The Rivers of Prayer: How to Tap Into the Holy Spirit Within You

Devotional

Day 1: Accessing God’s Abundant Provision Through the River Pishon

The river Pishon represents the flow of increase and prosperity that God established from the very beginning. You are invited to bring your needs before Him with boldness, recognizing that your lack is simply an opportunity for His abundance to fill the gap. Do not be shy or hesitant when asking for provision, whether it is for your daily bread or a specific breakthrough in your finances. God is not embarrassed by your requests; He desires for His people to be blessed so they can be a blessing to others. As you pray, expect to receive the witty ideas and inventions that lead to true fruitfulness. [28:38]

On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, 'Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'" (John 7:37-38 ESV)

Reflection: When you consider your current financial or material needs, what is one specific area where you have been hesitant to ask God for a "bold increase," and how might you present that request to Him today?

Day 2: Persevering in Prayer Until the Answer Bursts Forth

The river Gihon symbolizes a rushing stream that eventually bursts forth, much like the process of giving birth. Some answers in prayer require a season of travail, where you continue to labor in the Spirit until the manifestation arrives. This is especially true when you are interceding for the hearts of others or for complex situations that involve the wills of people. You may find yourself praying in the Spirit for extended periods, hovering over a specific area until you sense a release. Trust that even when the results are not immediate, your persistence is working toward a divine breakthrough. [39:12]

To my little children, for whom I am again in the anguish of childbirth until Christ is formed in you! (Galatians 4:19 ESV)

Reflection: Is there a situation or a loved one you have been praying for that feels "stuck"? How can you set aside time this week to simply "hover" over that need in prayer, trusting the Holy Spirit to labor through you?

Day 3: Confronting the Enemy with the Rapid Water of Hiddekel

Hiddekel is a river of rapid water directed toward the enemy, representing the necessity of warfare prayer in the life of a believer. There are moments when you must stop merely asking and start taking authority over the demonic influences attempting to hinder your progress. By putting on the full armor of God and praying in the Spirit, you engage in a spiritual conflict that breaks the power of darkness. Do not be afraid to be demonstrative or loud when rebuking the works of the enemy in your home or community. You have been given the name of Jesus to cast out devils and see the sick healed. [46:59]

Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints. (Ephesians 6:18 ESV)

Reflection: Looking at the "repeat issues" or persistent obstacles in your life, how might God be inviting you to stop "asking" for relief and instead start "taking authority" over the enemy's influence in that specific area?

Day 4: Cultivating Fruitfulness Through Intimate Fellowship

The river Euphrates represents fruitfulness and the deep, personal fellowship you share with the Lord. This expression of prayer is less about making demands and more about worship, repentance, and submitting your heart to God’s will. When you spend time simply lifting your hands and talking to Him, you create an environment where sin loses its grip and spiritual fruit begins to grow. This "Great River" has the power to swallow up evil by keeping you in a state of constant awareness of His presence. Make it a priority to fellowship with Him daily, allowing His Spirit to refine your attitudes and desires. [59:51]

A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. The name of the first is the Pishon... The name of the second river is Gihon... And the name of the third river is the Tigris [Hiddekel]... And the fourth river is the Euphrates. (Genesis 2:10-14 ESV)

Reflection: In the busyness of your daily routine, what is one small way you can create a "quiet space" to simply fellowship with God and listen for His voice, without the pressure of a prayer list?

Day 5: Moving Beyond Rehearsed Prayers into the Spirit

It is easy to fall into a rut of rehearsed, intellectual prayers that lack the fire of the Holy Spirit. However, you have been given the same Spirit that Jesus had, and He desires to flow through you in diverse and powerful ways. Praying in tongues serves as the doorway to these supernatural expressions, moving you from your head into the deep rivers of your spirit. Whether you are in your car, your prayer chair, or walking the floor, do not be afraid to let your expression match the intensity of the Spirit. As you stir up the gift within you, your words will carry a weight of power that changes the atmosphere around you. [13:46]

But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit. (Jude 1:20 ESV)

Reflection: Think about your current prayer habits. What is one practical step you can take this week to move beyond "rehearsed" words and allow the Holy Spirit to lead you into a more spontaneous or intense time of prayer?

