Daily Devotional for Sunday, December 22

Strengthened by Christ

"That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;' Ephesians 3:16.

I hear people say, "I'll be praying for you." They may even comment on social media posts with "Prayers" with a heart emoji. I would like to think that those people earnestly seek the Lord in these situations, but if we are being honest, a lot of times people have great intentions and then fail to remember those people in their prayers. I have been guilty of telling someone I will pray for him and then I get so caught up in my own petitions that I forget to lift others up. Some of the sweetest moments of my life have occurred when someone stopped what he was doing to pray over me immediately after I expressed a need. I have also received cards and letters containing the prayers of others for me. What a comfort it is to know people are praying for you and with you.

In Paul's letter to the Ephesian Christians, he wrote down his prayer for them as they lived out their faithin Christ. There are two comparisons in this letter to that of a soldier, and this prayer is one of them. First, every soldier needs strength for endurance in battle. Paul prayed that they would be spiritually strengthened by the Holy Spirit and that Christ would make His dwelling place in their hearts through their faith. This would be the source of their ability to endure the spiritual battles facing them. Second, everyone knows that agood soldier stands firm when faced with the enemy. Paul prayed that they be rooted and grounded in love, and as their roots grew, they would come to fully comprehend the magnitude of that godly love. This would be their reason for endurance, their reason to continue in their boldness.

THOUGHT FOR TODAY

Pray with someone today or write down your prayer

and send it to someone to encourage that person to endure.

Ashley Ridings