January 27
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PRAY IN THE SPIRIT AT ALL TIMES
18 With every prayer and request, pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be alert with all perseverance and every request for all the saints, 19 and pray in my behalf, that speech may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak. -Ephesians 6:18-20
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In this letter of Paul to the Ephesians, he emphasizes the command to pray in the Spirit always. He specifies not just any kind of prayer, but praying in the Spirit. What does this mean? If we walk in the Spirit, we are aligned to the will of God. It is easy for us to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit because He is the one who will tell us what to pray for. It is interesting how many Christians live prayerless lives, and then wonder why they have no victory or joy in their lives. When we abide in Christ, the Spirit is comfortable living inside of us. When He is inside of us, He will make our lives alive for Jesus. He will direct us what prayers to pray and be led to get revelations from Him who and what to pray for. Paul also says to be alert, meaning to be watchful of the requests for the saints. It is a tradition in women’s bible study, to bring in all the prayer requests of each one, but I think sometimes we also have to listen to what the Spirit wants us to pray for that requested person or situation according to what the Spirit can see that we cannot. The pray at all times seem impossible in our busy world, but there are many different kinds of prayers that we can get into such as corporate prayers, intercessory, thanksgiving, supplications, adoration, healing, wisdom, and many more. Throughout the day, we will always find a reason to pray. It is like conversing with the Lord or thinking of his commands and praying according to his words and truth. Paul requests them to pray in his behalf because he is in prison. He asked to pray for him to have boldness so he can proclaim the gospel in prison to the other prisoners. How often do we struggle to be bold and courageous to talk about the gospel to unbelievers? According to a commentary, Of course, the ancient Greek word for chains meant a prisoner’s shackles. But it could also be used for the gold adornment worn around the neck and wrists of the wealthy and powerful. On special occasions, ambassadors wore such chains to show the riches, power, and dignity of the government they represented. Paul considers his prisoner’s chains to actually be the glorious adornment of an ambassador of Jesus Christ.
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REFLECTION
• Why do you think we are asked to pray at all times? Is that even possible?