Daily Lesson for Wednesday 18th of March 2026
Read Colossians 4:2-4. What principles for prayer do you find in these verses? What prayer requests does Paul make?
Some of the most important words we can say to someone who is struggling with issues of various kinds, be they family, health, money, or something else, are “I’m praying for you.” This is heaven’s chosen means of connectivity and interactivity. “It is a part of God’s plan to grant us, in answer to the prayer of faith, that which He would not bestow did we not thus ask.”—Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 525.
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Notice the impactful descriptions of prayer Paul uses: “continue” (or persevere), “earnestly,” “being vigilant,” and “with thanksgiving”—signaling that this is a prayer of faith (Colossians 4:2, NKJV). He tells us to pray “always” (Ephesians 6:18) and “without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Most amazingly, even though “we know not what we should pray for as we ought . . . the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered” (Romans 8:26).
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Reread Colossians 4:3. What “door for the word” (NKJV) might God open for you to share your faith? |
Significantly, Paul also prayed for the right words to speak. Sometimes, when we read his letters or his speeches in the book of Acts, we imagine that the apostle was always eloquent, with never a doubt as to what he should say. But here he asks for prayer that he may proclaim the message “clearly” (Colossians 4:4, NIV). He also uses a very important Greek word (dei) in the last phrase of the verse, which could be translated “as I must speak,” pointing to the divine necessity of the work of proclaiming the gospel. He recognized the importance of presenting the message to people at the highest levels of the Roman government, including Caesar’s household.
“It is not always necessary to bow upon your knees in order to pray. Cultivate the habit of talking with the Saviour when you are alone, when you are walking, and when you are busy with your daily labor. Let the heart be continually uplifted in silent petition for help, for light, for strength, for knowledge. Let every breath be a prayer.”—Ellen G. White, The Ministry of Healing, Pages 510, 511.
