"Tho' sundered far; by faith they meet"

This line comes from the hymn "From Every Stormy Wind That Blows", written by Hugh Stowell and composed by Thomas Hastings. The entire third verse is as follows:

"There is a spot where spirits blend, Where friend holds fellowship with friend, 

Tho' sundered far; by faith they meet Around the common mercy seat."

I love prayer, and I love praying with other people. It ties you together like nothing else can. I have a prayer group that meets once a week, and this past week one of the girls mentioned how amazing it is that the four of us there were all from different states (and I could add: different backgrounds, schooling, families, etc.), yet the Lord brought us together this semester to live on the same hall and to pray together. Crazy. God is too good to us.

"Spirits blend." There is no strife when prayer is present. When two or three are gathered in God's name, he is there among them. Like-minded believers become even more like-minded when they pray together. Your spirits meld and you understand one another better as you come before the throne of God with each other. 

"Friend holds fellowship with friend." The best thing you can do for someone is to pray for them, and the most enriching thing you can do for a relationship is to pray together. Prayer is intentional, intimate, the baring of our hearts before our Father. To pray with someone is to have close fellowship with them.

"Tho' sundered far; by faith they meet." This is what I was getting at earlier. The word "sundered" means to be separated or parted. It's amazing to see the bond that Christians have with each other even though they have never met. This past summer I felt closer with some people from Mexico that I had met ten minutes prior, than other people that I have known most of my life, simply because I knew we had the same Father and we prayed to Him together. The prayer group with the girls on my hall has given me a deeper relationship with them that I don't believe could have happened otherwise. 

"Around the common mercy seat." The mercy seat is a place of glory and reverence, but it is also a place of acceptance and familiarity. We do not need to "prepare ourselves" to pray, for our Father is always ready to hear us. The mercy seat is common in that it is widespread. I believe there are people all over the world that are praying to God right now. That is amazing to think about, and to know that God hears them all! 

What an awesome God we have! Let us not take the privilege of prayer lightly!