praying for the saints

This morning I was flipping through my Bible searching for a verse to encourage a sister. I had no particular verse in mind and was hoping to stumble across some lost gem. When passage "titles" mentioned encouragement or blessings, I would look a little closer at the text. I landed in Colossians 1. The section beginning at verse 3 is titled "Thanksgiving and Prayer" in my Bible. 

I realized part way through that I missed some words 😅
However, it is good to think about scripture in our own words to relate it to our lives.

As I read the first two verses there I thought about the woman I was looking to encourage:

"Am I grateful for her faith?"
"Do I thank God that she is my heavenly sister?"
 "Do I thank Him for bringing her into my life?"
"Do I thank God for any of my fellow Christians?"

Through this I am compelled to give prayers of thanksgiving for my brothers and sisters in Christ. To see the impact of viewing them as blessings, not taking for granted the relationship we have through grace and faith. 

We spend a lot of time talking about outreach and introducing people to our Lord Jesus Christ. We pray that individuals, families, and communities would be transformed by the Gospel. But what happens next? Do we stop thanking God for our opportunities to minister because people know the Lord? By no means! Paul tells us in Ephesians 6 to "pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests." And, "With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people." In fact, Paul models this in many of his letters to the early Church. 

The practice of thanking the Lord for the faith of others should be as routine as praying for his guidance and strength. Let's offer up thanksgiving for those standing in the faith and see how that impacts our perspective on care and community. 

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