Intercession: The Throne Ministry # 22

Praying the Word

Isaiah 28:10; Ephesians 6:17

Beloved, we cannot express too much the importance of praying the Word of God as the Holy Spirit leads us. Through the years, praying the Word has become a vital force in our prayer life. All of the preceding chapters of this book have been brought forth as a result of our individually and corporately praying the Word. As we have encountered a problem or trial, or a move of the enemy of God, we have searched together the Word of God to pray; and the Holy Spirit has always given it to us. Oh, maybe not immediately, but over a period of time the Word has always come, "...precept upon precept, line upon line ... here a little, and there a little ..." as the Lord has taught us to wield "the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God" (Isaiah 28:10; Ephesians 6:17).

Whatever the need, the Lord has always given His Word, the Written Word to pray. The Word says, "For ever, O Lord, Thy Word is settled in heaven"; and the Word of God by the Spirit must be the Source, the Fountain-head, and the Ultimate Cause for all our praying. The Word of God is the only creative force that can bring forth that which is according to the Will of God.

Therefore, in each situation and circumstance, we need to pray and stand upon the "settled" Word of God; for it is the Holy Spirit's way to give a Word from the Whole of God's Word to meet any situation. We have found that whenever we get into problems of any kind, whether they be trials, persecutions, weaknesses, or afflictions, our human spirit and soul may begin to sink. If the problem is allowed to depress us, it will push our spirit and soul downward, and thus our emotions, our mind, and our communion with God will be brought into a place of being pressed out of measure. In this position, we will not be able to come up over the situation. Now, "to overcome" means  "to come up over." Overcoming is not simply sounding highly victorious and spiritual. Overcoming means that in every problem we face, we allow the Resurrected, Ascended, Glorified, Exalted Christ to have His rightful position in our hearts.

For example, let us say that we are attacked by fear. In the midst of a problem or trial, some sort of fear overwhelms us, and we become frightened in some way. We become upset, our mind goes out of control, and we can only think about the problem. Though we desperately try to put our mind on the Lord, the situation has control over us. Now how do we "come up over" this? One way to come up over this in the Spirit is to pray the Word. Many of us have done this without realizing it. The Word of God is God's Will. Praying the Word by the Spirit is praying God's Will back to Him, and there is no greater prayer to pray than the Word of God.

~T. Austin-Sparks~

(continued with # 23)