The Spirit’s Translation

The Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.

Romans 8:26 NIV

I heard a story about a pastor who frequently visited a woman who was dying from cancer. One day she told him, “I’m so often racked with pain that it’s hard for me to gather my thoughts to pray. Even when I rally a little from the influence of the medication, my mind is still so dull I can’t concentrate for any length of time.”

He looked at her a moment and said, “Well, you can groan, can’t you?”

“Oh yes,” she replied. “My days are spent doing that.”

“Well, never mind that you can’t formulate prayers,” the pastor told her. “The Holy Spirit translates your groans into eloquent petitions and presents them to the Father!”

Can you remember moments in your life when your heart was so heavy that you couldn’t find words to speak to God? Sometimes, even though we’re on our knees in an attitude of prayer, we can only manage to sigh or groan or whisper the Lord’s name. And in those moments, according to Paul, the indwelling Holy Spirit takes our sighs and our groans and brings those prayers to God. He understands the inward turmoil in our life. He is the searcher of our hearts, and He knows us better than we know ourselves.