Prayer

"For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; 10 that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy; 12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light."
Colossians 1:9-12

There are many good books out there today on the subject of prayer. Some are classics, written by men who have walked with the Lord longer than I have been alive. There are a couple of books on prayer that I have in my library, and a couple more I would like to add. That being said, it is my belief that the greatest book on prayer that anyone could read, is the Bible. While reading books about prayer is good, I think the best way to learn to pray, is to spend time in God's Word, and then to actually pray. The best way to learn to pray is to do it. I am not knocking books on prayer. As I said, I have a couple in my library and there are one or two more I would like to read and add someday. But I am convinced that the greatest how-to book in the world is the Bible, the Word of God.

There is more to Paul's prayer here then for just more "stuff" to make his life more comfortable. There is no asking here for God to materially prosper the Colossian church with this world's riches. There is not a word that the church's budget would be met and the rent paid. Look at what Paul prays for.

First, he prays that they would be "filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding." The first thing that we need, is to be heading down the same track with the Lord. So we need to make sure we know what the will of God is for our lives. God will do that through wisdom and spiritual understanding. Prayer is about aligning our will with God's will, not the other way around. Then when that happens, we will know without a doubt God's will for our lives. Next, the prayer is to "walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him." In other words, if you are going to call yourself a Christian, then act like one. How does a Christian act? He walks worthy of the Lord (the key is in reading God's Word and allowing the Holy Spirit to teach us). This will be pleasing to the Lord. Thirdly, Paul prays that the church at Colosse would be "fruitful in every good work." When God is working in our lives, we will bring forth fruit. A tree is known by its fruit, Jesus tells us. And as we spend more time in the Word, we will be, fourthly, "increasing in the knowledge of God." I do not know too many true believers who do not want to increase in their knowledge of God. We will never come to the end of God. We will never know all there is to know about our God. But we can always increase in our knowledge of Him, and that's a good thing.

The next thing that Paul prays for, is that they would be "strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power." We have, beloved, the power of God in our lives - the same power that raised Jesus from the dead. The trouble is, we believe the lie of the devil that we are power-less. If the devil can keep you from realizing the power you have over him, then he has won the battle. Beloved, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Stand against the devil. Fight the good fight. And when the dust settles and the smoke clears, we are standing, with our feet firmly planted on the Rock.

Paul then prays that we have "all patience and longsuffering with joy." This is patience and longsuffering with each other, as we walk with the Lord. I have not "arrived." I don't have it all "down." And neither do you. So as we have patience and longsuffering with each other, we will have joy in our walk. In 1 John 1:7 it says, "But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin." Did you get that? If we walk with Him and have fellowship with one another, that is the key. It is by our love that the world will know we belong to Him, and conversely, it is by our lack of love that the world will see that we aren't any different from them.

Finally, know that the Father qualifies us to be partakers, not to be bystanders. We are to be involved, not sitting on the sidelines afraid to get into the game. Beloved, it is a war in which we find ourselves, with battles being fought in our lives everyday. Let us be partakers, and not be ineffective by sitting on the sidelines. In a football game, the players who make a difference and can effect the score are the ones on the field. Something to consider. Shalom