Power of Prayer

The Apostle Paul was a not only a preacher, but he was also a great writer of encouraging letters, and a man committed to prayer.

This morning, I want to share two of his prayers with you. They are prayers that have stood strong for thousands of years. They are prayers that have the power to change our lives.

I’m praying these prayers for you.

“^… He also told us about the love you have from the Spirit. ⁹ Since the day we heard these things about you, we have continued praying for you. This is what we pray:

that God will make you completely sure of what he wants by giving you all the wisdom and spiritual understanding you need; ¹⁰ that this will help you live in a way that brings honor to the Lord and pleases him in every way; that your life will produce good works of every kind and that you will grow in your knowledge of God; ¹¹ that God will strengthen you with his own great power, so that you will be patient and not give up when troubles come.

Then you will be happy ¹² and give thanks to the Father. He has made you able to have what he has promised to give all his holy people, who live in the light. ¹³ God made us free from the power of darkness. And he brought us into the kingdom of his dear Son. ¹⁴ The Son paid the price to make us free. In him we have forgiveness of our sins.

¹⁵ No one can see God,
    but the Son is exactly like God.
    He rules over everything that has been made.
¹⁶ Through his power all things were made:
    things in heaven and on earth, seen and not seen—
all spiritual rulers, lords, powers, and authorities.
    Everything was made through him and for him.

¹⁷ The Son was there before anything was made.
    And all things continue because of him.
¹⁸ He is the head of the body, which is the church.
    He is the beginning of everything else.
And he is the first among all who will be raised from death.
    So in everything he is most important.

¹⁹ God was pleased for all of himself to live in the Son.
²⁰     And through him, God was happy to bring all things back to himself again—
    things on earth and things in heaven.
God made peace by using the blood sacrifice of his Son on the cross.

²¹ At one time you were separated from God. You were his enemies in your minds, because the evil you did was against him. ²² But now he has made you his friends again. He did this by the death Christ suffered while he was in his body. He did it so that he could present you to himself as people who are holy, blameless, and without anything that would make you guilty before him. ²³ And that is what will happen if you continue to believe in the Good News you heard. You must remain strong and sure in your faith. You must not let anything cause you to give up the hope that became yours when you heard the Good News. That same Good News has been told to everyone on earth, and that’s the work that I, Paul, was given to do.” Colossians 1:8-23 ERV

And now add to it this prayer from Ephesians:

“ So I bow in prayer before the Father. ¹⁵ Every family in heaven and on earth gets its true name from him. ¹⁶ I ask the Father with his great glory to give you the power to be strong in your spirits. He will give you that strength through his Spirit. ¹⁷ I pray that Christ will live in your hearts because of your faith. I pray that your life will be strong in love and be built on love. ¹⁸ And I pray that you and all God’s holy people will have the power to understand the greatness of Christ’s love—how wide, how long, how high, and how deep that love is. ¹⁹ Christ’s love is greater than anyone can ever know, but I pray that you will be able to know that love. Then you can be filled with everything God has for you.

²⁰ With God’s power working in us, he can do much, much more than anything we can ask or think of. ²¹ To him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus for all time, forever and ever. Amen.” Ephesians 3:14-21 ERV

In prayer we tap into God’s power. Through prayer lives change, our lives change, by the power of God.

If you feel awkward and unable to find the “right” words in prayer, pray the ones above. Trust God and His great love. He will give you the wisdom and spiritual understanding you need for each day. His power working in you will be more than you can even imagine.

There is real power in prayer!