In Colossians 4:2, Paul tells to: 1. DON'T STOP praying (devote ourselves to it). Prayer is hard work. When we renew our commitment to pray, be prepared for Satan to throw many distractions in the way. Devote in verse 2 literally means to 'hold on and don't let go....be courageously persistent.' He (Wes) gave the example of a father and his newborn baby. He said that sometimes a baby cries and you don't need to rush in and see what's wrong, you just need to wait to see if the cry is genuine. Our heavenly Father is much the same way with us....I suspect that there are times when we "cry" out to God and He just sits back and waits; not to be mean, but to test our motives....are we crying out genuinely or just out of habit? Paul also tells us 2. to be ready (watchful/alert/awake). Many times we close our eyes to pray and it's a time of quiet and aloneness. Paul tells us here to let prayer be a part of our entire day; much like breathing. Let it be a conversation rather than a times for us to present requests. We certainly need those quiet times with God, but Wes encouraged us tonight to let prayer become more in 2010. 3. We must say "thanks." Paul reminds us here to thank God for our life and our circumstances (even if they are less than ideal). No matter what is going on in our lives, we should thank God for it because the 4th thing Paul wants us to do is be outward in our prayer. We are encouraged to pray about eternal things; people's salvation. Nothing going on in our lives is more important than eternity.
This message renewed my sense of what prayer is/what it should be in my own life. It was a reminder that I don't take hold of the power of prayer enough. I need to stay in a mindset of pray and "pray without ceasing" (1Thess 5:17).
So, I am taking the challenge....I am resolving to pray in 2010....
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