1 Corinthians 1:4-9,
"I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge- even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you- so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by who you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord."
Paul here gives a prayer of thanksgiving to God on behalf of the believers in Corinth. Why is Paul thankful? He is thankful to God because the grace that God gave to the believers in Corinth by which they were enriched in all speech and knowledge, and not lacking any gift. All of us have people in our life who are followers of Jesus and we have seen God work in their life in powerful ways and over the years to make them more into the likeness and image of His Son Jesus Christ. Spend some time thanking God for the ways that His grace, His power, and His Spirit have been working in their lives! Also, as you see growth in your life be sure to thank God for it! If you fail to do that satan is more likely to use that growth to turn it into self-righteous pride. So where do you need to give thanksgiving to God for the work he has been doing in peoples lives?
2 Corinthians 2:14-16,
"But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in a triumphal procession and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing , to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things?"
Paul here gives thanks to God that he (and all who follow Jesus) get to spread the fragrance of the knowledge of God everywhere! Everywhere we go we give out impressions of who God is by how we live and how we talk and Paul thanks God for this privilege that has been given to us even though at times it is not received well. We too should thank God that He has given us the incredible opportunity to be used of God in helping others see who He is.
2 Corinthians 12:7-9,
"So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."
Here we get a glimpse of Paul who prayed that God would remove a thorn from his flesh. Many have speculated what this thorn was but we don't know. What we know is that it was uncomfortable and difficult for Paul in this area and he went to God to ask God to remove it from his life. An entirely appropriate prayer. Do you have thorns in your life that you are praying that God would remove? I do. However, in our prayers for God to remove the thorns in our flesh we need to ultimately trust that regardless of those thorns being removed, or not, that God is sufficient, that God is strong enough, that God has enough power to carry us through whatever it is. Remember in our prayers our ultimate hope is not in God changing the circumstances that we find ourselves in, our ultimate hope is found in the glorious truth that we are in Christ! So as you pray for the thorns in your life, and the life of others, don't forget to pray that we would confidently rest in God's power and strength regardless of our circumstances getting better, staying the same, or even if they get worse.
So what are you learning from the Prayer's of Paul? We would love to hear!
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