"Come pray with me" were the words I heard spoken softly in my spirit as I awoke. The Lord was calling me to join him in prayer.

Can you picture sitting on a bench beside the Lord while he lifts up his face to the Father and prays? What would you see? Imagine the scene in your mind. Put yourself in the picture alongside Jesus. Sit in awe and take it in. Notice the details: Jesus doesn't bow his head in shame in order to pray. He lifts up his face to his Father. As he does so, his countenance glows as he smiles a radiant smile and peers beyond earth's pale shadows into heaven's shining reality. What is he seeing that makes him express such secret joy? What does he know that we don't know?

When you hear Jesus pray, you'll notice immediately that he doesn't pray like most of us do. We all learned to pray like sinners. Not so with Jesus. He prays like a son talking with his father– a father whom he knows loves him dearly! He talks to God like someone whose words are welcome. He is not intruding on his Father's time. He only says things once, without repetition, knowing someone is bending low to listen, paying careful attention. He doesn't begin by confessing unworthy feelings because he has no shame in his soul: only quiet confidence and love. He is a whole man at peace in a holy place.

Instead, Jesus starts his prayers acknowledging how wonderful his Father is. Jesus likes to worship! Oh, he is very real and truthful about how he feels and what he needs or what he wants, but he doesn't have the distracting weights like we often carry. He doesn't have the added burden of a defiled conscience or a long list of trespasses that he needs to confess. He literally has nothing to be embarrassed about, and for him, prayer is pure joy!

When Jesus prays, it is with a calm assurance because he knows his father hears him and that his prayer will be answered. Indeed, he knows his desires and wishes are valued. He speaks easily, not like someone having to plead his case before a reluctant judge. His requests are not packaged in stained-glass tones; they have no phony affectations; just a genuine conversation that has holy angels leaning in closely to listen.

If you'll notice, Jesus doesn't get very loud. His voice has an embedded peace even when presenting an urgent petition. "Father, you know..." he says. There is no anxious desperation; no quiver of self-condemnation; no anger from false guilt; no fear due to concealed sin; no doubt about the outcome; just an undivided heart filled with unadulterated faith. God has all the power; the devil is being defeated; our choices make a difference; in God's plan, we win in the end. Jesus knows who he is and he knows who he is talking to. That's enough.

It is one thing to pray to the Lord: it another thing to pray with the Lord. It is one thing to pray our agenda; it is something else to pray God's will into being as his co-worker and partner. I've sometimes felt like my prayers didn't make it past the ceiling. But when I've prayed with the Spirit's power, I've known instinctively that my words were heard in heaven's halls. Faith lets us rest our case when we know we've been heard by the Lord.

One reason that we who believe in Jesus (and his present and coming kingdom) need the Holy Spirit as our Helper is so we can pray effectively– so we can pray alongside the Lord. The Spirit of grace assists us in our human weakness or ignorance and helps us know how to pray. He knows the mind of the Lord so with his help we can pray in harmony with the will of our Father in heaven. "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven… in me, in my family, in our government, in this situation!"