A Burden for Prayer: 5 Days to Prayer Motivated by the Holy SpiritSýnishorn

John Hyde had a heavy burden for a pastor in India. He began to pray for him and with great concern began to tell God how cold and indifferent this pastor was and how he was a great hindrance to God’s work. While John prayed, God convicted him for his critical spirit and cooperating with the “accuser of the brethren” and not with the Holy Spirit. As he was meditating on Philippians 4:8 he learned that he needed to dwell not only on things that were true but also lovely and even worthy of praise. . . . “Is there anything I can praise You for in this pastor’s life?” John asked God. He was reminded of many things that he could genuinely praise God for in the pastor’s life. What was the result? He later learned that the pastor’s heart had experienced a revival at the exact time of his praise. Commit your concern to the Spirit of God and let Him motivate and guide you as you take it to the Lord in prayer. His motivating love is radically different than the critical spirit generated by the “accuser" of the brethren.

How can God enable us to experience the Spirit’s loving motivation in our prayer lives? Over the course of this study, we’ll glean four key principles of guidance from Romans 9:1–5.