Sermon Summary

Jesus’ declaration that “out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water” is taken as a literal template for prayer life: believers carry within them multiple, distinct streams of the Spirit that must be learned, stewarded, and released. These streams are not personality masks but varied expressions of the one Holy Spirit—different anointings, tempos, and purposes that together equip the church to meet needs, birth breakthroughs, engage spiritual conflict, and bear lasting fruit. Practical theology is emphasized: prayer should move beyond rehearsed words into unction, skillful fervency, and a practiced life in the Spirit that produces measurable effectiveness.

Praying in tongues is presented as the primary doorway into those deeper realms; it facilitates guidance, sudden insight, and groanings the mind cannot formulate, and it opens a progression into prophetic and healing ministries. The teaching maps four rivers—drawn from Genesis’s single stream dividing into four—that correspond to specific prayer functions: increase (Pishon), birthing/intercession (Gihon), warfare (Hiddekel), and fruitfulness/commitment (Euphrates). Each river requires different posture, timing, and skill: asking with boldness and expectation, extended travailing prayer until answers are birthed, authoritative spiritual warfare against principality-level hindrances, and sustained worshipful fellowship that produces holiness and fruit.

A strong case is made for practice: effectual, fervent prayer is a skill like any other and brings dunamis—miracle-working power—into ordinary situations. Corporate agreement and vocal, public intercession amplify directional authority, while personal disciplines—regular times of tongues, listening for the Holy Spirit’s unction, and committing to persistent prayer—train believers to operate effectively. Testimonies and pastoral anecdotes underscore that this is not theoretical: prayer in the Spirit has shifted conflicts, opened doors, and produced material provision. The invitation is to stop being boxed into one style and to cultivate all the rivers that flow from the inner man so the church may be alive with diverse spiritual power.

Key Takeaways

1. Rivers flow from the believer's spirit The inner man is described as the source of multiple, living streams—each a distinct expression of the same Holy Spirit. Recognizing prayer as plural rather than singular reframes spiritual life from a single “right way” into a dynamic ecosystem: some seasons demand petition, others travail, still others require warfare or worship. Embracing this changes how believers prepare, practice, and expect results in prayer. [03:12]
2. Different expressions of the Spirit Diversity in manifestation is biblical and necessary; gifts and styles are complementary, not competitive. When the Spirit moves, personality and gifting are merely vehicles—what matters is availability to be used for a specific purpose, whether quiet intercession or loud prophetic declaration. This humility toward variety protects the church from imitation and invites authentic, Spirit-led vocations. [03:29]
3. Praying in tongues opens spiritual realms Tongues is presented as the practical gateway to deeper unction, prophetic insight, and the groanings that bypass the limits of human language. Regular tongue-prayer tunes the believer’s spirit to the Holy Spirit’s frequency, enabling guidance, sudden dreams, and prayer that births outcomes beyond natural calculation. It is less about performance and more about access—access to revelation, power, and perseverance in prayer. [13:15]
4. Four rivers direct focused prayer The Genesis imagery becomes a prayer framework: increase (Pishon), birthing/intercession (Gihon), warfare (Hiddekel), and fruitfulness/fellowship (Euphrates). Each river demands different postures—asking with faith for provision, long travail for birthing answers, skilled authority for spiritual conflict, and regular worshipful commitment for holiness and fruit. Learning to move between these rivers equips believers to pray with precision and expect consistent spiritual effectiveness. [25:07]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:19] - Book: The Supernatural You
[00:38] - One Holy Spirit With Jesus
[02:46] - John 7: Rivers of Living Water
[03:29] - Different expressions of the Spirit
[05:57] - Avoid prayer ruts; be flexible
[10:40] - Ask, Seek, Knock: Prayer types
[13:15] - Praying in tongues: Doorway to Spirit
[22:40] - Testimonies: Prayer in action
[25:07] - Four rivers introduced (Genesis)
[26:57] - Pishon — Prayer for increase
[38:33] - Gihon — Intercession and birthing
[45:21] - Hiddekel — Warfare prayer explained
[57:44] - Euphrates — Fruitfulness & fellowship
[63:47] - Closing exhortation and application

Bible Study Guide

Here is a Bible study guide based on the sermon summary and transcript:

Bible Reading

John 7:37-39 (ESV)
> 37 On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his belly will flow rivers of living water.’” 39 Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive. For as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

Genesis 2:10-14 (ESV)
> 10 A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it divided and became four rivers. 11 The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12 And the gold of that land is good. There is bdellium and onyx stone. 13 The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. 14 And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.

