Praying for the Church, Week 4

Paul second prayer in his letter to the Ephesians is a twofold prayer for power followed by a doxology (“word of praise”). First he prays that the Father would grant power through the Spirit to the inner man of each believer so that Christ would make Himself at home in their hearts and transform their lives. This is a prayer for ongoing growth and maturity from the inside out. Second he prays for the believers who have been planted and established by God in love, to be strengthened to really know the love of Christ – to engage in the impossible task of measuring the immeasurable! The final word of praise reminds us that God can answer prayers like this one beyond our wildest imagination because He wants to work deeply in us. All of this has the ultimate goal of bringing God glory, and revealing that glory through the church and Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Here, then, is our prayer …  

“Lord we, as Clinton Bible Church, come to you as our Father, because You are Provider and Protector. You are generous to Your children and we have full access to Your presence. You discipline us with love and longsuffering. You have prepared for us an eternal inheritance and we are joint-heirs with Christ. And You are Creator – all living things have been named in You.

We pray that You, God, would grant us power to live in this State-line area as Your servants, transformed by Jesus Christ dwelling in us. We pray that we can let go of things we are attached to so that Christ can do His work in our hearts. We pray that Christ’s work in us will make us the neighbors, workers, citizens, voters, moms, dads, children, students, first responders, sports players, drivers, etc. that You would have us be – seeing all our responsibilities and privileges through Your eyes and acting with right hearts. Fill us with Your Spirit and give us the awareness of Christ for each day we live.

We also pray for power to grasp deeply the love of Christ. Help us to measure the immeasurable and let this love compel us. May we see Your great compassion and faithfulness to us in the cross of our Savior and know that if God is for us, who can possibly be against us? And as we know more of You let ourselves fade into Your glory. You can do more than we could ever ask or think to change us and make us into a people who serve You with gladness and follow the footsteps of Your Son. We give You glory in advance for what You will do in our lives and we long to see your name high and lifted up. Let us shine Your glory to the generations that follow us, forever and ever. Amen.”