Prayer: Love in Action
“And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy;”
Colossians 1:9-12
In Colossians chapter 1, Paul is addressing the church at Colossae. He begins the chapter by letting them know he thanks God for them. He continues in these verses to convey his care for them in that he “has not ceased to pray” for them. He genuinely cares that they are “filled with the knowledge of his will”, that they “walk in a manner worthy of the Lord” and “bear fruit.” This is a church that Paul had never actually met. A fellow brother in the Lord, Epaphras, comes to Paul probably seeking advice and prayer for his church in Colossae. He has genuine concerns for this church and seeks Paul's help, even though Paul, himself, is in prison.
As I study this, I wonder how Paul, being held in prison against his will, would have the capacity to love and pray for a church that he did not start and had never met. Yet, he does so earnestly.
Since we started this study on Colossians, this has been the point that sticks out to me the most. Am I praying for the church? Am I praying for my fellow church members here at Calvary HSS throughout the week? What about fellow churches in our neighboring towns? Do I care about their proclamation of the truth as Paul did for Colossae? Do I care about their growth in the Lord? Am I on my knees for their pastors?
Can we follow his example and commit to praying for our brothers and sisters in Christ?
One of the blessings we have at Calvary HSS is that we are part of a larger network called the Calvary Family of Churches. Think about that name. We are a family of churches. As I consider that, I am convicted. Do I love them and care for them like we are family? Am I diligently praying for these churches? What about the “church,” the body of believers, around the world? Do I care for others that I have never met like Paul did?
I want to encourage you this week to join me in praying for fellow believers. I believe there are some easy ways to put this into practice that aren’t overwhelming. Make a daily prayer list.
Each day, commit to praying for:
A family in our church
Another local church
A Calvary church (there are 30)!
Our missions focus for the month
This will require some intentionality. Make a list on paper of specific churches or families that you can commit to pray for this week. I use an app on my phone to organize who to pray for each day. This makes it so easy to consistently pray as Paul did for our church, the churches around us locally, throughout Colorado, and to the ends of the earth.
The church at Colossae was known for their love for each other. Paul states in his letter that “we always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ when we pray for you since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven (Col 1:3-5a).”
At the women’s bible study last week, we pondered, “How can we be a church known for our love for the saints?”
It begins with prayer. As we commit to pray for one another, our actions will follow. We will start inviting others into our homes and reaching out to friends who attend different churches to ask how we can pray for them. We will find ourselves wanting to send a note of encouragement to a pastor of a Calvary church that we have never met. We will end up on our knees, praying for churches around the world that we may never see on this side of eternity. We will become a church that is known for its love.
Join me this week in praying that the gospel will be proclaimed through our brothers and sisters around the world.
Praying for you!
Andrea
Need a list of Calvary churches? https://thecalvary.org/churches/