READ:
Colossians 4:2-18
Paul asks the church at Colossae to pray for him. Even though he is in
prison, Paul asks for prayer so he would have the opportunity share his belief
and spread the gospel – the very reason he is in prison in the first place. One
might think Paul is so amazing he probably evangelized with eagerness and ease
all the time. Yet, he requests prayer for a door to open. This is a fantastic
reminder for us as we pray for believers who are in prison today, that they
would also have opportunity to share the gospel with their persecutors.
In addition to putting on godly character, as challenged in chapter 3,
we are also to walk in wisdom with how we speak to and interact with others.
Chapter 4:5-6 tells us we need wisdom, we must speak graciously, and season our
speech with salt. We need to know how to answer each person. This has great
application for us today in our hypersensitive culture. Wisdom comes from the
Lord and He promises to give us the wisdom we need when we ask (James 1). We
cannot live in fear of saying the wrong things, but neither can we speak the
same way with every person. We never know which words a person needs to hear,
but God does. We need to take every conversation with others as an opportunity
to make the best use of it for God’s glory.
After sending all his greetings, Paul makes a simple request: “remember
my chains”. He doesn’t want to be forgotten. He also doesn’t want them to
forget that persecution is on-going and that people, Paul in this case, need
support in every way, especially through prayer.
This is a reminder that we need to regularly remember our brothers and
sisters in Christ who are being persecuted every single day. He is also saying
to them to remember his chains, not so they would shrink back from sharing the
gospel, but so that they would be prepared to be in chains for Christ as well.
As we prepare for chains we recognize how desperately we would long for the
prayers of many believers, and this will motivate us to pray for others who are
suffering.
JOURNALING
AND PRAYER
1.
Pray for persecuted Christians around the world to
be strong in the Lord and to have words to say at just the right moment that
would change the hearts of their persecutors. Pray for opportunity for them to
share the gospel. Consider signing up to pray for those who are being
persecuted so you can pray regularly. (You might want to consider signing up
for ‘News & Prayer for the Persecuted’ at persecution.org, or the ‘Prisoner
Alert & Prayer Email’ at persecution.net.)
2.
Spend time praying for leaders in your church and in politics who are
regularly pressured to say something wrong, especially something in relation to
their faith. Pray Chapter 4:5-6 over them. Then ask the Lord to keep your
tongue pure and your words seasoned by Him.
3.
Ask the Lord to speak to you about what you need to do to remember the
prisoners in jail today, and ask for specific prayer requests for them. Also
ask the Lord to begin working on your heart so you will be prepared if the day
comes that persecution affects you personally. Thank him for His everlasting
care!
