Day 3 Colossians 1:9-10
9 So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding.
10 Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.
Observations:
vs 9 "For this reason... we have not stopped praying ... since we first heard about you." This opening statement took me aback. I have always prayed for people under two circumstances- an immediate need (such as a healing), or a looming need or desire (such as a new car, better job, etc.). I have never considered praying for someone who already "has it together"; Paul was praising the Colossians for all the wonderful things that they were doing, and in the same breath told them that he was praying for them without ceasing! Not because they needed something, but because he didn't want them to grow stagnant or complacent in the faith. Paul was laying the foundation for the next level of their faith, where they took it from the passions of new found love to the depths of understanding, knowledge, and obedience.
vs 10 Why was it so important for Paul to pray for the Colossians to have discernment? Because without it, their lives could not bear fruit. We have to have understanding of God's will in order to be obedient to Him, without that wisdom, we simply follow our flesh. Paul says specifically that we should be living our lives desiring to please God. In our obedience of His will we get to know who He is, and knowing Him grows and matures us, and produces fruit that gets people talking-in a good way!!
Application:
I aim to begin praying for others (and myself) to gain the wisdom and spiritual discernment that will cause us to grow in our faith, and take that next level step into a spiritual maturity and obedience that is pleasing to God.