Category Archives: Ephesians

Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.
Ephesians 3:20

Dear God, when I read this verse this morning my first thought was, “So I wonder what I’m failing to ask for.”

I heard recently that Warren Buffett has a rule of 5/25. Basically, the idea is to list your top 25 lite goals, narrow it down to the top 5 priorities for you, and then forget about the other 20. I’m probably screwing that up, but it’s the basic idea. The theory is that you probably only have time to really accomplish five significant things in life, so don’t be distracted by the things that are less important to you and focus on those top five. I haven’t done this exercise since I read about it, but it seemed like an interesting idea. I guess I would caution anyone to develop their 5/25 list with a lot of care, examining it through the lens of the two great commandments (love you with all our soul, mind and strength and love our neighbors as ourself), starting each item with the question, “Is this about my glory or God’s?”

Father, I have an early meeting today in which I will be working with others to start the process of visioning and planning for the future for our nonprofit. Guide us in this. Show us what we are failing to see. Holy Spirit, inspire us to tap fully into you and give us your vision for the needs you want us to meet. Help us to give our utmost for your highest.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother”—this is the first commandment with a promise: “so that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth.” And, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
Ephesians 6:1-4

Dear God, I just had a thought I probably shouldn’t have had: “Sorry, Paul, but I don’t take parenting advice from people with no children.” I mean, what he’s saying is correct and important, but the people who seem to think parenting is easy are the ones with no children. I certainly thought it was easier before I had children. And I thought I would be better at it.

What’s interesting for me now is that parenting has humbled me in ways that probably nothing else could. Now, I’m the last person to give parenting advice to someone, and I’m the first one to be an understanding ear when a parent needs to talk about their frustrations. And I was telling a friend just yesterday about the period of time when I was really disappointed in you and what I perceived was a lack of support on your part. I did all of the things I knew to do, including following Paul’s counsel in this passage, but things did not turn out like I hoped. I knew I wouldn’t be the perfect parent, and I knew my children wouldn’t be perfect people, but I thought there would be a baseline of protection that my prayers, pursuit of you, and deep involvement in loving them would provide. But that’s not the way it worked out.

Father, the last 25 years of parenting have taught me more about faith and believing in things I cannot see than anything else could have. And I’ve started to see some movement. I’ve started to see some signs that this is the road that leads to your kingdom coming and your will being done in my life, my children’s lives, my wife’s life, and the world as it is in heaven. Thank you for breaking me down and building me back up in this way. Thank you for what you are doing that I can see and that I cannot see. Please help me to do exactly what you need me to do as a parent of two young adults so that I won’t get in the way of what you are trying to teach them. I’m willing to sacrifice anything fir their good, no matter what it might cost me personally.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, he graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ. I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning. God’s purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. This was his eternal plan, which he carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord. Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence. So please don’t lose heart because of my trials here. I am suffering for you, so you should feel honored. When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.
Ephesians 3:8-19

Dear God, this is another of those passages where the translators and publishers put in section breaks that obscure greater depth in the passage’s meaning. I want to spend some time with these verses this morning and link Paul’s thoughts together as one as opposed to the two sections the publishers of the New Living Translation (NLT) divided them into.

He graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ.

So let me start here. What are the endless treasures? How would I describe them? I suppose they would have to start with the cutting of the cord between me and the shame of my sin. That’s what the mercy you offer through Jesus’s life, death and resurrection gives us. Then, when it comes to the fruit of the Spirit, the most precious one to me is peace. Of course, the other fruits are just as important: love, joy, patience, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, kindness, self control. Those are treasures beyond compare. Then there’s one thing that is incredibly powerful that I just realized is not considered to be a fruit of the Spirit. I think it’s just a fact of something we have in you: hope. My faith brings me hope. Hope that there is something happening beyond what I can see with my physical eyes. Hope that I can count on an ultimate existence in your presence for eternity. Hope that there is something happening in your plan that is bigger than what might benefit me or play out the way I think it should play out. No, the treasures aren’t earthly treasures of wealth, comfort, or pleasure (notice pleasure is NOT a fruit of the Spirit). It’s so much more than that.

God’s purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.

