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| 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 |
In the verse above, the Apostle Paul gives some of the best news he has ever shared with the Christians gathered at Colosse. He tells them that he prays for them and asks God to fill them with the knowledge of God’s perfect will for them. And, Paul explains that the way they will know the will of God comes to them through God-given wisdom and understanding.
I don’t know how you react to a reading of that verse. For my part, I am reminded how important it is that we pray for one another. In fact, I suggest that you make a list of the people for which you would like to pray. Then, I would urge you to pray through that list of people every day.
Another exercise in spiritual discipline that I have found helpful is to look around your church when you go there to worship. Pick out one or two people in the congregation and make note of their names on your “Prayer List.” As you pray each day, pray for the one or two people from your congregation that you have added to your List. Next Sunday, pick out one or two different people and add their names to your List in place of the one or two people from your congregation for whom prayed last week.
If you do this week after week, you will find God drawing you closer to the people with whom you worship. You will become more sensitive to their needs. You will listen for those times when they might share something occurring in their lives that give them concern. You will become more conscious of special days in their lives, special people about whom they are troubled, and any number of other factors they may be facing. In each case, you can pray for them quite specifically.
It is not necessary for you to tell these people that you are praying for them. In fact, at least as you begin this process, it is probably better that you keep the List of the ones for whom you pray a secret. Eventually, God may prompt you to tell one or more of the ones for whom you pray that you are doing so. But, I would leave that prompting up to God.
In times like these, it is a good thing to follow the Apostle Paul’s example and pray for those whom God prompts you to pray. It is an excellent spiritual discipline. And, it is a good step along the way of your own determination to follow in the footsteps of those believers who have gone before us and from whom we can learn how to become more like our Master, the Lord Jesus Christ.
