Introduction

2 Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. 3 At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— 4 that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.

What is Prayer?

Sometime we struggle with knowing God’s will for our lives, but one thing that is clear from God’s Word is that it is God’s will that we pray to Him. Scripture uses phrases like:

  • “Continue Steadfastly in prayer” Col 4:2
  • “Be constant in prayer” Rom 12:12
  • “Strive together with me in your prayers to God” Rom 15:30

Tonight I want to unpack Colossians 4:2a, “2 Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it…” We will expound on the importance of prayer. Then I’ll give you some practical steps on how to be more steadfast in your devotion to prayer. Before we get started with that, let’s take a few minutes to define what prayer is…so that we are all on the same page.

What does it mean to pray?

So to put it in the simplest terms possible, Prayer is the process of direct communication with God. The Bible has some vivid descriptions of prayer. It is:

  • Imploring or pleading with the Lord Ex 32:11,
  • Pouring out your soul before the Lord 1 Sam 1:15,
  • Crying out to heaven 2 Chr. 32:20,
  • Pleading with God Job 8:5,
  • Bowing before God Eph 3:14

Does it sound hard? You should expect it to be hard! Skip down with me to Colossians 4:12: “12 Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God.” Prayer involves striving. It involves struggling. It’s not supposed to be easy – It is a battle. Listen to the way David describes it in Psalm 34:17,

“17 When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears
and delivers them out of all their troubles.

The righteous call out and the Lord hears and he goes to war! It is a powerful weapon that we wield in spiritual warfare to fight against Satan and to fight against our flesh. Is warfare easy? Is it haphazard? Warfare is hard and to be victorious takes intentional effort.

When we pray intentionally and Biblically, it is a beautiful crucible where God can burn away the desires of the flesh and transform our heart to be more like His.

We may come before God confessing sin, giving thanks and offering praise and all those things are part of prayer, but at the center of prayer, it is simply asking . It is asking God for what your heart desires most. Our requests before an almighty God is an expression of our total dependence on Him.

It’s like this: My children are still almost totally dependent on me for all of their needs. Their dependence on me if often expressed as they make various requests… “Dad, can we go for ice cream… Dad, can I watch a movie… Dad, can we drive to New York….” If I am honest, I can get annoyed at the asking, but God isn’t like me at all. God loves to be asked!

Why does God delight in our prayers so much?

God’s will is that His creatures are constantly asking Him for their hearts desires. It’s not just his will. It’s not just a command. He LOVES for His children to ask Him for what we desire! Proverbs 15:8b says:

…The prayer of the upright is acceptable to him.

How often do you and I do something that is totally acceptable to God? When it says it is acceptable to God, it means prayer is perfectly in line with His pleasure and His will. (Pro. 15:8) “Acceptable” is the Hebrew word ratsown and carries with it the connotation of God receiving our requests with pleasure & delight & favor. The old King James translates that passage like this, “the prayer of the upright is his delight.” The NIV says, “Prayer pleases God.” (NIV).

He is so eager to hear our prayers and respond to them that He says in Isaiah 65:24, “Before they call I will answer; while they are yet speaking I will hear.” It gives the impression that God is sitting on the edge of His throne waiting for us to cry out to Him. He can’t wait to hear from us! In Revelation 5:8 he describes the prayers of the saints like bowls full of incense. (Like the old song says) They are a sweet, sweet sound in His ears.

Why does God delight in our prayers so much? He delights in our prayers because God is a giver. God loves to give. Giving brings God glory. It is more glorious to be a giver than to be a getter. Givers are sufficient. Getters are needy.

  • The Psalmist says in 40:17, “As for me, I am poor and needy, but the Lord takes thought for me. You are my help and my deliverer; do not delay, O my God!” God tells us to be steadfast in prayer to help us remember that we are totally needy, but He is totally sufficient. (Ps. 40:17)
  • In Psalm 50:15, the Lord tells us to “call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.” When we call on the Lord in our time of need, we get the help and He gets the glory! (Ps. 50:15)
  • Jesus repeats that theme in the New Testament. John 14:13 says, “Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” He’s telling us to be steadfast in asking for your heart’s desires. Why? SO that God might be glorified! So that you might see God as glorious as He really is! Prayer magnifies His riches & glory and it brings us joy. (Jn. 14:13)

Why is Steadfast Prayer important to God?

