God's Holy Fire: 'At the Center of God's Love'

Prayer is a gift from God empowered by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit intercedes for us, and this intercession goes beyond our words (Romans 8:26-27). Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, gives us access to God (Ephesians 2:18). The Spirit of God within us joins with our spirit and testifies that we are God's children so we can approach him as our "Abba Father" (Romans 8:14-17). Thus, we can come to the Creator and Sustainer of the universe at any time and know we are valued and heard. So if we want to stay in the "center of God's love," we must take advantage of this grace of prayer — intentionally coming into the presence of God, entreating the Holy Spirit to intercede for us and carry us along in our moments of prayer as we speak to God, spirit to Spirit (Romans 8:27; 1 Corinthians 2:10-16). Praying in the Spirit is to center ourselves in the grace and love of God. We, as his dearly loved children, come to him in dependent trust and confident hope, knowing that we are heard because of the gift of his Spirit within us.