Spirit of Grace & Prayer

I know many within our church family have been feeling discouraged in the area of prayer. So many have been praying faithfully for years, and have not seen the kind of fruit they expected. Maybe expectations need to be re-examined. I don't know. But I think about the countless inter-cultural missionaries who laboured in prayer for years without ever seeing the fruit they so longed to taste. It wasn't until some of these people died before others began to see the breakthrough's the first pioneers longed to see. A beautiful picture of faithfulness. 

I too have felt discouraged. Tired. Growing weary for sure. But as of late I have been experiencing something different in my spirit. I sense something changing in me. It is like God has given me a spirit of grace and of prayer. Likely why this text jumped out at me. But I think something has shifted in my spirit. Sure I am praying for spiritual break-throughs in the lives of people like I have always done, but first and foremost I feel a renewed hunger for God. I know before I can expect any renewal to happen in our community, it needs to begin first in me. Reminds me of an old AB Simpson hymn called "Jesus Only". One of the lines goes like this. "Once it was my working, His it hence shall be; Once I tried to use Him, Now He uses me; Once the power I wanted, Now the Mighty One, Once for self I laboured, Now for Him alone." That's just one of the lines. Check out the whole hymn. It's a good word for us today.

Lord, if this is You, desiring to give us a spirit of grace and prayer, we'll take all You got. But let it lead us to You only. I am sure everything else as a result will fall in it's rightful place.