Praying by the Spirit to Become the Person God Is Building

Introduction

"It's true that we have the vocabulary, we have the lexicons, we have words (...). We don't know what we should really ask for." That is how this "7 to 9" opens, the weekly prayer and worship gathering of Impact Centre Chrétien Montréal, which the church calls "the gathering of the thirsty".

That evening, there is no sermon. The leader guiding the prayer (his name is not given in the video) says it plainly: "There is no point in us going after a new revelation when we haven't yet taken the time to let what we received from God settle." The evening becomes a time of intercession, fed by the previous Sunday's message from Pastor Célestin on Ephesians 3 and by the theme of the season: "new season, new version of me".

Between the moments of worship and prayer, several short exhortations give the evening its thread. This article gathers them. You will find prayer topics that are rarely prayed: not prayers for food, a car or a job, but prayers that change destinies.

Message Outline

1. Praying by the Spirit, because we do not know how to pray

• The evening begins with Romans 8:26-27: the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes with groanings that cannot be uttered.
• The image used: when a six-year-old learns to write, the adult places a hand over the child's. "And what the Spirit of God does is place his hand over ours too."
• Paul writes to the Ephesians to pray at all times in the Spirit with all kinds of prayer (Ephesians 6:18). The emphasis falls on "in the Spirit": praying under his direction, not according to our own feelings or our own orientation.
• "If we are going to repeat a single word, if it is according to your will, we are ready to do it." The goal is not to have beautiful sentences, but to be led.
• The Holy Spirit is presented as "our advantage". Jesus said it: it is to our advantage that he goes away, so that the Counselor may come (John 16:7). "When you are on our side, we have an advantage."
• "We do not want to leave this place the way we came in." The assembly comes "like empty vessels" and asks to be filled.

2. Letting the word received settle, and praying differently

• Before asking, the assembly gives thanks for the word heard on Sunday. "Thanksgiving calls for new graces."
• Some words are not pleasant to the soul: they do not comfort our ego or our place in sin. We thank God anyway, because it is the word that frees, delivers and transforms.
• Echoing Pastor Célestin, the leader makes a "sad observation": the prayers we are fondest of are the ones that meet our earthly needs, "that give us food, that give us the car, that give us the job". Yet "there are prayers that change destinies".
• Hence the choice for the evening: "Sometimes we have to take the time to let the word we received from our fathers settle."
• The same principle holds for every appointment with God: "When you want to receive, you prepare." You can come to a major gathering and receive nothing for three days because you did not prepare the vessel. "When the Lord summons us, it is because he wants to do us good."

3. Becoming the person God is building

• The starting text is Galatians 2:20: "I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me."
• The prayer topic: "Lord, grant us the grace to become the person you are building." A person who loves God, possessed by his love, who puts God at the center, filled with agape and compassion, "who has time to serve God", who cares for the brokenhearted.
• "The person whose ego is dead and in whose heart Christ lives. The person who does not operate by merit, but by the grace of God."
• A clear instruction: "Do not pray for your neighbor, do not pray for your brother, do not pray for your sister. Pray for yourself, that the Lord would build you."
• The image of the potter: not being rebellious children who refuse to be shaped, but the clay that lets itself be molded and remolded, "broken, rebuilt, built according to your plan" (Jeremiah 18:6).
• People can build, as at the tower of Babel, but what is not built by God is short-lived (Psalm 127:1). "What God builds outlasts time. What God builds outlasts generations." The earth is not our destination: "the best is yet to come".
• Being built can hurt. Paul says: "I beat my body and bring it into subjection" (1 Corinthians 9:27), like an athlete aiming at a goal. "This is not a prayer of despair, it is a prayer of hope", because the Holy Spirit, our guarantee, carries us.
• "We do not want to be theorists of your word. A theorist is someone who knows but does not live what he knows." The Bible asks us not to merely listen to the word, but to put it into practice (James 1:22).

4. Reflecting his glory in a generation without bearings

• "If we, who were saved at the price of your blood, do not reflect your glory, who will reflect your glory?"
• The world is described as a society "lacking bearings", where evil is called good and good is called evil (Isaiah 5:20). In this generation, "the Lord is looking for a man, he is looking for a woman, he is looking for a church to display his image".
• When people see our good works, they will glorify our Father (Matthew 5:16). "When I see this sister, when I see this brother, when I see this man, yes, I understand that there is hope."
• Our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19). We cannot carry the Spirit and also offer our body, our thoughts and our lips to the pleasures of this world: "there can be no cohabitation".
• God is looking for men and women who will let his light shine "like Daniel, like Joseph, like Paul, like Peter", in neighborhoods, at work, in the family and in the nation.

