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 Pray for Spiritual Maturity (March 8, 2024) 

“For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy; giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light.” (Colossians 1:9-12)

As believers seeking to grow in the grace, knowledge, and likeness of the LORD Jesus Christ, we need the fellowship, encouragement, support, and prayers of fellow Christians. The Bible contains many beautiful prayers that serve as models to guide us as we lift each other up to our heavenly Father each day. One of the most heartfelt and beautiful is Paul’s prayer, written from a Roman prison, for the early Christians in the church at Colossae in Asia Minor (present day Turkey). Here, the apostle asks…as we should pray for ourselves and fellow Christians today…for divine wisdom and spiritual understanding that the Colossians might be filled with the knowledge of God’s perfect will and a longing to fulfill it in their hearts.

Obedience to what God desires for us allows believers: to live faithful lives that please the LORD; to bear fruit as a result of our good works and increasing knowledge of God; to be strengthened through the power and guidance of the indwelling Holy Spirit for the tasks that God calls us to do; and to grow in Christlike qualities such as love, joy, patience, and other fruit of the Spirit. As we exhort one another and move steadily toward Christian maturity in our daily walk with Christ, we should frequently and freely express our highest praise and sincerest gratitude to our heavenly Father. Thank Him for allowing us to be participants in the building of His kingdom and partakers of the rich eternal inheritance given by God’s grace to all who trust in Jesus.

“Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” (James 5:16)


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