How can I pray for my Brothers and Sisters? Colossians 1:9-14

Colossians 1:9-14 ( ESV )

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⁹And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,

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¹⁰so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.

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¹¹May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy,

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¹²giving thanks^£ to the Father, who has qualified you^£ to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.

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¹³He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,

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¹⁴in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.


     If you are like me I don't know how to pray for some of my brothers. I run out of the words to say or the knowledge of what is going on in their lives. Sometimes, I lose touch or we don't see each other for quite awhile. How can I pray for someone in a way in which it will be a blessing to them? I love how Paul prays for the Colossians here in the following verses.

1. Pray without ceasing. II Thess. 5:17 (Never give up in our prayers and ask the Lord to bring them to your mind continually.
2. Pray, that they maybe filled with the knowledge of His will. Lord, help my friend to discern what you would have them to do that would bring more glory to your name.
3. Pray, that they will walk worthy of the Lord. God give them a pure testimony before all men.  Help them to walk in a way that they will be able to give you all the glory.
4. Pray, that they will be fully pleasing to the Lord. Our greatest pleasure should be that of living a life that will please Him not in part, but, in all that we do.
5. Pray, that they will bear fruit. This is something that none of us can do on our own. Bearing fruit can only be produced by the Spirit of God's empowerment. It is hard to love someone who hates you, but the fruit of the Spirit, borne out in a believer's life, can cause us to love all men.
6. Pray, that they will continue to grow in their knowledge of who Christ is. I don't ever want to be satisfied with the, "norm." I do not want to be satisfied with my walk. I want to know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His suffering.
7. Pray, that God will allow them to grow in strength through the power of the Spirit of God. (Eph. 6:10) I need to pray for their strength, so that they may endure, be patient and have joy in the midst of it all.
8. Pray, with a thankful heart for them.  How? Look at these three things...He has qualified them to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. (John 1:12, Romans 8) They have been made into Children of the Light of the world. Secondly, They have been delivered from being slaves of sin and darkness. Lastly, He has translated them into the kingdom of His son. We are no longer citizens of this earth but rather citizens of heaven.
9. Pray, with a word of praise upon your lips for them. Why? We have been redeemed and forgiven of our sin.

     What an incredible prayer for others. I want to learn to pray this way for others. I hope you will pray for me this way to. 

Colossians 1:3-8 The Gospel of Hope

Colossians 1:3-8 ( ESV )

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³We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you,

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⁴since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints,

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⁵because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel,

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⁶which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and growing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth,

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⁷just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant.^£ He is a faithful minister of Christ on your^£ behalf

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⁸and has made known to us your love in the Spirit.




     Paul speaks about having a thankful heart of prayer in verse 3, but it is not so much for himself, rather it is being thankful for what the Lord has done in the lives of those at Colosse. Do I spend time in giving of thanks for what Christ is doing in the lives of others? 


     Paul thanks the Lord for their faith and how they demonstrated their love for all the saints. In examining my life, am I, an example to other believers in how I show forth my love. I have to ask myself, how do I visibly demonstrate my love for the saints?


  My love for other brothers should be a natural thing, because,I am one of those who have the hope of heaven. The doctrine of the teaching of heaven allows me often to look forward to a new day. A day in which all will be righted. A day in which I shall see the king. If I truly believe in heaven, my heart will rejoice for my brothers, and it will cause me to love them even more.


     Now to top it all off, I have this hope of heaven and surety of it not based on my righteousness, but rather because of the truth of the Gospel. His sacrifice makes the difference and gives me the hope of a glorious day with Him in eternity.


     This Gospel not only gives me hope and love but it will bear fruit in our life and grow within us from the day that we heard it and understood it.  What is it that we understand in this passage? That the gospel, is marked by the truth of Grace. The Gospel will always be about His grace. This is the Gospel that has redeemed me, saved me and bought me. When I think of the Gospel of grace I can sing aloud the old Squire Parsons song, "I Stand Amazed." This Gospel is not only mine, but the beauty of it all, is that it has spread through out the whole world.


     I must not forget that this Gospel is to be shared. Epaphras was a loved servant of God who had shared the Gospel. I believe Epaphras was loved because he had been faithful in sharing this Gospel of hope. 


