A WORD FOR TODAY, January 11, 2021
Peggy Hoppes
We pray you have been blessed by this daily devotion. If you received it from a friend, you can see other devotions and studies by visiting our website at www.awordfortoday.org.
Blessings. Peg
A WORD FOR TODAY, January 11, 2021
“In the same way, the Spirit also helps our weaknesses, for we don’t know how to pray as we ought. But the Spirit himself makes intercession for us with groanings which can’t be uttered. He who searches the hearts knows what is on the Spirit’s mind, because he makes intercession for the saints according to God.” Romans 8:26-27, WEB
We moved to England in January 1997. As we prepared for that move, many people told me about the differences in culture I would face. In many ways life was so much simpler there with far fewer choices. The television, even with cable, offered only about thirty stations. The grocery stores were smaller, and thus offered fewer options of brands and products. We had fewer options for restaurants and entertainment. After four years, we learned to live with less of everything.
Then, when it was time to return to the United States, many people talked about the culture shock we would experience at home. We didn’t really expect it to be a problem, after all we were only gone four years. Yet, we found the transition overwhelming. We looked forward to shopping in the big box stores again where we could find everything that we could not find in England. We were astounded with the number of choices we had in the grocery stores. Our hometowns were nearly unrecognizable. The hundreds of television stations were filled with commercials for drugs and lawyers as we had never seen in the past.
There was so much to accomplish in those days of transition. We wanted to visit every fast food place that we missed. We wanted to buy things that we had lived without for four years. We wanted to visit our family and friends. We knew where we would be stationed, but where would we live? Where would we attend church? Where would the children go to school? There was so much to do that we didn’t know where to start. It was even overwhelming to pray. How do you make so many decisions when there are so many choices? How do you ask God for help when you don’t even have the words to say in prayer?
I wonder how many of you are feeling overwhelmed today, so overwhelmed that you do not even know how to pray? There are often moments in all of our lives when we face multiple problems all at once. In the past few months, we have had to struggle with our health, our finances, our relationships, our cultural and political division. I’ve been praying, especially for those specific prayer requests I’ve heard. I’ve prayed for friends and neighbors. I’ve prayed for peace and hope. I’ve prayed for truth and light. Yet, I still feel like I don’t know what to say. We know we need to pray and ask for prayer but everything in our world is chaotic and overwhelming. It is so difficult to find the words.
It is at those times that we have an intercessor, the Holy Spirit, who goes to God for us to ask for everything we need according to our Father’s good and perfect will. Trust that He knows what is needed in this world and in your life. Do your best and pray what you know, then let go and let Him intercede for you, for He knows what you need more than you do. This world is overwhelming, even at the best of times, but now is the time to have faith that God knows and He can lead you to make the right decisions in this time to glorify Him with all you do.
A WORD FOR TODAY is posted five days a week – Monday through Friday. The devotional on Wednesday takes a look at the scripture from the Revised Common Lectionary for the upcoming Sunday. A WORD FOR TODAY is posted on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/A-Word-for-Today-Devotional/339428839418276. Like the page to receive the devotion through Facebook. For information and to access our archives, visit http://www.awordfortoday.org.