Philippians 1:9-10
“And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ.”
One of my favorite stories of simple, child-like prayer, is the story that was told about the prayer of a small boy who knelt beside his bed. He had evidently heard the adults praying for all of the missionaries in the foreign fields. That word, “foreign” was a little – – – foreign to him. Here was his honest prayer: “Lord, please bless and protect all of the missionaries in the corn fields.”
Someone commented that his prayer was sharper than the adults. If there happened to be some missionaries walking through a corn field at that moment, they had been prayed for!
So, what are we to do with prayer? The disciples of Jesus were confused, and asked Him to give them instruction on how to pray. He gave them what has come to be known as, “The Lord’s Prayer,” but should more accurately be termed, “The Disciple’s Prayer.”
Paul is sharing at the beginning of his letter to the church at Philippi, the manner in which he was praying for them. I find this very interesting as well as instructive. We would do well to examine his pattern to effective prayers.
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil