At a Loss for Words (Friday Devotional)

“Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words.”

- Romans 8:26

Sometimes you can’t find the words to match your feelings. It can happen because you’re awestruck—for example, when you’re peering into the Grand Canyon or staring up at Mount Everest, no descriptor seems to do justice to your awe. It can happen because you’re confused—after all, if you can’t even understand what’s going on, it’s obviously going to be hard to describe it. Indeed, any emotion, when taken to the extreme, from joy to sadness to anger, can so overwhelm you that you lose the ability to describe what you’re feeling. When you’re truly overwhelmed, you’re often at a loss for words.

This can happen when you pray too. Prayer is the most direct way we relate to God, so emotion should be a natural part of every conversation with God. And when you’re overwhelmed with emotion—whether you’re approaching God in ecstasy, tragedy, bewilderment, or rage—there will be times when you want to pray, when you know you need to pray, but you won’t be able to find the words.

Thankfully, even in those moments, there is grace. Romans 8:26 says that when those times come that your vocabulary can’t measure up to your feelings and when your weakness leaves you unable to properly seek God’s will, the Holy Spirit steps in to do what you cannot, interceding on your behalf. With “sighs too deep for words”, God ensures that your relationship with Him remains strong, even when you are not.

Even when life overwhelms you and words fail you, God never leaves you. So don’t be too afraid or too ashamed to come to Him in prayer in those times, even when you’re at a loss for words. His grace will fill in the blanks.