Praying Like Monks, Living Like Fools: An Invitation to the Wonder and Mystery of Prayer

by Tyler Staton

He pleaded with God to reveal himself to each of them in a way they could perceive and receive as eternal love. He prayed by name for their salvation.

When he died, ninety-six of the names on that list had become answered prayers. A 96 percent success rate in prayer is not bad. I’d take those odds any day of the week. But it gets better. At Moody’s funeral, the four remaining names were each in attendance. Those four friends were, independently, so moved by the memorial service that they all came to faith—at his funeral!1

God doesn’t dream of the church on fire; God dreams of the city reborn. God’s dream isn’t that the church will improve its programs, grow in number, add another worship service, and host an influential conference. All of that is fine. It’s just not what God dreams about. God dreams about pouring his Spirit out on the whole city.

Creation happens when the Spirit gives life to a barren place.

In the beginning, the Spirit hovered over barren chaos to bring forth creation. In redemption, the same Spirit hovers over the barren womb of Sarah to begin the work of re-creation.

And the angel’s message to Mary, providing a bit of necessary context for what’s happening within her, sounds nearly identical to Genesis 1 and God’s promise to Abraham and Sarah in Genesis 17.

“‘Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.’ By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive.”15 The English phrase “within them” comes from the single Greek word koilia, which has as one of its meanings the word womb.16 Jesus calls you and me the “womb” that God’s Spirit inhabits to create new life.

What if your day belonged to the God who loves you without needing to control you, the God whose chief concern is your deepest well-being, who is gently shaping you into the very best version of yourself and who breathes into your exhaustion with abundant life?