Why are some prayer needs hard to share?
Sometimes it’s because we would betray another’s confidence. Other requests might be for someone present who’s unwilling to share or doesn’t have insight into their own need. For some petitions, we’re simply not yet prepared to be vulnerable on the matter.
I believe too, we step back from requesting prayer for ourselves. We’ll ask for Aunt Sue’s gall bladder, but we hesitate to say, “I’ve had a big disappointment, and I’m battling bitterness.”
Our greatest needs are often the unspoken ones.
I find comfort in knowing that when I cannot share my request, God is already attending, and His precious Spirit “intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.” (Romans 8:26) This verse in Romans precedes another verse that God has brought to mind these past months. “…we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him…” A beautiful result of living so long with an unspoken need is that God has made me more acutely tuned to the silent cries of others.
For now, my request is unspoken, but my wordless plea reaches heaven in a resounding fortissimo, and I watch to see what God will do.