Alvin Vandergriend- Colossians 1:9-12 (v. 9) " . . . We have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding.
(v. 10 )And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, (v. 10) being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully (v. 12) giving thanks to the father." (Google image, Praying woman)
Some years ago this great prayer of Paul for the Colossian Christians took me on a prayer journey. It began as I contemplated the amazing depth and scope of Paul's prayer for the Colossians and thought, "It sure would be great to have Paul as a prayer partner."
Then it occurred to me that if I prayed for these blessings for myself, God would surely grant what I asked, since these are all in line with his will. I began immediately to claim them.
Then I thought, "I can't have Paul praying these things for me, but I can be the one who prays them for others. So I began to pray these petitions regularly for my wife and children, as well as for other family members and friends.
What impresses me most is that these intercessory requests are all spiritual in nature. There is no prayer here for the physical or material concerns of life. Of course, we should pray for physical things like health, energy and protection. But Paul's praying the spiritual blessings clearly overshadow the physical.
Try to imagine, for example, what would happen in a person's spiritual life if everything the person asked in a prayer were granted in increasing measure. He or she would be.
- growing deeper day by day in the knowledge of God's will
- applying biblical principles to daily living by the wisdom and insight of the Holy Spirit
- living exemplary Christian life that brings credit to Jesus Christ and joy to God's heart
- engaging in all kinds of fruitful ministry activities
- continuing to grow deeper in the knowledge of God
- enduring with joy and patience the toughest of life experiences by the awesome power of God within
- joyfully giving thanks to God the father, all the while looking confidently forward to life in the new and glorious kingdom of light.
Father, we ask for what Paul prays for the Colossians: that You would fill us with the knowledge of Your will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding, that we may live a life worthy of You, to please You in every way, and that we would bear good work, growing in the knowledge of You, being strengthened with all power according to Your glorious ight so that we may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving our thanks to You.
Today's Bible verses-
- Ryan Duncan- "Listening is the first step in acting out the scriptures, not speaking. The Church has the potential to do so much good in the world, to share the love of Christ with so many people. However, in order to do this we must first stop talking, sit quietly, and get to know them. We need to hear their stories, understand their hurts, empathize with their anger, and then, when they have nothing else to say, that is when we speak our truth. It's time to start using our ears before we use our words.
A Lesson From A Donkey (12/8/12)
I’d lost my job, felt discouraged, and turned to God for help. Was there a lesson I needed to learn? Turned out there was, and the teacher was a donkey."
The North Country Christian Fellowship Center Churches,
located in the St. Lawrence county of NY,
broadcast their Sunday services at 10 or 10:15
You can view past services too.
Sermon listing:https://www.
Amen good word
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