A Prayer for the Church: Let the Peace of Christ Rule
Colossians 3:15 “And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.”
As we anticipate the remembrance of Christ’s death and resurrection, it’s a time many often give something up to remind them of all Christ gave on our behalf. But instead of ‘going without’ why don’t we commit to praying for the Body of Believers, we who daily represent Christ to this world, those with whom we are joined as The Church and The Bride. We should pray, too, for our sons and daughters as they are members of the Body (or if they are not, they would be drawn to know Christ).
Dark days are ahead…in fact they are here and walking faithfully requires us to be intentional. Let’s immerse ourselves in Scripture that reminds us of who we are in Christ and how we are called to live as His church.
Let's commit to pray in the weeks building to Resurrection Day that God would move and work in His Church so that we would stand strong against the enemy and would uphold one another to remain faithful. Will you commit to pray too?
Colossians 3:15 “And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.”
The phrase "Let rule" is the word “brabeuo” in Greek and it means to arbitrate or umpire, to govern.
A question for prayer and meditation:
What are we allowing to rule in our hearts and govern our thoughts and responses?
Our Prayer point:
Pray that the Church would allow the peace of Christ to rule in our hearts individually and collectively and pray the world would see this extraordinary peace and be drawn to Christ.
Pray without ceasing
Nearsighted? Farsighted? Or 20/20 Prayer?
Ephesians 6:18 “praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints-.”
Prayer is an amazing conversation between us and the Lord. It’s a direct line to His ear, His heart and His mighty power. If we really think about it, our minds can be overwhelmed with the mystery and power of prayer. It’s a privilege God extends to us, His children! Just as we get excited for a call from our kids, God is delighted when we sit down to talk to Him and He has so much to tell and show us.
When our children were little, it’s likely we taught them to pray, first with simply prayers made of rhyming words but carrying the truth of Scripture. “God is great, God is good, and we thank Him for our food…”
From there, we morphed into prompting them to pray for family members and loved ones “God bless Mommy and Daddy…Grandma and Grandpa, and God bless Buster and Scooter”…yes the pets often received that honorable mention as well. We highlighted the personal nature of talking to the Lord and the unquestionable truth that He’s always listening and ready to help. We wanted our sons and daughters to know how to talk to the Lord. But our focus was often on those we knew and had relationships with already.
But here’s the thing, God calls us to pray for one another as the Body of Christ, as His saints and as brothers and sisters in the Lord. That covers those we know…but it also includes those we do not. It includes believers in closed, hostile countries like North Korea where being a believer means certain conviction to a labor camp…or worse. It includes brothers and sisters in China where speaking the name of Jesus can mean pushback and abuse from the government, loss of social credit or imprisonment. It includes brothers and sisters in African nations, trekking over dirt roads to share the gospel with others who need freedom in Christ or those in pushing deep into the jungle areas to those yet unreached with the gospel . Prayer needs to include tribes, nations and languages. Our prayers need to recognize that we are surrounded by a cloud of witnesses…and one day, we will be counted among them (Hebrews 12:1).
It’s true, we get lulled into the comfort of our daily lives, our to-do list, the things that pull and weigh on us and yes, even our stress. If we’re going to have 20/20 prayer vision, we need to be intentional to look around and beyond ourselves and our sphere of influence and experience. We need to transcend borders, boundaries and time zones and put Ephesians 6:18 into practice, because, friends, there is a battle going on all around us…and that battle is not a physical one. Ephesians 6:12 “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rules, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Do we think what is happening in Ukraine is just a turf war? Think again. There is spiritual significance to what we see and we’re foolish to think it’s just political. And it’s not just there…it’s happening all over…yet we’re oblivious to it many times.
Have we grown in our prayer life enough that we’re moved by the struggles and injustice we see, even if it’s not something we’re personally enduring? And have our sons and daughters grown in their prayer lives as well? Or are they using ‘drive through’ prayers- placing their order and then waiting impatiently to pick up the answer, the provision, the deliverance?
Friends, because we’re human and limited, we run the risk of being myopic as we pray. Oh, it’s not intentional, but we pray for what we see, right? But, as believers, we wrestle with the unseen, the principalities and powers that battle against the Lord…and against us, His saints. So it’s important…no, it’s vital that we pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ around the world. Ephesians 6:18 “praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints-”
Today and this week, let’s be intentional to pray for our brothers and sisters around the world, in each country, in each crisis, in each dangerous place. God is there, we can be confident of that. But as the Body of Christ, as the Church, we need to come alongside them in prayer. Imagine what we’ll encounter in Heaven when we meet other believers and Jesus tells us “This one!! This is who your prayers affected, protected and sustained!” Oh, beloved, let’s pray with power this week and encourage our sons and daughters to do the same.
Rather than a written prayer here, write out your own, revisit it through the week, add to it as you follow the news and believe that God is using each one of us in ways we may never see here…but our prayers are effective and powerful because we’re talking to the God of all creation whose child we are.
Pray without ceasing.