Praying Colossians 7
July 8, 2009
Today, we have before us to form a prayer from Colossians 1:15-16.
1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation,
1:16 for all things in heaven and on earth were created by him – all things, whether visible or invisible, whether thrones or dominions, whether principalities or powers – all things were created through him and for him.
Prayer: Jesus, you are the image of our Father whom we have never seen and whom only in you do we see. How much like him you are! How much like you he is! How much love flows between you! You have experienced our Father’s suffering at the hand of his creation in the same way as earthly fathers suffer when their children go astray. Except, in your case, Jesus, you were always the apple of our Father’s eye. You have never fallen short of his glory. You have never been at enmity with Him. You have always done his will. We haven’t. What we mortals love so much about you is your obedience to death because of your deep love to our Father.
There are ways you are like the Father that we cannot imagine unless we live to imitate you. But you have revealed enough of our Father that we could see what we need to see. When our Father spun the world into existence, you designed it together. You put your beauty in it. You stamped it with your design. How wonderful it is. You colabored with our Father. You breathed life into dry ground, into dead bones, into shriveled lives. Grant that I may see all you have done and all that has your signature on it and marvel that you, creator of all, died for all. Amen. Christ, have mercy.
Praying Colossians 6
July 2, 2009
Praying Colossians 1:13-14
Affirming (what we know from Scripture) the identity we know God to be is a form of prayer. Repeating to a person (face-to-face) their qualities as as person is affirming, edifying, pleasing, and honoring. Although Paul speaks of the person of Christ in the third person, changing his compliments of Christ to a direct address to Christ makes it a prayer of adoration or praise. “O how I love him, how I adore him” becomes “you are the one I love, you are the one I adore…” Here are Paul’s words from the ESV.
1:13 He delivered us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son he loves, 1:14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Jesus, your powerful light-life is able to overcome any darkness-life in me and your church. Our hope is in you for a daily exchange of kingdoms. We give you our darkness; we receive your light. Day by day, minute by minute, your presence is a light unto our feet, the sun of life unto our path. Thank you for this exchange, the best deal we have ever had. Jesus we also love what our Father did in you and what you did in him to bring us back to you from that kingdom of evil. We are not alone. We are billions strong. We couldn’t have made it back on our own, that’s for sure. You lived in that kingdom, you suffered in that kingdom, you remained devoted to God, our Father, then you died in that kingdom. Now my sins are forgiven, separated from me, beyond your sight, hidden deep in the cross of your death and life. How vast is that life of yours to absorb all sin! You deserve all the praise. Amen. Lord, have mercy.
Praying Colossians 5
June 23, 2009
1:9-13 is a prayer Paul prays. Prayers need no comments. They beg to be prayed. So I pray with Paul with the help of Eugene Peterson. I Pray this for myself. I pray it for family members. I pray it for those I work with. We pray it for our leaders. The prayer applies and is necessary to all of us.
… asking God to give you wise minds and spirits attuned to his will, and so acquire a thorough understanding of the ways in which God works. (And who could ask for anything more?)
We pray that you’ll live well for the Master, making him proud of you as you work hard in his orchard. Amen!
As you learn more and more how God works, you will learn how to do your work.
We pray that you’ll have the strength to stick it out over the long haul–not the grim strength of gritting your teeth but the glory-strength God gives. It is strength that endures the unendurable and spills over into joy, thanking the Father who makes us strong enough to take part in everything bright and beautiful that he has for us.
… May every thought and sentiment of this prayer be true in my life and all who are within my sphere of influence. I thank God for Paul who teaches us to pray as Jesus taught him to pray. Amen. Lord, have mercy.
Praying Colossians 4
May 19, 2009
Praying Scripture is a rewarding experience. Using Holy Spirit inspired words (their attendant meanings and referents) that have been comforting believers for millennia is an edifying experience. Praying Scripture also assures us that we are praying according to the will of God which instructs us to be fully prepared to serve him faithfully.
Today, we pray with Paul and the Church from Colossians 1: 7-8.
1:7 You learned the gospel from Epaphras, our dear fellow slave - a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf – 1:8 who also told us of your love in the Spirit.
Paul continues to commend the Colossians in a spirit of gratitude to God for receiving the gospel, for living the gospel, and for loving God and one another in the Spirit according to the gospel teachings.
Prayer: So today, Jesus, I pray with gratitude for those who have been faithful like Epaphras to bring the gospel to me. I name Kathy, Billie, Paul, Dan, Dianne and others. I also thank you, O Revealer of all truth, for opening my eyes to see, and moving me to enter into the kingdom of light in Christ Jesus. This is no personal achivement by sheer grace. I confess before you and before the world of my inability to live the gospel but for your strong presence in my weakness. I also pray, lover of my soul, that the world may see me and your church and marvel at the love we have for you, and for the world. Glorify your name in all the earth through your church. Amen, Christ have mercy.
Praying Colossians 3
May 13, 2009
In this series of praying through Scriptures, I am learning that in order to pray the Scriptures, time is needed for reflection, for paying attention to the presence of God, and for paying attention to the condition of my soul, and my heart’s desire. I have the impression that Paul, though he did not know he was writing Scripture, he was in deep prayer (communion with God) and that this letter was not just dictated but breathed by God through Paul for the sake of the the Colossians, North Carolinians, Topekans, and Kansas Citians.
1:5 Your faith and love have arisen from the hope laid up for you in heaven, which you have heard about in the message of truth, the gospel 1:6 that has come to you. Just as in the entire world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, so it has also been bearing fruit and growing among you from the first day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth.
Prayer: Jesus, I am experiencing the truth of these words of your servant Paul and the Holy Spirit. I am tasting faith and love that spring from hope. I see brokenness around me always and this present brokenness, which I know will be put to rights, inspires me to express love, trust, and faithfulness in my walk with you and for the sake of others. Your word is alive in me. What more do I want?
I also pray that the power of the gospel, which is foolishness to paganism, will continue to spread in our world, the only hope our world has. Help me and my brothers and sisters in Christ, in our various societies of Jesus, to increase in our faith and undrstanding of the unlimited truth that is the gospel. This is good news about you, it’s you, and by default is unfathomable. Give me my share of it. I trust you for it. Give my borthers and sister in Christ their shares of it and together we will be the wiser for it. Amen. Christ have mercy.
Praying Colossians 2
May 6, 2009
1:3 We always give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you,
1:4 since we heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and the love that you have for all the saints.
Prayer: Lord, I give thanks to you in my prayers this morning for the faith of brothers and sisters in Christ. I only know a few of them. Most live in countries I will never visit. I know not their names. I know not their struggles. Many may be barely holding on to their faith. Many are strong even in the midst of persecution. I do know their faith. Let this knowledge suffice for now. I am united to them and they are to me in you. I rest me in this thought.
I also thank you, Lord, that I hear of the love many of my brothers and sisters have for you and for their neighbors. I thank you that daily I have those who love me and those I love close at hand. Without this love, this world would be unbearable to us. With the love you shed abroad in their and my heart, we can overcome this world. May this attitude of thanksgiving for the saints always trump any negative thoughts I have. Amen. Christ, have mercy.
Praying Colossians 1
April 29, 2009
Are you in the habit of praying the Scripture? What’s it like for you?
Missional Order is about three common commitments we are encouraging ourselves and our readers to make. We take four time daily to pay attention to God and to pay attention to our lives. The second commitment we have made is continually work with God on the transformation of our character to become more like Christ. We have turned from our old lives to follow Christ and grow in Him for the rest of our lives. We do so intentionally. Our third commitment is to live missionally. Believing that we are on mission with God and that God accomplishes his mission through Christ’s followers in the world.
Continuous formation or conversion happens when our lives are bathed in Scripture. Not just reading for information but praying our way through the Scripture for transformation.
So I am starting a series to pray through the letter to the Colossians and encourage you to do the same. Both the morning and evening prayers make space for prayer. Praying through Colossians will fit well in that space. My focus in these prayers as far as I determine the direction of my prayers is Jesus. I will use the Message version.
1:1-2 I, Paul have been sent on special assignment by Christ as part of God’s master plan. Together with my friend Timothy, I greet the Christians and stalwart followers of Christ who live in Colosse. May everything good from God our Father be yours!
Prayer: Jesus, you picked Paul when he was your ennemy, had mercy on him, changed him, and gave him his mission in God’s master plan. You did a great job. No one could do it better. I thank you that you are doing the same for us who follow you today. Together with brothers and sister in Christ strenghthen us to serve you wherever we live. We confess with Paul that everything good comes from you to us to flow to others. Enrich us with that same goodness. Let it reside deeply in us and transform us. Let it flow through us by Christ’s powerful presence in and through us by the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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