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Praying For Others With Joy
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Philippians 1:3-6, "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every
prayer of mine for you all, making request with joy, for your fellowship in the
gospel from the first day until now; Being confident of this very thing, that he
which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:"
Prayer is our declaration of dependence upon God. When we pray we are telling God
that we need Him, and in prayer we readily admit that without Him we can do nothing.
We desperately need to connect with God in prayer, but we also need the prayers
of one another. We should covet the prayers of others, and we should place a high
priority on praying for others. The apostle Paul had a prayer partnership with the
believers at Philippi. Though he told them they were constantly the subject of his
prayers, he was dependent on their prayers as well. His deliverance from prison
would happen only as they prayed. "For I know that this shall turn to my salvation
through your prayer," he told them (Philippians 1:19).Their prayers for him were
fueled by the burden of his imprisonment, and they prayed for his freedom and safety.
We tend to pray for people out of burden rather than with joy because prayers are
usually borne out of a sense of need. A lost family member, a backslidden fellow
believer, a sick church member, or a wandering child will motivate us to pray with
fervency, intensity, and even tears. The apostle Paul was known for his sacrifice
in prayer and often prayed with weeping, but Paul prayed for this church with joy
rather than with a burden. How was this possible? How could his demeanor express
the joy of the Lord under such horrible conditions? And how could that joy find
its way into his prayers for them? Four reasons for his joyful praying are found
in Philippians chapter one.
He ignored his personal suffering. The book of Philippians was written under conditions
of extreme personal suffering. Mental agony, physical pain, and social rejection
belonged to the apostle Paul as he prayed for them. But He recognized God's perfect
will and sovereignty in his life, placing his circumstances in the framework of
Romans 8:28. He refers to his beatings, persecutions, and trials as "the things
which happened unto me" (Philippians 1:12). He referred to the shackles as his "bonds
in Christ" (Philippians 1:13). In order to focus on praying for others and meeting
the needs of others, we must ignore our personal sufferings. We cannot think about
others while we are thinking about ourselves.
He had a selective memory. In his cold prison cell, before he penned the book of
Philippians, he had a chance to reflect on recent events in his life. He could
have recorded a number of negative experiences, yet he focused on positive memories
instead. God gave him grace to forget about the negative and focus on the positive.
Two chapters later he said "forgetting the things which are behind, and reaching
forth unto those things which are before" (Philippians 3:13). When praying for
others, we should pray with joy, thanking God for the positive things in the lives
of those we are praying for. Forget about past hurts, personal injury, and painful
memories. Focus on your present blessings and your personal opportunity to influence
them by prayer. Pray for them with a joyful recollection of the positive, and willingly
ignore the negative.
He had lasting ministry fruit. Those who he was praying for had been discipled and
were living for the Lord. This brought great joy to his prayers. When others pray
for us, do they pray with joy as did the apostle Paul? Or do they pray with burden,
with sorrow, and with tears? When our walk is genuine and our testimony pure, others
will experience great enjoyment as they lift us up in prayer. If we become backslidden,
bitter, or indifferent, people who pray for us will experience grief as they ask
God to bring us back to Him. God delights in answering prayers for restoration,
and if we "draw nigh to God, He will draw nigh unto us" (James 4:8). However, lasting
joy comes when we are constantly experiencing personal revival. If we stay close
to Him, He will stay close to us. What a promise!
He had confidence in the Scriptures. Paul could pray with joy because he built his
prayers on the promises of God. Paul was instrumental in their conversion and their
discipleship, but He knew God would finish the work He had begun in their hearts.
Our prayers for others can be a great joy when we realize God's promise to complete
the work He started in them. We should pray with joy "Being confident of this very
thing, that he which hath begun a good work in (them) will perform it until the
day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6). God's promises can be trusted because God's
character can be trusted. God is holy, just, eternal, immutable, and merciful. God
is also a finisher, and everything He starts He finishes. We can pray with confidence
in God's promise to complete the work in us. Claiming this promise will bring joy
to our prayers. "Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing,
that ye may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost" (Romans 15:13).
He had them in his heart. They were on his mind and in his thoughts throughout each
day. He felt great joy as the memory of their commitment surfaced in his heart.
Serving them was not just a business or an obligation; It was a passion!! He had
no hesitation to pour his life into their spiritual development. He became consumed
with their spiritual success to the point that they occupied a place in the inmost
part of his being. They held a place in his heart. His emotions were affected as
he prayed for them, and he must have cried tears of joy as he pleaded with God
to use them to the fullest measure. What kind of tears does your life and testimony
bring to the prayer closet of those interceding for you? Tears of joy? Tears of
grief? Let's partner together with God and each other in prayer, trusting Him to
bring joy to others through our lives.
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To learn more about the ministries of Dr. Paul Kingsbury and Reformers Unanimous,
please visit northlove.org [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=zvrde5bab&et=1106877382251&s=24117&e=001tt1Gzrjzj2QjP9NPiiYzypD9hCySdmq7-Qcp5oheC8k3r4LK0Xlb4avmYfus2eTh-BIHGgWO45ynnFYbyxjGHLHgshWN4ApRqxm9-Hj9PGc=]
or reformu.com [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=zvrde5bab&et=1106877382251&s=24117&e=001tt1Gzrjzj2TRnq-Jl7KNTIPsI4ESTMULnKdwnCnK3vbu4l_dqlJg9PbLpkl0B7bP3J73LGbv3_Cffu8PMSRsRnkgAmarZnrOoqY1uoKLcTc=].
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