Observation: Paul typically closes his letters with greetings back and forth, from people he has seen in his journeys, and to people he knows will read or hear his letters at their destination. That's typical of letters even today--"everyone says hi, hope things are going well with Grandma, etc."--but one greeting to the church in Colossae that stands out is from Epaphras. Epaphras is believed to be the church's founder, but he is apparently away from town. Paul writes that Epaphras "is always wrestling in his prayers on your behalf, so that you may stand mature and fully assured in everything that God wills."
Application: This stood out to me, I think, because I, too, have been wrestling with prayer. It's a lifelong journey, getting my head around what it is, what it does, what it doesn't do, and most importantly how to incorporate it into my daily life and walk with God. I don't expect to get it all figured out anytime soon.
What I like about Paul's image of Epaphras "always wrestling in his prayers" is this reminder that prayer is not a peaceful, passive, sedentary activity. Whether you do it standing or sitting, driving, jogging, showering, kayaking or journaling, prayer is a spiritual workout. It forces us to come face to face with our own values and beliefs, and our relationship with God. Much like the wrestlers featured in the Netflix series "GLOW" (not for kids, but a great comedic drama for adults), when we wrestle with prayer, it's a discipline that we don't learn overnight. We get better with practice. It's also a full contact sport that can end up pulling our whole lives into the struggle. And in the seasons of our lives when we are fully engaged in it, we never really mentally leave the ring. It's an ongoing wrestling match with God, with ourselves, and with this hurting world that needs grace, forgiveness, healing and justice.
The particular prayer that Epaphras wrestles with--that his church "may stand mature and fully assured in everything that God wills"--is a pretty daunting one. The more mature in our faith we get, the more we realize we don't know. The more we grow, the smaller we feel. But really, what he's praying about is that his church would also become prayer wrestlers. And that's a prayer I'll take into the ring any day: for myself and for my church.
Prayer: God, lead us into the ring. Make us prayer wrestlers. Draw us into full contact with you. Don't leave us unchanged. Help us do the work, and grow, for the sake of the world which needs our prayers and your presence. Amen.
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