When I was a little girl, at the beginning of church services, there would be a prayer of invocation. In an effort to streamline services, many churches have removed that portion of the program. But I kind of miss it.

The prayer of invocation was a summoning of the Holy Spirit. It was a call for the power of God to be with us in the service. As an adult, I realize that inviting the spirit in is no longer a necessity. As New Testament believers, we believe that the spirit dwells within us at the point of conversion. So we don’t need to invoke, or call the Spirit in, so much as we need to be sensitive to the spirit’s prompting.

The invocation, then is not so much for the Spirit, as it is for us. It is to call us to attention to the Spirit’s work within us.

Some time ago, there was a family that made a little song on family feud. They danced and clapped their hands, while reciting ”Holy Spirit, activate.” It was like a personal invocation. I’m not sure it was the theologically accurate though. I believe the Spirit is always at work within us.

Have you heard the Spirit speaking to you lately? What do you need in order to both hear, and obey?

May the God who reveals God’s self, shine in your hearts today.