Colossians 4:2 “Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving;”
One of the primary practices as well as one of the primary teachings of the apostle Paul was prayer. The apostle Paul was a PRAYING PERSON. Letter after letter he told believers of the prayers he was praying for them. As he fervently prayed, he called on believers to be people of prayer. To the Colossians, he called on them to pray EARNESTLY. To continue earnestly was a call to stay at it. To continue earnestly has the idea of consistency instead of an inconsistent prayer life.
How is your prayer life? Are you only praying in an emergency? Or do you have a pattern of prayer and a custom of talking with the Lord?
Paul not only wanted people to pray but to pray with THANKSGIVING. He taught the same in Philippians 4:6 as he wrote, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.” Why is giving thanks to God so important? Because it is so very easy for our prayers to be filled with complaints. Bringing our requests to God with thanksgiving brings perspective. Many times, let’s be honest, we pray because we want God to change something. Something has happened and we don’t like it and we plead with God to get immediately involved and change things. Praying with thanksgiving helps us to realize that what we are facing may not be something that needs to be changed but rather what we need is God’s help to get through what we are facing. For instance, there are storms that God wants us to go through to develop our faith.
Being thankful in prayer also helps to quench the selfishness we all have. As we approach God we should be grateful for the privilege to approach Him. As we bring requests, we thank Him for what He is doing. As we conclude our prayer time we thank Him for what He will be doing. Our prayers should be seasoned with thanks!
So, continue consistently in PRAYER, praying with THANKSGIVING.
Also, a note on: An April To Believe
With Easter on April 20, we are reading through the gospel of John, one chapter a day, with an eye for the word believe and it is prominent in John as it was his purpose for writing. On this April 2nd, we encourage you to read/listen to John 2 where Christ is the creator. He will do signs that give proof to Him being the Son of God.
John 2:11 This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; And His disciples believed in Him.
John 2:23 Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.”
May April be an April to Believe!
Continue Strong,
And remember to DATE The Word