My power throughout the universe displayed, yet You gave Your Son to die for me, I scarce can take it in.
“ I have always been for you, even in the darkest hours, My attitude is one of love demonstrating it through My grace to each person I have created. Yet there are many who have turned their backs on me and ignore me. Now, at the beginning of a New Year, My power and my love are focused on all those who have responded to that love. So, no matter what obstacles and difficulties you may encounter this coming year, remember I am a good God and if I am for you who can be against you effectively. I have demonstrated this in giving my Son to die on a cross – I am fully committed to the point of death.”
As the prospect of a new year opens up before us, I have decided to share Paul’s prayer in Colossians 1:9-14 that I used for my sermon on Sunday with you all, as it seems so appropriate and immediate for each one of us.
Firstly Paul brackets the prayer with a description of the gospel in vv 13,14, which he has mentioned earlier, The prayer is aimed at asking God to help each one of us to live the authentic Christian life and he wants to remind us that we cannot live this life authentically unless we are true Christians. He speaks about power in the prayer and that power is only available through the presence of the Holy Spirit in us, once we are born again.
He starts the prayer, with a plea for knowledge. Knowledge which is not merely book knowledge, or head knowledge, but knowledge which is accompanied by wisdom and understanding, iow heart knowledge. This type of knowledge very definitely requires the input and presence of His Spirit. Furthermore in vs 10 he returns to the theme of knowledge saying that true Christianity is always accompanied by a growing knowledge.
Now friends, we can ask God to help us acquire knowledge but we need to do our share in this. We need to seek knowledge. To place ourselves in the position to receive that knowledge. The main source of the knowledge God is speaking about is His word and the onus is on us to continue to grow in our understanding of his word. A real challenge for this coming year.
He then prays that we may live a life, worthy of the Lord and may please Him in every good work. Notice he doesn’t lay out a list of rules to follow. he is speaking of a way of life. That way of life, to be pleasing to God must arise from our ongoing dynamic relationship with Him. it starts at the beginning of the day by having the right attitude to God and His kingdom work. It is fostered by spending time in prayer and reading His word at the start of every day. If we are listening to Him he will lead us to the good works he mentions here.
The sign of a true Christian life is not how many meetings you attend or books you read, but in the fruit you bear. Real Christianity is always demonstrated by fruit. Your changed life must impact others in the community. Some may be physically limited, but even they may pray and encourage.
Then we come to the real heart of the prayer. He prays for power for each Christian. Not a power to do miracles but a power to endure hardship with patience and demonstrating joy. It is easy to be joyful when everything is going well. But when the storm clouds come up, we need the full power of His glorious might to be able to endure the storm with patience, joyfully. This joy is not a frothy joy, just a deep sense of peace and love for God even in the darkest valley.
To be able to do that it is easier if you regularly practice by giving thanks in all things on a daily, if not moment by moment basis.
So friends, thank you for enduring by staying with me in the blog this past year and as we go into the new year. Here is my challenge to each of you. Make it a practice to start each day, as you wake up, with thanksgiving and to end it by using your last words in thanksgiving again before you go to sleep. And persevere with this the whole year. May God bless you all into 2026.