A Powerful Prayer
by Jan Cox
How many of you have friends and family that have not received Christ? I know of many who are suffering or not reaching their godly potential as Christ is not their “all in all”.
I would like everyone to know Jesus. As I study and gain more insight for myself I want to reach out to others so they, too, can have Christ in their lives.
Today as I read from Colossians I saw Paul’s prayer in a new light. I know he meant it for the Christians in Colossae, but I saw it as a prayer for all people. Paul writes:
“For this reason, since the day we heard about you, 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” (Colossians 1:9 NIV).
Paul’s prayer is powerful! By asking God to fill our friends and family with knowing Him – He can reveal to them all that He is about. We can leave it to God to grow them. Our job is to pray for that door to be opened.
When I started my journey towards knowing Christ, I found out later that during this time my Christian friends were praying for me – and they did not stop praying for me either, until I opened my heart to Jesus. Even now I know they continue to pray for me as I continue to pray for them.
When I came to know Christ from my heart it was from a prayer that I had said, “Jesus, reveal Yourself to me.”
You see I had the head part of Jesus. I knew that, yes, He is the Son of God. I knew from my studying that He really lived, died and rose again. But my heart could NOT claim it. I had to cry out to Christ to be “in” me – in my mind, my heart and my soul.
Paul’s prayer for others does that too. It asks God to reveal Himself to my family and friends. It takes the pressure off me, as I know that God does the pursuing.
So here is my prayer:
Pursue my friends”, Lord. Capture them. Bring them into the knowledge of Who You are. Awake in them a desire to clamour for You. Make them want to cry out, “Show Yourself to me”. Make Yourself a part of their lives. Help them to be free – free in Christ to be who God created them to be. Lord, fill them up with the knowledge of Your will, through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. Be a part of their lives.
Oswald Chambers speaks of the importance of having a deep abiding faith in Jesus:
Until we know Jesus, God is a mere abstraction, we cannot have faith in Him; but immediately we hear Jesus say – “He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father,” we have something that is real, and faith is boundless. Faith is the whole man rightly related to God by the power of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. (Oswald Chambers, October 30)
This will be my prayer for each person I meet. It will be my prayer for my family, friends and acquaintances. I will remember:
- To not stop praying
- To ask God to fill them with the knowledge of His will
- For God to make sure that they know what He wants
- For them to know Jesus – mind, heart and soul
- To expect to see a change
Prayer:
Father we all have friends and family who don’t know You. We want them to get closer to Jesus in order to know You fully. Open those doors so they can see You, ask about You and finally claim Your leadership in their lives. In Jesus’ name. AMEN.
My Gratitude List for this week: Counting up to 1000 – I am at 528.
- Snowball went to a Hallowe’en party as a ladybug (she still has the label on the costume)
- Frozen yogurt with stevia
- Great sermon on Grace and Truth
- Learning a new watercolour technique
- Wonderful massage – for an aching shoulder
- Watching Harry Potter because my granddaughter “loves Harry Potter”
- Dealing with Bell Canada calmly
- Understanding a former pastor through his book, My Fanatical, Regrettable, Tour of Ministry
- God speaking to me through His Word
- Learning to open my eyes and ears to my surroundings
- Unexpected guests – fun!
- Beef without antibiotics
- Encouragement
- Painting a picture of a turtle
