St. James United Methodist Church recently issued the following announcement.
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. Romans 8:26 (NIV)
Dear friends,
How is your prayer life? How are things going in your conversations with God? Have you ever had difficulty praying? Do you have difficulty during this time of ongoing health crisis and the human rights struggle playing out on city streets? I know that I have struggled at times. What is the right way to pray? We know that the Apostles of Jesus struggled. They asked Jesus on one occasion to teach them how to pray and he responded to the by teaching the Lord’s prayer, a prayer we continue to pray faithfully to this day. The Lord’s prayer gives a pattern for praying—we don’t always have to use the exact words—sometimes we can use the form of the prayer and fill in the blanks by subject. There are times however when it doesn’t feel like it’s enough to use this prayer and we’re at a loss for words to pray anything else. Paul gives us encouragement in Romans 8:26. You don’t have to stop praying when you don’t know what to say to God. Sometimes it’s enough just to open your heart to God and the Holy Spirit does the rest by interceding for us, wordlessly translating the needs deep in our hearts to the Father in prayer. Don’t give up on prayer, especially in these times. We need to keep praying more than ever, even when we’re unsure of the right words to say. Meet with God and God will do the rest.
Live worship update:
Just a reminder that this week we are meeting for outdoor worship in the parking lot at St James and Hope during regular worship hours. I look forward to seeing all of you there. We will also meet outdoors three times in August: the 2nd, 16th, and 30th. Please spread the word and join us on those Sundays. We will also continue to meet virtually through our online worship services available on Facebook, YouTube, and our church websites.
Keep the faith everyone. I know times are strange and perplexing, but nothing is too hard for the Lord!
With grace and peace,
Pastor Matt Kofahl
Original source can be found here.
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