9 Because of this, since the day we heard about you, we haven’t stopped praying for you and asking for you to be filled with the knowledge of God’s will, with all wisdom and spiritual understanding. 10 We’re praying this so that you can live lives that are worthy of the Lord and pleasing to him in every way: by producing fruit in every good work and growing in the knowledge of God; 11 by being strengthened through his glorious might so that you endure everything and have patience; 12 and by giving thanks with joy to the Father. He made it so you could take part in the inheritance, in light granted to God’s holy people. 13 He rescued us from the control of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son he loves. 14 He set us free through the Son and forgave our sins.
Reflection
Prayer is strange. It helps us personally. It helps us spiritually. It helps us relationally. But there’s no direct formula for it.
We believe God is there, we believe God hears us, but we have an awareness that God is no genie. It’s not like because we pray for something or that 100 people pray for something that it will happen. But even when prayers aren’t answered, at least not how we’d like them to be, we continue to pray – because we know that it has meaning. Prayer can be a good way to learn about ourselves and our priorities. It can be a good way to vent our frustrations or talk through issues. It can be a great way to create focus and calmness. It can be a way to practice discernment. It can be a way for us to build a relationship with God and with those we pray for.
In today’s text, we have a testimony for the power of praying for others. When we tell people that we’re praying for them, and not just let that be noise – when we follow through on that, we strengthen the spirit of others, and we strengthen our own spirit by thinking beyond ourselves. There are plenty of prayer warriors who, if I need prayer, I want them to pray for me. God truly shows up through people, and when people let me know that they are praying for me, my spirit gets the power boost it needs to make it through.
So perhaps, that is the answer to the prayer.
by Rachel Callender
For Pondering & Prayer
What does your prayer life look like? What is one particularly impactful way prayer has changed you?
Prayer: Holy Lord, hear our prayers. Amen.
Our Lenten Series
For our Lent series this year, we’ll be using the Adam Hamilton book Luke: Jesus and the Outsiders, Outcasts, and Outlaws. At his website, you can find a 40-day reading plan to help you read through the Gospel of Luke during Lent. And join us for worship, in-person or online, at 9:00 & 10:30 every Sunday.
