Colossians: Rooted and Built Up in ChristExemplo

Wrestling in Prayer for Others

Maybe it's early in the morning before the sun has risen, and you are face down on the floor with sweat dripping from your brow. Or perhaps you find yourself deep in the woods on an afternoon hike, far from the nearest house. Or still, maybe you are on a crowded city street, with people as far as the eye can see, hustling to get to your next meeting. When it comes to intercessory prayer, the time and place are of little concern. It is the posture of the heart and a willingness to cry out to God on behalf of another human soul that truly matters.

That is the kind of imagery that comes to mind when I read about Epaphras - beloved servant, faithful minister of Christ, and fellow prisoner of Paul. (See Colossians 1:7, Philemon 1:23) I imagine him to be a man whose heart ached for the church he had started in Colossae. Colossians 4:12 tells us he was "always wrestling in his prayers on behalf [of the Colossian church]." Indeed, his desire was for the saints in Colossae to continue to be rooted and build up in Christ.

Epaphras provides you and me a beautiful example of how we are to intercede on behalf of the people God has placed in our path. But what exactly does intercessory prayer look like? To answer this question, I find Adele Ahlberg Calhoun's definition of intercessory prayer helpful. She says, "Intercessory prayer invites us into God's care and concern for us, our families and friends, and the entire world. No concern is too trivial for God to receive with loving attention. However, intercession is not a means of manipulating heaven into doing our will. Rather it is a way we become aware of God's prayer for a person and join in that intercession."

As we intercede in prayer for others, we surrender our thoughts and ideas regarding how we believe God should answer our prayer—recognizing that He cares deeply for the situation. He knows the past, present, and future and what is best for the person we are praying for. Our role is to come into alignment with His will in order that we might join with the ongoing prayer of Heaven.

Perhaps as you have been reading this devotional, God has brought to your mind a friend or family member in crisis. Would you consider a focused time of intercessory prayer for them over the next week or month? How might God use your prayers to bring healing in this situation? And how might God want to reveal Himself more deeply to you - as you, like Epaphras, wrestle in your prayers on behalf of another soul?

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