Holy Spirit is.

The Spirit of God uses the nature of the believer as a temple
in which to offer His prayers of intercession. "... your body
is the temple of the Holy Spirit ..." (1 Corinthians 6:19).
When Jesus Christ cleansed the temple, "... He would not allow
anyone to carry wares through the temple" (Mark 11:16). The
Spirit of God will not allow you to use your body for your own
convenience. Jesus ruthlessly cast out everyone who bought and
sold in the temple, and said, "My house shall be called a house
of prayer ... But you have made it a 'den of thieves' " (Mark
11:17).

Have we come to realize that our "body is the temple of the
Holy Spirit"? If so, we must be careful to keep it undefiled
for Him. We have to remember that our conscious life, even
though only a small part of our total person, is to be regarded
by us as a "temple of the Holy Spirit". He will be responsible
for the unconscious part which we don't know, but we must pay
careful attention to and guard the conscious part for which we
are responsible.

Authorized By The Oswald Chambers Publications Association, Ltd.
(c) 1997 RBC Ministries--Grand Rapids, MI 49555-0001

=====
--
Brian Masinick, mailto:masinick@yahoo.com
Home page: www.geocities.com/masinick/

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