Praying with Paul

Praying with Paul

This devotional is written by Cecile Murungi.

2 Thessalonians 1:3-12

Thanksgiving and Prayer

3 We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing. 4 Therefore, among God's churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.

5 All this is evidence that God's judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. 6 God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you 7 and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. 8 He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9 They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might 10 on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.

11 With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith. 12 We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Reflection

Very often we find ourselves in positions of ridicule from non believers. Some situations are even very dire to the extent of execution. So how then can other people who are looking to find God do so when those who have found him are being ridiculed or even worse?

Verse 7-8 restores faith for the strong believer, for the most faithful and we should believe that no matter what is thrown at us and our faith, our God is fighting for us. We could easily be forced to be judgemental towards non believers and those who ridicule us and feel superior over those who don't believe what we know is for sure.

But instead everyone must lead by example, pray for the no believers and the ridiculers. However we must take into account that praying for some one who is persecuting you or ridiculing you is not an easy task, but this is the time that prayer is needed most and we must know and believe that our prayers never go unnoticed. We should also continue to pray for each other that we may be able to live fulfilled Christian lives and by doing this we will be acting as examples for those who are yet to seek the kingdom of God.

 Verse 12 confirms this: "Then the name of our Lord Jesus will be honoured because of the way you live, and you will be honoured along with him..."

When we pray for the people who ridicule us we gain God's honour. He hears our cries and our prayers never go unanswered. We just have to keep the faith.      

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