Why did God create us? According to Isaiah 43:7, God created us for His Glory. The Westminster Catechism proves from about a dozen scriptures that the chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever (Ps. 86:9; Isa. 60:21; Rom. 11:36; I Cor. 6:20; 10:31; Rev. 4:11; Ps. 16:5-11; 144:15; Isa. 12:2; Luke 2:10; Phil. 4:4; Rev. 21:3-4)

He created us so that we would look to him as our ultimate satisfaction. He is our greatest delight…our most valued treasure. In Him, we find our deepest joy and the source of all hope. As we are steadfast in prayer, we become more in tune with the heart of God, so He receives more glory and we experience deeper joy!

With all that in mind, it does not come as a surprise that Paul writes in Colossians 4:2, “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.” Prayer is central to the purpose for why God created you and me.   The command to be steadfast in prayer occurs 6 times in the New Testament.

Life Application: How do you pray steadfastly?

What does it mean to be steadfast in prayer? It means you pray often. The Greek word for Steadfast carries with it a heavy connotation:

  • To be devoted
  • To be Constant
  • To Persevere
  • To show one’s self as courageous for
  • To be in constant readiness

Does that sound haphazard or hit-and-miss? No! It sounds as regular as eating and sleeping. Being steadfast in prayer is totally intentional and intentionality takes planning. (Col 4:2) The text bears that truth when it tells us to “be watchful in it.” The Greek word for “watchful” means to watch by giving strict attention. “Be watchful” can be interpreted as “be vigilant.” Keeping alert means that you are intentionally and actively working against anything that may distract or hinder you from praying.

Posture

Some people say that kneeling in prayer puts them to sleep…. Then walk around!

People in the Bible prayed standing, lifting their hands, sitting, lying down, kneeling, lifting their eyes toward heaven, bowing and pounding their chests.

The important thing is that you are steadfast and watchful and pay attention when you pray. Your posture is of secondary importance. The Bible gives examples of postures, but commands watchfulness and steadfastness in prayer. (Col 4:2)

Location

Does the Bible suggest a place where we pray? 1 Timothy 2:8 says, “I desire then that in every place the men should pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarreling.” People in the Bible prayed during battle, in a cave, in a closet, in the garden, on a mountainside, by a river, by the sea, in the street, in bed, at home, in prison, in the wilderness and even inside a fish. It’s true that you should pray anywhere and everywhere and prayer should saturate your day. (1 Tim. 2:8) However, if you want to be effectively prayerful throughout the day, extended time of quiet communion with God is essential.

Why? Because you can’t go deeper in your relationship with God on the fly or on the run or just by fitting Him into the cracks of our day. Being steadfast and devoted to prayer means being intentional about regular and dedicated time spent with God.(Ps. 5:1-3) The psalmist says in chapter 5:

5 Give ear to my words, O Lord;
consider my groaning.
2 Give attention to the sound of my cry,
my King and my God,
for to you do I pray.
3 O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch.

Does that sound on the fly? It was prepared. It was extended. It was in the morning. It contained meditation (which takes time) and heartfelt prayer (which take time and thought).

Amount

So how much time in prayer is enough? If you are currently spending no time in prayer, then take the next step. Spend some time in prayer this week. Then ask God how much prayer would it take to develop you into a person who is deep and wise and spiritually fruitful. We need more mature believers and spiritual maturity does not happen apart from prayer. No one grows deep in their relationship with God on the fly.

Examples:

  • I have one extended time of prayer in the morning and then I have several on the run prayers throughout the rest of my day.
  • Daniel committed himself to praying morning, noon and night.
  • The Psalmist (Ps 119:164) declared that “Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous rules.”

The point is this: being steadfast and watchful in prayer means to be vigilant about keeping prayer appointments with God.

How

“OK, I have the time, I have the place, I have the amount…now what do I say?” Let me offer you 2 suggestions that might be helpful to you

Concentric circle prayer

Starting with yourself, you pray for your needs then move outward. Why do you start with yourself? So that God will provide both strength and humility that you need to effectively pray for the needs of others. So start with yourself and then move outward to

  • Immediate family
  • Extended family
  • Church family
  • Church leadership
  • Coworkers
  • Neighbors
  • Schools
  • Government
  • Persecuted church
  • Global issues

That might give you an idea about where to start. You might come to a point on one of those concentric circles and spend 45 minutes pouring out your heart before God and then stop there. Prayer is a relationship, not a check list.

Pray Scripture

If you ask yourself,, “what should I pray for myself, my family, the church, my neighbors, the school, the government and the world?” The answer is found easily in God’s word. God’s word reveals God’s will. As you pray the truths of scripture over situations you face, you are praying God’s perfect will into that situation. It is powerful and effective.

I often take a chapter in psalms or proverbs and I pray those truths over the circumstances I’m facing. Let’s use Ps 46:1-3 as an example:

46 God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way,
though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah

Conclusion

Find a place and a time and a method of prayer. “2 Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it…”