Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. — Colossians 4:1
Overwhelmed by God's goodness and His blessings to me and my family.
But I find it difficult to devote myself to prayer.
I do pray throughout the day.
But my sister devotes herself to an hour of prayer in the morning.
I feel humbled and inadequate to that task.
Lord, help me to devote myself to prayer.
To be watchful and to be careful with the things I say.
Help me to glorify You.
Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving. — Colossians 4:2
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| Apple Blossoms |
And this essay is an excerpt adapted from a new book, "The Unbroken Thread: Discovering the Wisdom of Tradition in a Age of Chaos."
I'm lookingforward to reading it.
The essay was a perceptive look at how we've moved away from spending time with God.
Instead, we fill our days with busy-ness.
No wonder we have such high rates of divorce, alcoholism, drug abuse, and dysfunctional families.
We've taken our eyes off the eternal.
Everything passes away except God.
And the Sabbath is a guarantor of our "inner liberty."
While rest-less, Sabbath-less societies could easily descend into tyranny and barbarism.
Hitler and Mao did turned their focus away from God and having a Sabbath rest.
Instead, they turned the focus of their societies onto themselves.
Two examples of societies descending into tyranny and barbarism.
Lord, help us to devote ourselves to prayer, keeping alert in an attitude of thanksgiving to You.
Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving. — Colossians 4:2
I'm better at talking with Him throughout the day.
We decided that these are areas we both need to work on.
I need to spend larger amounts of time alone devoted to prayer.
She needs to remember to pray throughout her day.
Both of us are growing in our prayer lives.
And learning to do His will.
Beginning to devote ourselves to prayer.
Keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving.
Help us, Lord, to follow You.
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. — Colossians 4:2
We had about 90 people, which was really exciting.
Most of us had not been together in one place in over a year.
What a blessing to worship together and sing God's praise.
Our modern worship team combined with our choir section leaders.
The music was wonderful.
Abby and her friend led the children in Kids Worship, leaving before the sermon.
Dave did the tech, arriving early the day after his wife's memorial service.
We celebrated communion together.And people could still join us on livestream.
We are thankful.
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ. — Colossians 4:2-3
Not only that, but telling them devote themselves to prayer.
That's really hard to do with all of the demands of a busy life.
But devoting ourselves to prayer and praying throughout the day/evening/night helps me to be thankful.
Even or especially in the midst of stressful times, God is with us to guide and direct us when we talk with Him in prayer.
We have lots of friends and family we are praying for today:
Rudy - for healing for his leg and foot infection after his release from the hospital
Beth and Mike with health concerns for their parents
John in the loss of his sister
Sheri in the loss of her mom and the health issues her dad is experiencing
Peggy for upcoming surgery
Dave for upcoming hip surgery and his wife Kathie who has been experiencing anxiety
Bonnie as she cares for her husband who has health issues
Paige's sister with triple - breast cancer who is beginning a new round of chemo
Mari's anxiety and lack of sleep
My coworker Ginger who has been up nights caring for her elderly dog
Sandy's friend Wendy from Iglesia Presbiteriana Emmanuel whose friend was killed by a teenager who had stolen a car and ran into her at an intersection
... and many more.
God knows these needs before I do and asks me to devote myself to prayer.
Thank You, Lord.
Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you through prophecy when the elders laid their hands on you Think on these things. Devote your life to them so that everyone can see your progress. — 1 Timothy 4:14-15
He asks us to use our talents for Him.
Then He commands us to think on these things.
And to devote our lives to them.
Our lives should showcase the glory of God.
Everyone should be able to see our progress.
Praise be to the Lord.
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. — Colossians 4:2
That's not always easy in the midst of hectic days and business.
We have been studying Philippians where God commands us not to grumble and complain.
That's easier said than done.
It's often the grumbling that slips off my tongue instead of the thankfulness.
But the gorgeous day God gives us is worth giving thanks.
He deserves all thanks and praise.
God asks us to be watchful and thankful.
He deserves all the honor and glory.
