“…the Spirit personally makes our petitions for us
in groans that cannot be put into words…”
--Romans 8:26b
I’ve been thinking a lot about the Spirit praying for us, and in my contemplation my thoughts keep turning back to that prayer that the Lord, Himself teaches us:
Thy will be done,
They kingdom come…
Give us this day, our daily bread…
Deliver us from evil…
I figure that if this is what Jesus, Himself tells us to pray, then that is probably what the Spirit is praying for us. While I am busily pleading with God for health and success and the phone number of a trustworthy plumber, the Spirit is petitioning that God’s will be done, and God’s kingdom will come…
And that one particular phrase, “our daily bread” has stood out to me. Being a bread baker, and biscuit maker, I have my own particular tendency when I hear that phrase—and it leans toward melting butter, crackly golden crust, and orange marmalade (or grilled cheese). But, as I prayed over this scripture recently, I find myself returning again and again to a different idea about my “daily bread.” What if our daily bread, refers not just to food for our stomach. What if it refers to food for our souls as well?
And again, this idea comes straight from the lips of Jesus. In John’s Gospel there is that story about the Samaritan woman at the well. Toward the end of that story the disciples return with food and urge Jesus to have something to eat, but instead of asking if the waffle fries are still warm, the Lord says to them:
“My food is to do the will of the one who sent me…” (John 4:34)
and that phrase keeps coming into my prayer—though now (for some reason) I am also thinking about waffle fries. Extra crispy… and a chocolate shake…
But, back to the point. What does it mean to my prayer life to know that when Jesus speaks of daily bread, He might mean something other than sourdough or pumpernickel. He might be speaking of the sustenance and nourishment that come from doing God’s will. And so, I am wondering if my daily bread might be God’s will; my daily bread might be the gift of a chance to do God’s will; to lean into a difficult moment and say: Not my will, but Thy will be done…
The food of doing God’s will is food for my soul, food for the journey, food to sustain me in my time in the desert. And thinking about this I am reminded of the story we hear at the beginning of each Lent, the story of Jesus fasting in the desert. Immediately after He is baptized, He goes out into the desert and fasts for 40 days. During this time, Satan comes to Jesus and tempts Him with promises of good things: food, security, success… and each time, Jesus responds: Not my will, but God’s will be done.
On the surface, this seems to be simply a story of Jesus turning away from temptation and showing great restraint or will-power or even that He is clever-er than Satan. But, what if this is really a story demonstrating how Jesus was fed during His time of fasting. The food He was nourished with was doing the will of the one who sent Him.
To do God’s will, to walk with God, completely, and in complete harmony with God’s will is to dwell in the Kingdom of God’s Holy Presence. His Spirit… Is there anything more that the Spirit could want for us?
And so I keep praying: Give us this day, our daily bread… And in groans that I cannot put into words, and cannot find on any fast-food menu, what I really mean is: Thy will be done, Thy kingdom come…
At least, that’s what I want to be praying for, even if I can’t put it into words.
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