There is a cute website that allows you to type in your surname and find out neat facts. How many people have your surname, where they live, how common is your name and other trivia. Try it and then read on!
My surname, “Dattilo” is my husband’s name. When I took his name I identified with him. He is Italian, many assume I am Italian. The Dattilo surname occurs ninth most frequently in New Jersey, my husband’s home state – people often assume I am from New Jersey. When I give my name, Christine Dattilo – people often say, “Oh, you’re Joe’s wife.” By marriage I am united with my husband and this is shown by my taking his surname. As much as I am identified with my husband, I still remain me. My thoughts do not become my husband’s thoughts, my desires, although I love him – still remain different and singularly mine.
When praying in Jesus’ name I had not realized how much and how deeply I become identified with Christ. He is my Elder brother, the Bridegroom of the Church. I am united to Christ. I pray in his name. He intercedes for me. But what is truly wonderful is that through the work of the Holy Spirit as I pray, I am changed and Jesus’ prayers become my prayers.
Douglas Kelly has a wonderful book, If God Already Knows Why Pray?
In it he quotes B. M. Palmer on how by praying in Jesus’ name our identification with Jesus becomes complete. Our prayers become his prayers and his prayers become our prayers through the work of the Holy Spirit. We take more than the surname of Christ, “Christian” when we pray in Jesus’ name, we actually change because of the advocacy of Christ and the intercessions of the Spirit. Prayer changes things — it changes us.
It is the effectual, fervent prayer of the righteous man (that) prevails. But what renders prayer “effectual”? Not its length, nor its vehemence, nor its eloquence, nor its passion, but simply the living sympathy which is established between the soul pleading in the closet, and the Saviour interceding in the heavens.
When the Holy Spirit thus pleads in the lower court of the believer’s soul, what is it but the echo of the pleading in the higher court above? The voice on earth mingles with the voice in heaven, in the joint pleading for the gift of eternal life. How else shall we interpret the classical passage in Romans 8:26….Have we then two intercessors? Yes, verily; but not divergent and clashing. They are the two comforters – the one and the other – both converging their distinct offices to one result. The one intercedes for us, the other intercedes within us.
This is secured through the intervention of the Divine Spirit. He takes the desires which are in the heart of Jesus Christ, and works them into our hearts so that they become our desires. He takes the plea which is upon the lips of the great Advocate above, and seals it upon our lips as our prayer in Christ’s blessed name. It is this sweet, but secret, correspondence between our Head and ourselves that makes true prayer at all. Aside from this, all is mere posture and the mutter of incantations.
His work…(consists in) bringing the intercession of our Lord above, into the desires and petitions of the Christian below; whereby they become the intercessions of the Spirit, who thus blends his advocacy with that of Christ himself.
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Prayer,
Union with Christ