Okay, I do not remember seeing this before. Your plan for us as your church is to show the unseen rulers in heavenly places your wisdom? I wanted to see this in some different translations. Here is what The Message said: Through followers of Jesus like yourselves gather in churches, this extraordinary plan of God is becoming known and talked about even among the angels! The New American Standard was pretty close to the NLT: …so that the multifaceted wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. So there is something to this. We are part of your display to all of your creation, both what we can see with our human eyes, and what we cannot see. How is this working for you? Are we, as a church, making you look foolish? When we lose our first love, do you put your figurative head in your hands and think, “What have I done?”

I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.

Paul was very in tune with the Holy Spirit and his role in our lives. Jesus left us the Holy Spirit to be our counselor and comforter–to be his presence with us–and Paul always remembered this. It always seems to lead me back to the fruits of the Spirit from Galatians 5. I’m so glad we have that list from him. But the roots are only developed if they are nurtured, the soil is tended and weeded, and we remain in your presence.

And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love it. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes fromod.

Father, it starts and ends with these amazing treasures made available to me through Jesus. And this ultimate treasure is the ability to get a glimpse of your love for me and draw closer to you through giving your roots the environment they need to grow in my heart. Your love brings me so many wonderful things. And your relationship with us is so interesting because it seems to bring you something as well. You are a wondrous, marvelous God, and I am grateful for the opportunity to get to worship and know you. Help me to remember and be motivated to take the treasures that are of you and give them to others.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

Out of your reverence for Christ, be supportive of each other in love. For wives, this means being devoted to your husbands like you are tenderly devoted to our Lord, for the husband provides leadership for the wife, just as Christ provides leadership for his church, as the Savior and Reviver of the body. In the same way, the church is devoted to Christ, let wives be devoted to their husband in everything.

And to husband, you are to demonstrate love for your wives with the same tender devotion that Christ demonstrated to us, his bride. For he died for us, sacrificing himself to make us holly and pure, cleansing us through the showering of the pure water of the Word of God. All that he does in us is designed to make us a mature church for his pleasure, until we become a source of praise to him–glorious and radiant, beautiful and holy, without fault or flaw.

Ephesians 5:21-27 (Passion Translation)

Dear God, I’ll be reading these verses in front of those gathered on Saturday to see my niece marry her fiancé. On the one hand, these are incredibly beautiful verses about the love between a husband and a wife as well as our love relationship with you. On the other, those who are paranoid can see this as dangerous, un-woke propaganda.

The part about husbands leading wives can be very controversial. What is often missed by those people, however, is the commands for the husbands. It’s a tall ask.

• Live up to the standard of Jesus himself.
• Sacrifice yourself completely to make your wife holy and pure.
• Cleanse her through showering her with your Word.

If I can live up to that, there is probably not much my wife wouldn’t want to do for me. But it has to be done in humility as well. Done in a showy or demonstrative way will only serve to make her feel condemned and inferior. The opposite of what Jesus did was make those who loved him feel condemned.

Father, even this evening, help me to be exactly what you need me to be for my wife. Each couple who brings their marriage before you gets to figure out how they will live out these verses. For me, I think what you keep getting me to learn just a little more each day is that my life as a husband and as a father is more about what my wife needs from her husband and my children need from their father than about what I need from them. I’m still not there. There are still things I tend to think I deserve from the relationships I have with them, but there is nothing I deserve. You have already given me more than I deserve. I just pray that my actions will lead those I love into closer relationship with you regardless of what it costs me.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

Ephesians 6:10-12

Dear God, when I read this passage this morning it reminded me of a line in the Hunger Games: Catching Fire when they told the main character to “remember who the real enemy is” while she is in the arena. In this case, the real enemy isn’t the people she is fighting in the arena, but the person (the system) who put her in the arena. That makes the strategy from moment to moment different. That calls for a totally different calculus.

In our case, the one who put me here (you) is not my enemy, but there are forces unseen who want my destruction. If none of that were true and all of reality was what I can interpret with my five senses then the calculus would be to achieve everything I can for myself and for those I love. However, that is not the reality. The reality is that none of this is about me. It’s all about you and the more I give of myself–the more I die to myself and take up your cross–the happier I am.

I read through an article today about a hospice chaplain who was sharing the top three regrets people had at the end of their lives. Here they are:

1. I did not live the life of my dreams.
2. I did not share my love.
3. I did not forgive.

While Satan might want us to focus on the first one and have us look back on our lives with regrets in not chasing down all of our personal dreams, I believe it is part of how you designed us that leads to the second two. You didn’t tell us to love our neighbor as we love ourselves because you need us to, but because it is what is best for us and how we are built. You didn’t say we should pray that you would forgive us as we forgive others because you were holding your forgiveness hostage, but because you know we need to extend forgiveness in order to live.

