The Holy Spirit is praying when groanings are too deep for words

"The Holy Spirit is praying" by Susan Bailey (CatholicMom.com)

Photo by Michael Swan (2018) via Flickr; CC BY-ND 2.0[/caption] Recently I brought the Eucharist to a loved in the hospital. It was hardly the quiet and reflective moment that we had hoped for, with doctors and nurses buzzing around us. But we were both certain that Jesus was with us in body, blood, soul, and divinity. It turns out He was closer to us than we ever could have imagined. All I know is that on the way home I felt full. I still cannot find the words to describe it. All I could think of was that scripture passage from Romans 8:26, "The Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words." The best that I could muster was to just lose myself in thought, contemplating what had happened at my loved one's hospital bed. On the surface it was nothing extraordinary; no one would have ever guessed what was truly going on. A few prayers were said in haste so that my loved one could partake of the Eucharist before the medicine she had taken kicked in. It was hardly the holy moment that we desired. Yet later in the car God made it plain that in fact it had been a holy moment as evidenced by my “groanings.” Jesus, incarnate, present in the plain, thin wafer was in the room, so close to us that we could not perceive Him. It reminded me of a line in a song by Amy Grant called "Ask Me How I Know;" it describes it perfectly:

He's in the middle of her pain ... Mercy brings life He's in the middle Mercy in the middle

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfsawi_d5LY When I got home I mentioned to my husband what had happened and I was surprised to hear that he had gone through the same thing just a few days earlier after he had taken Communion to a priest in the hospital. His description of the encounter was quite unremarkable, just like mine. And yet, he had the exact same experience of the groanings too deep for words. I realize now that these times of such groanings are wonderful and blessed gifts that cause us to transcend our earth-bound lives and enter into the mystery of God. We are lifted up beyond the need of empirical proof. We don't need facts and figures and logical arguments; it is enough that the heart knows that something extraordinary is happening. We don't need words because they are quite inadequate to describe the width, height, length and depth of God's love (Ephesians 3:18). I even wondered how I could craft a column about this experience given the inadequacy of words. I am grateful that I could even get this rough description down on paper, for as I write, I can relive that amazing moment of grace. And, better yet, I was afforded the opportunity to experience such grace with my loved one in the hospital and with my beloved at home. Grace is not a moment we can manufacture; we can only recognize that God is about to bestow a gift. It requires having an open heart, ready to receive at any moment. It may mean doing something unexpected, or giving up something we desire. It could take us out of our comfort zone. It cannot happen if we rely on ourselves rather than Him. O Lord, may I be ever ready to receive your gift of grace!