Observation questions

Jesus declared that "out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water." What does the sermon suggest this means for believers in terms of their inner spiritual life? [03:12]
The sermon mentions that the Holy Spirit has "different expressions" and "different anointings." How does this relate to the idea of "rivers" flowing from within a believer? [03:29]
The sermon connects praying in tongues to accessing deeper spiritual realms. What specific benefits of praying in tongues are highlighted? [13:15]
The sermon introduces four rivers from Genesis (Pishon, Gihon, Hiddekel, Euphrates) and links them to specific prayer functions. What are these four functions? [25:07]

Interpretation questions

The sermon emphasizes that "rivers" of living water flow from the believer's "belly" or "inner man." How does this imagery challenge a singular, static view of prayer and encourage a more dynamic approach? [03:12]
The sermon states that "praying in tongues is the doorway to the things of the Holy Ghost." [13:15] How does this interpretation of tongues as a practical gateway help believers move beyond simply reciting words to experiencing deeper spiritual connection and insight?
The sermon describes the four rivers as requiring different "postures, timing, and skill." [25:07] How does understanding these distinct prayer functions help a believer move from a potentially "rehearsed" prayer life to one that is more "effectual and fervent"? [18:25]
The sermon suggests that "effectual, fervent prayer is a skill like any other and brings dunamis—miracle-working power—into ordinary situations." [18:25] How does this perspective shift the understanding of prayer from a passive request to an active, skillful engagement with the spiritual realm?

Application questions

The sermon highlights that believers carry "multiple, distinct streams of the Spirit that must be learned, stewarded, and released." [03:12] What is one specific "stream" or expression of the Spirit's prayer that you feel you need to learn more about or steward better in your own life?
The sermon encourages believers to move beyond a single "right way" of praying and embrace a "dynamic ecosystem" of prayer. [03:12] How can you intentionally practice moving between different prayer expressions (e.g., petition, travail, warfare, worship) this week?
The sermon presents praying in tongues as a "practical gateway to deeper unction, prophetic insight, and the groanings that bypass the limits of human language." [13:15] If you regularly pray in tongues, how can you be more attentive to the guidance, insights, or "groanings" the Holy Spirit might be prompting through this practice? If you don't, what is one step you might take to explore this spiritual discipline?
The sermon describes the "Pishon" river as representing "increase" and "prosperity," encouraging bold asking for needs to be met. [26:57] What is one specific need or area where you can practice praying with boldness and expectation for increase this week?
The "Gihon" river is linked to "birthing/intercession" and "travailing prayer." [38:33] Is there a situation or person in your life that requires extended, persistent prayer, and how might you engage in "travailing prayer" for it?
The "Hiddekel" river is associated with "warfare prayer." [45:21] In what area of your life or in relation to what situation might you need to engage in more authoritative spiritual warfare prayer this week?
The "Euphrates" river represents "fruitfulness/commitment" and "sustained worshipful fellowship." [57:44] How can you intentionally cultivate more consistent worshipful fellowship with God this week, and what fruit do you hope to see emerge from that commitment?

Sermon Clips

``And that's that is the place where we come into a place of unction, effectual fervent boiling hot prayer, watch this of a righteous person and the king or the amplified says it like this makes great power available. Well, how many of you wanna have miracles in your life? You wanna have the operation of the anointing in your life. K. You want God to work in you, through you, with you. Come on. It doesn't just come by being a dumb dumb. It comes because we press in to a skill set in the spirit. And by the way, it's available to every believer that will receive on the holy ghost to step in and walk in it. [00:19:20] (43 seconds) #BoilingHotPrayer

Jesus said, you'll receive power when the holy ghost comes upon you. You pray in the spirit, you walk in the spirit, you you search after the things of spirit and when you do that and you press in that way by praying in tongues, I have seen, I gotta tell you. I have seen so many divine things happen in our life simply by praying in the spirit. We have had more than once and I know you have to situations where, oh, we didn't know what to do. We didn't know the next step to take. We didn't know what action. We didn't know. And so, we just said, well, God, we're gonna pray in tongues And sometimes pastor and myself will get together and we'll pace the floor and we'll pray in the spirit. [00:21:20] (40 seconds) #ReceiveHolyGhostPower

Ask a question about this sermon

Chatbot

What are the four rivers of prayer?

How does praying in tongues open spiritual realms?

What is Hiddekel's role in spiritual warfare?

The Rivers of Prayer: How to Tap Into the Holy Spirit Within You | Pastor Brenda Kunneman