Father, help me to see what is of you in this world and what is of Satan. I know I believe his lies all of the time. I believe them because I want them to be true. I want to be able to indulge my selfishness. I want to be able to chase my own dreams and protect what I have. I want so many things for myself. But You didn’t design me that way. You designed me to worship you and love others. That’s how my life is complete. Help me to live that complete life.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.

Ephesians 6:12-18

Dear God, before I can be reminded to make sure I’m wearing your armor (the Armor of God), it’s important to remember that I have to recognize the spiritual warfare around me. The attacks on our spirits. The real world beyond what we see. When I think of spiritual warfare I tend to only think of attacks on unity and relationships (and I think those account for most of the attacks), but I don’t think of just the way the demons will try to impact my thoughts regarding the physical challenges that come up like pandemics, financial struggles, etc. So what am I to do to combat these things? Well, I embrace:

• Truth – It’s amazing how hard this first one can be because my temptation is to believe truth the aligns with my selfish interests and reject truth that inconveniences me. It’s important to somehow have people around me who are comfortable speaking inconvenient truths into my life.
• Righteousness – Of course, there is none righteous, no not one. (Psalm 14:3) So that’s where I need to resist and do my best to keep myself pure and then put on my salvation for when I fail.
• Peace – This is the one that I maintain can only come through connection with the Holy Spirit. I cannot manufacture peace. I cannot will myself to it. It only comes (at least to me) through communion with the Holy Spirit.
• Faith – I’ve said for a long time that there is a fine line between living by faith and living in denial. Faith is showing up and doing the work everyday regardless of my planned outcome and trusting that you will do your will. My ultimate goals don’t matter. There are a couple of things that I pray for nearly every day that I see no evidence of coming to pass, but I keep showing up to pray for them anyway, and then the Holy Spirit gives me the peace I need to accept your outcome.
• Salvation – This is what covers my lack of ability to be righteous. Because I am not righteous. Oh, thank you for my salvation. Thank you for choosing to relate to me anyway. Thank you, sweet Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
• Holy Spirit – Speaking of the Holy Spirit, I am sorry I still don’t acknowledge you like I should. You are where the rubber meets the road in my life. Thank you. You give me my love, joy, peace, patience, faithfulness, goodness, gentleness, kindness, and self control. You are my minister. You are my counselor. You are God’s presence in my heart. Thank you for protecting me.

Father, be with me today as I go through this day. Give me my armor against the divisiveness and destructiveness of this world. I give you all the glory for everything in my life. I trust you. I live for you. And I promise to fight for the rights of others more than I will fight for my own rights–for your glory and your glory alone.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

With the Lord’s authority I say this: Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused. Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him. They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity. But that isn’t what you learned about Christ. Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy. So stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body. And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.” Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, for anger gives a foothold to the devil. If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need. Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them. And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God. Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God’s people. Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes—these are not for you. Instead, let there be thankfulness to God. You can be sure that no immoral, impure, or greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God. For a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world. Don’t be fooled by those who try to excuse these sins, for the anger of God will fall on all who disobey him. Don’t participate in the things these people do. For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light! For this light within you produces only what is good and right and true. Carefully determine what pleases the Lord. Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them. It is shameful even to talk about the things that ungodly people do in secret. But their evil intentions will be exposed when the light shines on them, for the light makes everything visible. This is why it is said, “Awake, O sleeper, rise up from the dead, and Christ will give you light.”

Ephesians 4:17-5:14

Dear God, do I grieve you? It’s a question I hate to ask because I am afraid of the answer. I hope I don’t. I go back to the Isaiah verses from two days ago and I think about the part that talked about the Israelites’s rituals and annual festivals being disgusting to you, and I wonder if my rituals (even doing these prayer journals in such a public way) and the way I celebrate things like Christmas, lent, Easter, etc. are disgusting to you. I hope not, but I think think it’s healthy to ask the question in a truly humble and discerning way. Am I bringing you my best and following you as best as I can, or am I taking my own agenda and adding your name to it?

As I looked at what happened in Washington D.C. yesterday I can’t help but wonder about the individuals who stormed the capitol. If I were to sit and talk with them, what would they say about their faith? Would they claim your approval over their actions? Would they talk about their love for you? If they would (and I suspect most of them would), then which one of us is deluded–them or me? I think you would reject everything they did yesterday, but they think you endorse it.

