16. Romans 8:26-27 (Page 862-863) 26 And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. 27 And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will.

18. Romans 8:18-25 18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19 For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now.

19. 23 And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. 24 For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.

23. 1 Corinthians 2:11 11 No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit.

25. Much of nature seemed to be an excited repetition Like that of an excited schoolmaster saying the same thing over and over again The grass seemed signaling to me with all of its fingers at once The crowded stars seemed bent upon being understood The sun would make me see him if he rose a thousand times The recurrences of the universe rose to a maddening rhythm of an incantation And I began to see an idea

26. In short I had always believed that the world involved magic Now I thought perhaps that it involved a magician And this pointed a profound emotion always present in subconscious That this world of ours has some purpose And if there is a purpose There is a person I had always felt life first as a story And if there is a story There is a storyteller