PRAYER WORKS

PRAYER WORKS

Col. 1:9  So we have continued praying for you ever since we first heard about you.  We ask God to give you a complete understanding of what he wants to do in your lives, and we ask him to make you wise with spiritual wisdom.  NLT

      There are several important things we need to focus on in this verse.  First, Paul told the Colosse church that he (and his companions) continued to pray for the church.  It wasn't a one-time deal, or even a short time deal.  The church at Colosse was on Paul's heart and he kept praying for her.  I suspect that things would be quite different in most of our churches and lives if we were to not give up praying for one another.

       Paul asked the Lord to give the church a complete understanding of what God wanted to do in their lives.  So many of us are simply confused about what the Lord wants to do in and through our lives.  We need to work on understanding the work of God in us.  We need to stay out of the Lord's way and let Him do His work in us.  We need to be able to see measurable changes in our lives.  We need to understand that the Lord is with us; He is always at work in us to make us holy servants.

      Paul also asked the Lord to make the church wise with spiritual wisdom.  He wanted them to be able to rightly apply God's Word to their lives.  He wanted them to think and act Biblically.  He wanted them to live by what was right before God as they lived amongst man. 

       Paul prayed from his heart of love and his utmost confidence in God’s ability to hear and answer prayer.  He knew from personal experience that prayer works.  He lived close to the heart of God and it showed in his concern for others and what he prayed for them.  His only goal for the church was for them to take hold of their faith and grow in it.  He wanted them to grasp the truth, live it and share it.  He had a true pastor’s heart for the church.

      We ought to pray this prayer for ourselves and for those we fellowship with.  I believe that the Church is spiritually deficient when it comes to asking the Lord to help us become who we ought to be in Christ.  We won't get much better on our own; we need the Lord's help and prayer is the key.