And I have to say this. I saw a message last night from a San Antonio pastor who did about a two-minute prayer, but I thought the prayer missed the point. It asked a lot of you, but it didn’t start with personal repentance. It didn’t start with the church’s need to repent (and I mean the individual church as well as your church in America). It didn’t start with the individual’s need to repent. It just started asking for your guidance and blessing. In my mind, now is the time to simply beg for your mercy.

Father, I do beg your mercy on me. I beg your mercy for my family. You have every right to destroy me for the things I think say and do. You have every right to walk away from our nation and turn your favor to a nation (probably a southern-hemisphere nation in Africa) that worships and loves you. You are not impressed with our society. You are impressed with our humility. Help us to be humble. Use the pain of the last 24 hours, the last 2 months, and the last several years to move us forward. Make it count. Don’t let it count for nothing. Right now, it feels like the pandemic is counting for nothing. It feels like the social justice unrest of the last year is counting for nothing. And it feels like this political pain is counting for nothing. Please make it count, and help us, as your body, to turn our eyes off of political power and onto you.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

When I think of all this, I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus for the benefit of you Gentiles. . . assuming, by the way, that you know God gave me the special responsibility of extending his grace to you Gentiles. As I briefly wrote earlier, God himself revealed his mysterious plan to me. As you read what I have written, you will understand my insight into this plan regarding Christ. God did not reveal it to previous generations, but now by his Spirit he has revealed it to his holy apostles and prophets. And this is God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share equally in the riches inherited by God’s children. Both are part of the same body, and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong to Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 3:1-6

Dear God, thank you. Just thank you. Thank you that your plan includes me. Thank you that you cate for me and love me. Thank you that it also includes my family and friends. In fact, we are all your children and you treat us as such. You love us. Thank you.

As I sit in church and pray this to you–as I sit with these Gentiles and pray this to you–I cannot help but be stunned at the dominoes Jesus’s life knocked over. But since this is the day of epiphany, I guess the first Gentiles to show up in response to Jesus’s birth were the wise men. They came to acknowledge Jesus, worship him, respect and love him, and then they went home. I wonder what the rest of their lives were like. I wonder what they thought Jesus’s life would be like. Or were they wise enough to simply be in the moment and not have to imagine what the future held?

Father, as I sit here on January 3, help me to not worry about what 2021 has in store for me/us. Help me to not even worry about the rest of this day. Instead, help me to be in this moment right now.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

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. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

Ephesians 1:17-23

Dear God, I am not sure that I have seen this before, but, at least in this instance, Paul isn’t saying need wisdom and revelation to understand what is going on around us. He wants us you to give us (me) the Spirit (Holy Spirit) of wisdom and revelation so that I can know you better. That’s it. To know you better. That’s what it’s all about. I don’t have to understand what is happening around me any further than to know what you would have me do in any given moment to respond to it. But I don’t have to understand the big picture of what is happening. I will know how to respond if I know you and internalize that knowledge of you. If I have the Holy Spirit speaking into my heart and nudging me.

So what are the different parts of you I should know? Well, Paul gives those to me in this passage:

1. The hope to which you have called me
2. The riches of your inheritance
3. Your incomparably great power unleashed for me

My wife and I have been watching The Good Place. I’m still not sure whether or not it is sacrilegious, but it probably is. We are two seasons into a four-season series and, so far, it is all about performance. It puts the power of my ability to get to “the good place” when I die into my hands through a purely performance-based system. Maybe our need for your mercy will be addressed by the end. In fact, I have a feeling I might end up doing a specific prayer journal on the show when I’ve finished the series, but for now there is this incredible emptiness to it. Even the good feeling I get from doing a good thing is nothing when it’s not tied to the peace of knowing I’m not doing it for a reward.

I love my children. There really isn’t anything that either of them can do to earn or lose my love–and those boundaries have certainly been tested. In fact, I had something yesterday that hurt my feelings. But at the end of the day–or even in that moment–it didn’t affect how much I love that child. It impacts relationship, but it doesn’t impact love. I think the biggest thing you have done for me through parenthood was give me just a glimpse of how you see me. I can’t even put into words what I know of your love for me because of the love I have for them.

Father, I am sorry I hurt you. I am sorry I allow my selfishness to get in the way of me knowing you better. Help me to be at rest in you. When my children are with me, I just want them to know they are loved and in a safe place. Help me to know that in my relationship with you as well.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen