Some of the simplest activities we do contain more grace of God than we realize. My son is almost one year old and is on the fringe of walking on his own. By himself he can wobble up to a frozen standing position; but with my help, that is awkwardly bending down and holding my hands where he can lean on them, he can make haste around the house. He gives effort, but if he only knew of mine.

Without the gracious work of God in prayer, we are merely infants wobbling up to a frozen standing position. But because of the gracious work of God, our prayers make haste effectively to the throne room of God. There are two sides when it comes to prayer—ours and God’s. We offer up prayers, but what is God doing? He is doing more than we know. Here is a quick snapshot of God’s gracious work in prayer.

The Father graciously receives our prayers. As we pray “Our Father in heaven” (Matt. 6:9) and give thanks to Him for everything (Eph. 5:20), He graciously extends His mighty ear to hear us. How busy God must be to rule a world full of billions of people! Not to mention a universe that takes light years just to move a small distance. Yet, He takes the time to listen and welcome what we have to say to Him. My life is very full currently, but it is my joy as a dad, to bend down and receive my sons request to walk. Let us not take for granted that the Father hears little ol’ me when I talk to Him.

The Son graciously gives us His name. Jesus taught the disciples to pray in His name, promising both His and the Father’s response (John 14:13–14; 15:16; 16:23–24). Jesus’ name is not a magical formula, but the authority by whom we come to access the Father’s grace. Prayers in Jesus’ name rest upon His salvation work and access the Father’s ear because of His authority. How gracious is Jesus is grant us His authority to come and speak to God the Father! The Father does not listen to us because of our merits, but because of Jesus’ merits. Let us remember whose authority we stand on as we approach the Father.

The Spirit graciously helps us in the activity of praying. We don’t always know what to say, but the Spirit does; He intercedes for us through wordless groans (Rom. 8:26–27). Moreover, the Spirit is the conscious arena in which we offer the Father our heartfelt prayers and requests (Eph. 6:18). How gracious is the Spirit to speak on our behalf and help us in our weakness! Even when we cannot muster words in prayer, the Spirit can and does. Let us be assured that the Spirit speaks to the Father on our behalf in prayer.

Prayer is an essential part of the Christian life where we not only get to talk to God, but we get to see His gracious work. Next time you pray, remember God’s grace in prayer as expressed in His trinity. The Father hears us through the authoritative merits of the Son, empowered by the intercession of the Holy Spirit. How gracious is God to give us prayer and to empower the whole process for our benefit! How gracious is God to bend down and enable the whole process of walking with Him.