The groaning Spirit.

Do you ever catch yourself in a bit of a rut?

You know those days. The days where nothing seems quite right. The days when you’re trying your hardest to be positive, but there isn’t much to be positive about.

In Romans, I think Paul describes exactly why we feel this way:

Romans 8:22-25 – We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

The original sin of man has caused the perfect creation of God to be flipped completely upside down. You can look around at the world we live in today and see it as plain as day. This is just not the world and existence that God created.

Paul says that the Holy Spirit knows that things aren’t right. Why? Because the Spirit knows the perfect Creator. Our souls long for something better because deep inside us our Spirit is fighting to get out of this filthy earthly shell and back home to perfect paradise with God.

Anyone who has truly followed Christ for any extended period of time can tell you that once you find Christ, your life has a whole new meaning. Once you meet Him, your expectations of how things should be are lifted exponentially; you are no longer satisfied with what this life has to offer.

I had never thought of it this way until I read this verse. It isn’t just my brain that makes me unhappy with things in my life, it’s my Spirit groaning, “Get me out of here!”

Paul does give us hope in the next part of the chapter:

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.

So, although we don’t fully grasp the concept and never will this side of Heaven, we can know that our Spirit is speaking to God even when we cannot find the words. The Holy Spirit knows the way it should be, and will constantly be lifting us up and giving us hope in our Lord because He is our hope and our salvation.

Even in the darkest hours, may you wait ever so patiently on Him. You can be assured that there is something more to this life than the daily grind and that we have a God who is pulling us closer to Him daily.