     Help me Lord to be an encouragement to others by sharing how Christ has worked in the heart of my brothers. I am always blessed when I hear of the faith of others who have received the Gospel of truth. Lord, help me to be the one who will proclaim this glorious Gospel of hope.

Just some thoughts from Colossians 1:1-2

Colossians 1:1 ( ESV )

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¹Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,


     I am first of all placed in the position or situation that I am in by the will of God. (He has placed me or allowed me to be here by His desire.) How will I live in light of this truth? 

• Complain @ it.
• Work through it.
• Serve Him to the best of my abilities through it all.

Am I acting like an Apostle? Not in the arena of the office as this was for a limited time only and was one of the foundational gifts of the early church. But rather do I truly believe that I am a, "Sent one," by God who will represent His kingdom to a lost and dying world. I am to be His voice to those around me.

Colossians 1:2 ( ESV )

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²To the saints and faithful brothers^£ in Christ at Colossae:Grace to you and peace from God our Father.

     I am to be marked as a person who is a saint or a set apart one for God. So when I put all of this together, I come up with the following statement. I am sent here by God to be set apart in this world for His glory.

     The word Faithful as used here is used in the N.T. for a believer. Lord, God am I truly one who lives faithfully for you? What of my many whoredoms?  Forgive me, for chasing after so many of my own desires. Teach me to be a faithful servant, who claims as his greatest joy to follow hard after you and what you want.

     What a joy that word brother is to me. I am part of a true spiritual family. I am just one of a band of brothers who make up a part of your family. Do I treat other brothers as a part of my family or are there those who are social outcast in my life? God transform my thinking and allow me to live constantly before others as a member of your royal family.

     I am an adopted child whom you have showered your Grace upon and because of what you have done I can have peace in this troubled world. The greatest joy of all is to know that you would call me your son and that I can cry out to you these words, "ABBA, FATHER."

Light of the world!

Light of the world, one day you will vanquish all the darkness,

Light of the world, you alone will conquer all my foes,

Break forth through the clouds in all of your fullness,

I cry out for the day when your glory will be fully known.

And you will shine on my face, like upon the face of Moses,

And I will bask in your glory and humbly bow before your throne,

And all of my sins and this worlds will be finally righted,

When you come again, Light of the world, and take me home.

Sometimes my world, doesn't seem to make any sense at all,

Sometimes I can't even see, and doubt what you have in store,

But I know this one thing, that you are the only thing that is certain,

Light of the World, Light of the World, Shine forth,

And you will shine on my face, like upon the face of Moses,

And I will bask in your glory and humbly bow before your throne,

And all of my sins and this worlds will finally be righted,

When you come again, Light of the world, and take me home.

Despair and misery, and all of this vain worlds treasures,

Sickness and death, will be vanquished forevermore,

For one day all of this darkness will flee from your very presence,

Light of the world, shine forth, and take me home.

And you will shine on my face, like upon the face of Moses,

And I will bask in your glory and humbly bow before your throne,

And all of my sins and this worlds will be finally righted,

When you come again, Light of the world, and take me home.

Yes, when you come again, Light of the World, and take us home.

(Brothers and sisters the Darkness WILL NOT PREVAIL !!)

He still walks near

At this moment everything seems to be fleeting,

All of time seems to flow out like a hand gripping sand,

My heart is yearning for a home marked by peace,

My soul is groaning to see the Ancient of days,

And the one who walks before me knows my soul,

He hears my groans and sees these rivers of tears,

And the one who walks before me hears my voice,

Though He knows my deepest thoughts He still walks near.

The howling of wolves and jackals draw near,

And the giants across the river gather for me,

Will my soul be crushed into the dust?

Will I be devoured by those who once were so near?

And the one who walks before me knows my soul,

He hears my groans and sees these rivers of tears,

And the one who walks before me hears my voice,

Though He knows my deepest thoughts He still walks near.

I can hear the voices of the walking dead,

They are crying for me to join them in the fray,

I have got to close my eyes and shut my ears,

Reach out my hand to Him and draw Him near.

And the one who walks before me knows my soul,

He hears my groans and sees these rivers of tears,

And the one who walks before me hears my voice,

Though He knows my deepest thoughts He still walks near.

(This and the Poem Tripping hopefully will be a trilogy of David like Psalms about the darkness and how the Lord walks with Him through it all.)

Tripping on the stairs

Tripping on the stairs

Looking for the light in the midst of the darkness,

So far God it feels like a deep dark cave,

Looking for encouragement from those around me,

Seems like it does not matter whatever they say,

Want to scream and pull over the covers,

Want to shout out do you really care?

The darkness has seemed to have overtaken, feel like I'm tripping on the stairs.

And I'm falling, falling into the arms of the Savior,

Falling, I can't even seem to catch my breath,

But I know for sure that this one thing is for certain,

That wherever  I fall, you will surely catch me there.

Though the shadows of this life seem to cover the light,

Though my heart maybe grieving over the losses of this world,

 Pain  seems to be ripping everything inside of me apart,

Uncertainty of the ground below me,

I enter into the whole mess trembling,

I enter into a vision of complete blindness,

The darkness has seemed to have overtaken, feels like I'm tripping on the stairs.

But I will be falling, falling into the arms of the Savior,

Falling, I can't even seem to catch my breath,

But I know for sure that this one is for certain,

That wherever I fall, you will surely catch me there.

Open my eyes in the midst of the darkness,

Guide me through the maze in the deep dark cave,

Help me to find my encouragement from your strong arms,

Lift me up so that I can say,

My Jesus Cares, I know my Jesus Cares.

As I'm falling, I'll be falling into the arms of my Savior,

As I'm falling, He will breathe into me His life,

Help me to see that this one thing is for certain,

That wherever I fall, You will surely catch me there.

Yes, my sweet Lord Jesus you will surely catch me there.

A Noble Work

1 Timothy 3:1-2 ( ESV )

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¹The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. 

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²Therefore an overseer^£ must be above reproach, the husband of one wife,^£ sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 


     I think that I love preaching more than anything in this world. No greater thrill or delight fills my soul more, than to open up the living and breathing Word of God and share it with others. It has been, and always will be, one of my greatest passions.


     While talking with another pastor recently we talked about the art of preaching. The two things for me that are the most important is that of a passionate heart in preaching, and above all knowledge of the Word that I am sharing. We live in a day in which some men have neither of these qualities or just one of them. As Paul would remark what good is it to have zeal without knowledge. In the same breath though what good does it do to the listener's heart who senses a passionless heart while saying all the right things. I want to KNOW that the preacher has a vital relationship with the one of whom he speaks. I think that it was R.C.Sproul who put it best that we need messages with both SALT and LIGHT.


     Yet, as important as the above things are to me in preaching. I am struck with the simplicity of God's Word and what it sees as the most important value to an Elder's life. We can have the two things of passion and the knowledge of the Word of God but if we are not MORALLY qualified as preachers or elders, all of these things are worthless and of no value at all.


     Notice what Paul tells Timothy, about someone who wants to be an Elder. This person, "desires a noble task." Being a Pastor or an Elder of a church is something of value or is a virtuous work. Virtuous is one of those words we hear little of anymore.


     This is the reason why he now makes a list of what an overseer's (Elders) life should be marked by. We are to be men that are marked by a virtuous life. Put it simply, how can we lead others if we are not living the life that we tell others that they need to live.


     Note also in verse 2 that Paul states that we MUST be marked by this type of lifestyle. I disagree with those who say, well brother Mike these are to be goals in our lives. Trust me, there are times in which we all fail these moral qualifications, but as leaders of the church of God, we are to be men who are marked by these things.


     We are to be men who have a lifestyle that others cannot easily point out our evil. Men, who are marked by our home life with our wife and children as an example to others. Men, who are not known for their anger, but rather for their kindness. Men, who are willing to reach out to others,even to the most unlovely, even to the point of opening up our doors to them. Men, who are not known as drinkers or lovers of money. The almighty dollar will not control our choices. All of these things and more listed in verses 2-7 are to be marks of our lives. 


     By our own strength and power we will never do the above list, but by the Holy Spirit of God, we can be marked by being these type of men. We can talk about ineffective preachers because of their ability with the Word or their passionless preaching. Yet, what our Savior is most concerned about is that the Leaders of the Church of God will be MARKED MEN. Men who are empowered by the Spirit of God, living out a lifestyle that will call out to others to follow the LAMB OF GOD. May He, work within our hearts, as we seek to do this noble work.

Yes, she always does look this good. I am a HAPPY man.