When Words Fail Us

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 – Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (NKJV)

In many places, the Bible tells us about prayer; there are too many to begin to mention even a few of them. But to be honest, I find that prayer becomes such a ritualistic activity at times. We pray before meals; some do it after, as well; some of us pray when we go to bed; others pray when we wake up; some of us pray any time under any circumstance. The minister is expected to pray in church, and we begin and end meetings with a prayer. But I find myself falling into repetition, praying the same words quite often. Sometimes, words fail me. Let me explain.

On April 17th, 25 years ago, our eldest grandson almost drowned in our pool. We had an above-ground pool with a winter cover on it, and on top of that was about a foot of ice-cold water with about half an inch of ice on it that morning. We looked after our local grandchildren a couple of days a week, and the little boy and his baby brother were with us that day. He asked for permission, and he went outside. He threw a stick onto the ice, and then climbed in to retrieve it. He fell through the ice and was face down in the water when my wife saw him. I rushed out and jumped in and pulled him out. He was not breathing. We called 911, and the operator told us to give him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. After a while, he started to breathe again, but he was unconscious. The ambulance picked him up and took him to the local hospital, then, accompanied by a doctor and a nurse, he was transferred to a bigger hospital, where he was in a coma for three days. The prognosis was not good.

We agonized and worried; we blamed ourselves for letting him out by himself; I blamed myself for not having the pool area closed in the wintertime. There were so many thoughts going through our minds. We could not eat, and we could not sleep, and we could not pray. I tried to — after all, that's what we were taught — it was part of our life. But words failed me. For three days, we were in a terrible state.

On the fourth day, we went to see him again, but instead of being in the intensive care unit, he was running down the hall, playing with another little patient. He waved at us and said, "Hi Oma! Hi Opa!" and he kept right on playing.

Even though words had failed us when we walked through the valley of shadow of death, we know that God comforted us. Although I know that many people prayed for him, I am also convinced that during those difficult days, the Spirit prayed on our behalf.

Romans 8:26 – Likewise the Spirit also helps us in our weaknesses. For 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. (NKJV)

Prayer: Our Father in heaven, we know that we can always come to You in prayer, and that You do indeed hear our prayers. But Lord, there are times when words fail us, and we thank You that the Holy Spirit will then intercede for us. We offer this prayer in Jesus' name. Amen.

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