Prayer in the spirit or Holy Spirit-led prayer enables prayer for the unknown.  

  • “So too the [Holy] Spirit comes to our aid and bears us up in our weakness; for we do not know what prayer to offer nor how to offer it worthily as we ought, but the Spirit Himself goes to meet our supplication and pleads in our behalf with unspeakable yearnings and groanings too deep for utterance. And He Who searches the hearts of men knows what is in the mind of the [Holy] Spirit [what His intent is], because the Spirit intercedes and pleads [before God] in behalf of the saints according to and in harmony with God’s will. [Ps. 139:1, 2.]” Romans 8:26,27 (AMPC)  

Therefore,  when the Holy Spirit helps us, He pleads the perfect will of God on behalf of oneself and/or concerning people and situations that we may know nothing about (in our own natural mind) which may involve family or kinfolk.1  On a personal note, there are two things that I’m assured or confident about during Holy Spirit-led prayer or praying in tongues:  

  1. I’m praying in keeping with God’s will for my life because it’s impossible for the Holy Spirit to pray inappropriately.  
  1. It keeps the devil out of my business because Holy Spirit-led prayer is between me and God the Father only. (The devil is powerless to read minds; the devil can only attempt to give a thought.)  

W.E. Vine (1996) delineates that “Prayer is properly addressed to God the Father per Matthew 6:6; John 16:23; Ephesians 1:17 & 3:14, and the Son per Acts 7:59; 2Co 12:8; but in no instance in the N.T. is prayer addressed to the Holy Spirit.” 2  That is because the Holy Spirit is right here with us.  

Upon the Resurrection and Ascension of the Lord Jesus seated at the right hand of God the Father, the Ministry of the Holy Spirit on earth returned. For the Holy Spirit departed after the first Adam’s disobedience (read Genesis 2:16-17 & 3:1-6) resulting in the fall of all mankind. During the Old Testament/Old Covenant between the LORD God and mankind, God’s powerful Anointing in the person of the Holy Spirit was limited to specific people (i.e., Moses, Joshua, Elijah, Elisha, etc.) until God the Father sent the gift of His only begotten Son – JESUS (also referred to as the last Adam) to reconcile mankind to Himself. Jesus the Anointed One and His Anointing walked in perfect obedience to the will of God the Father on behalf of all mankind. The redemptive work of Christ Jesus facilitated the Holy Spirit’s unlimited return; “sealed” (read 2Co 1:22) within the saved.  

  • Faith believes God when the rest of the world refuses to obey: 
    • Faith is required for salvation (Romans 10:9-10) 
    • Faith is required to receive the Holy Spirit (Galatians 3:13-14) 
    • Faith is what pleases God the Father (Hebrews 11:6) 
    • Faith is essential to prayer (Mark 11:22-24)  

Peace . . . Harriet 

1 Hagin, K.E. (2007). Tongues: Beyond The Upper Room. (pp. 291-296). Faith Library Publications: Tulsa, OK.

2 Vine, W.E. (1996). Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. (p. 872). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, Inc.