5. Manifesting God's purposes

• "The counsel of Yahweh stands fast forever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations" (Psalm 33:11). The creation waits with eager expectation for the revealing of the children of God (Romans 8:19).
• There are shared purposes, which the Church will manifest together for its city. And there are purposes tied to your own life: "Even with my good will and all my prayers, I will not manifest that purpose, because the Lord prepared it for you."
• "There is someone who is suffering and you alone are the solution." Hence this powerful sentence: "Not manifesting God's purposes is depriving someone of God's grace."
• How will the nations become disciples, how will the widow and the orphan be cared for, how will sinners return to Christ, if these purposes remain blocked?
• The image of childbirth: it hurts, it is the time of pushing, but when the child is born, the tears turn into cries of joy. The prayer that then rises from the assembly is simple: "Do not leave me as I am. Do not leave me where I am."
• A conviction for Montreal, Quebec and Canada: "This is not the time to drag our feet." We do not want to be "that barren woman" when God has put everything at our disposal.

6. May the Holy Spirit be at ease in you

• The leader rereads Sunday's passage, Ephesians 3:14-19: being strengthened with power by the Spirit in the inner person, so that Christ may dwell in our hearts through faith.
• Pastor Célestin had explained the Greek word translated "dwell" (katoikeô): the Spirit comes to live in us "as the owner", someone who is not just passing through.
• The Holy Spirit is the guarantee, the down payment of our inheritance (Ephesians 1:14): "the inheritance is already there, but you are given an advance".
• The image of luggage: someone who visits you comes for dinner and conversation, "he doesn't come with his toothbrush". The one who moves in arrives with his luggage. If the Spirit is at ease in us, he comes with his fruit, and that fruit will be visible in the house.
• We ask forgiveness for the places where he was "treated like a stranger", where our behavior, our desires and our impurities grieved him (Ephesians 4:30). "Holy Spirit, forgive us, but come back. Settle in. (...) Take the place that is yours."
• Operating without him is operating by the flesh, thinking that we are capable of everything.

7. Grasping the love of Christ

• On Sunday, the pastor spoke about a Greek word (katalambanô) that means to hurry, to seize. Love is not something you take your time over: "It is precious."
• The image of the chocolate: during a promotion, probably in France, adults were throwing themselves into the store aisles to get a chocolate that had become scarce. Some found it absurd, but it showed how much it mattered to them. In the same way, "we throw ourselves at love".
• "We cannot show love without knowing Christ. The more you know Christ, the more you show love." Without him, we fall back on the love of TV dramas and series.
• The prayer becomes a confession against selective love: "You love me, I love you. You don't love me, I don't love you. (...) You are from my region, I love you. You are not from my region, I don't love you." Then: "Lord, this is madness. It is ignorance. Forgive us. Forgive me. Every time I showed love only because I looked at the face of the person."
• The assembly asks for a love that depends neither on circumstances, nor on skin color, nor on social class: a patient, kind love that does not suspect evil, the long, wide, high and deep love of Ephesians 3:18.

Key Takeaways

• We know how to talk, but we do not know what to ask for: the Spirit places his hand over ours and intercedes for us.
• Before chasing a new revelation, take the time to let the word already received settle.
• The prayer that changes a destiny is this one: "Grant me the grace to become the person you are building."
• The purposes of God tied to your life concern other people: not manifesting them is depriving someone of God's grace.
• The Holy Spirit wants to live in you as at home, and that is where his fruit and the love of Christ become visible.

Personal Application

1. When you pray, do you first ask for the Spirit's direction, or do you arrive with your list already made?
2. Which word you received recently have you not yet taken the time to let "settle" in your life?
3. In which area are you resisting the potter when he wants to reshape you?
4. Who around you may be waiting for you to manifest what God has placed in you?
5. Is your love selective: reserved for those who love you, who are like you or who come from your region?

Verses Cited

• Romans 8:26-27
• Ephesians 6:18
• John 16:7
• Galatians 2:20
• Jeremiah 18:6
• Psalm 127:1
• 1 Corinthians 9:27
• James 1:22
• Isaiah 5:20
• Matthew 5:16
• 1 Corinthians 6:19
• Psalm 33:11
• Romans 8:19
• Ephesians 3:14-19
• Ephesians 1:14
• Ephesians 4:30

Frequently Asked Questions

What does it mean to pray by the Spirit according to Romans 8:26?

We have the vocabulary and the words, but we do not know what we should really ask for. The Spirit helps us in our weakness and intercedes with groanings that cannot be uttered. The image given that evening is of an adult placing a hand over the hand of a six-year-old to teach him to write: the Spirit places his hand over ours when we pray.

Why was there no sermon during this 7 to 9?

The leader of the evening explained that there is no point in going after a new revelation until we have taken the time to let the word already received settle. The evening was therefore devoted to intercession, based on Sunday's message on Ephesians 3 and the theme "new season, new version of me".

What does it mean to let the Holy Spirit be at ease in us?

The Holy Spirit does not want to be a passing visitor but to live in us as at home. A passing guest comes for dinner and leaves; the one who moves in arrives with his luggage. When the Spirit dwells in us and is at ease, he comes with his fruit, and that fruit becomes visible in our life.