When you pray for others, what do you pray for?

Eph. 1:17

17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.

When I think of praying for others, it is not likely that I pray for them to know God-our glorious Father – better.  I often pray for the things I think they need most or things that will “best” help them in the current situation they are facing.  I am convicted by Paul here in his prayer for the Ephesians as he truly just wants them to know God better by giving them the Spirit of wisdom and revelation. 

But how do we truly know God?  What does that mean?  This cannot be done apart from the work of the Spirit who lives inside of us when we believe in Jesus as our Lord.  Outside of this, one of the best ways to get to know someone is to spend time with them.  Spending time being in the presence of God – reading his word or a devotion, being encouraged by fellowship, singing songs of praise, praying, listening to a godly podcast, spending time in his creation  – are all ways that we can know God better.  The Spirit works within us to help us understand and bring wisdom as we do those things.

It is a mystery that we will never stop learning something new about our God – and that is something to enjoy as we continue to seek and to know God together. So may we be praying for one another, that we would truly know God better through his Spirit of wisdom and revelation for the rest of our days.

Prayer:

Father,

Thank you that you have given us your Spirit that we can know you more and more.  Help us to be thinking of others and to be praying this prayer as Paul prayed for the Ephesians.  I pray that you may continue to give your Spirit of wisdom and revelation to ______ so that they would know you better.  Help me as well as I seek to do the same.

We pray all these things in Jesus name and by the power of your Spirit, amen.

A song to listen to:

Choose any song from this playlist – https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5nj1rlNSuBsqRwhCQu62Uy and listen to what it tells you about who God is.

Ellen Wilcox

Living Church – Creek Road