Author: Sonia Sticker

One thing that is disconcerting to me as I write these devotions is moving from one theme to another. When I feel the Lord has given me a theme or a certain book He wants me to study I am able to get up and know where I am headed and study and write. But when I finish one study and am ready to move on to the next study. I find myself praying “Lord, what do I write? What do I write?” It’s times like these, the moving from one particular study to the next that I get anxious about the writing and start letting the questions of “who do I think I am?”, creep in. So I am going to ask forgiveness up front, like right now, if the thoughts I have for today are a bit rambling. That being said, I also want to mention that this week is Spring break week for me. (One perk of working for a school district is I still get things like Spring break, Christmas break and Thanksgiving break!) So I may not be as punctual on posting this week as I have been as I am trying to revamp my mornings just a bit. I want the Lord to be my leader on whether I write these devotions or not. I want what I write to be from Him and to be the thoughts He has given me and not to write just for the sake of writing. I find that my personal quiet time will suffer at times because I am more worried about what I am putting out than what I am taking in, and that is not the point at all. So please forgive me this week if I am not as punctual or if the Lord gives me a day off of writing just to speak to me. 

Lately in my quiet time, the Lord has been telling me to “Be Still” a little more and to “Slow Down” and not to get ahead of Him. I don’t know if you have a tendency to do that like I do or not. Being more of a Mary than a Martha naturally I would like to think that would not be so much of a problem for me. (How pious is that?) But I think simply being a woman makes it a problem. Yesterday while having lunch with friends the comment was made ~ “A woman’s work is never done.” That’s very true of us isn’t it? There is always another dish to wash, another load of clothes to wash or dry or fold, or a floor to sweep. If we are in the season of raising children it’s even more than that. There are babies to be fed, and played with, and disciplined and toys to be picked up. But scripture points us over and over to being still. My tendency and sometimes just life and responsibilities will put a timeline on how long I can sit in His presence. And yet, that is what He beckons me to do. He wants us to be still, His word tells me to ~ 

“Be still, and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10

When Martha was worried about the preparations and the house and probably the food, “What would she feed Jesus?” Mary sat at His feet and He praised her for it. 

“But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.’” Luke 10:41-42

I want to spend this week, well! I have a list of things in my head that I want to get done in my house having a few days off from work, but as much as or even more, I want to take some time and sit at my Saviors feet. I want to let Him fill my cup instead of holding it out for others to fill. I want to relearn the art and practice of being still before Him, of sitting at His feet. I want Him to be my guide for my days off. I want to choose the good portion! 

Won’t you take some time and choose the good portion too!

A Prayer for Effectiveness 

“I thank my God always when I remember you in my prayers, because I hear of your love and of the faith that you have toward the Lord Jesus and for all the saints, and I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ. For I have derived much joy and comfort from your love, my brother, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you.” Philemon 4-7

This prayer shows Paul praying for his friend and brother in Christ Philemon. The letter to Philemon was simply to Philemon. It was not to any church or group, this was a letter to a friend. Philemon, lived in Colosse and because of the way the letter starts out we know the Philemon was a beloved friend to Paul. In most of Paul’s letters he refers to himself as an apostle. However in Philemon, as well as Philippians, and 1 and 2 Thessalonians, Paul does not refer to himself as an apostle, so he is writing more as a friend than an apostle.  

So this prayer was for his friend, Philemon. Paul was also imprisoned in Rome when he wrote this letter but apparently someone brought him news of his friend Philemon. Paul starts his prayer thanking God for Philemon’s love for Jesus and then for Philemon’s love for “all the saints”. Philemon was apparently living for Jesus and in so doing was showing love to other christians as well. I think that it is apparent, that the more you love Jesus the more you love His people. Paul was grateful that Philemon’s love for Jesus and for other people was apparent. 

Philemon was also apparently sharing Christ. Now I may be wrong but I find no evidence where Philemon was a minister by any vocation. From what I see Philemon was just a man, who was living for Christ, and was sharing his faith to other people. We can learn a lot from Philemon with this prayer. I think sometimes we get caught up in the job of sharing faith being a job for the vocational ministers and missionaries. But when we become Christians, it is all of our job to share our faith! It appears that Philemon got that and that he was sharing his faith just for the sake of Christ. Paul was praying for the effectiveness of Philemon’s message to others. We can learn to be more like Philemon and share but we can also follow Paul’s example and pray for others that we see walking the Christian walk and sharing their faith. 

Paul points out that Philemon’s life is a blessing to him. Paul says he has received love and comfort from Philemon, simply because he has seen and heard about the ways Philemon met the needs of other Christians. It sounds to me like Philemon was not just a friend to Paul, but he was a friend whose life was a blessing to others and a blessing to Paul. I am thinking of a few friends I have whose lives are a blessing to me and to others. I want to always remember those people in my prayers and I want to be that kind of friend too. 

Lord may it be so! 

A Prayer for Mercy

“May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains, but when he arrived in Rome he searched for me earnestly and found me — may the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that day! — and you well know the service he rendered at Ephesus.” 2 Timothy 1:16-18

As Paul is writing this final letter to his friend Timothy he also is asking for blessing on another friend, Onesiphorus who had blessed him. Onesiphorus had shown himself to be a true friend and a blessing to Paul and Paul is asking for mercy on him and his household. 

Onesiphorus was a blessing to Paul and probably to others. We all know people like this who are just good at being a blessing to others. We have people in our church and I am sure you do in yours as well, who just know what to do for others when there is a need. I so wish I was that type of person but I just have to say I don’t have that natural talent. I have often said I am much more of a Mary than a Martha. The Marthas of the world just have that servant heart and know what to do to be the hands and feet of Jesus. Aren’t we grateful for those type of people! We should also pray for them much the same way that Paul did. 

Onesiphorus was also not ashamed of Paul and the fact that he was in prison. His servant heart reached out to Paul even at a time that maybe there were those who had turned their back or didn’t feel they could be seen with him. He was a true friend to Paul even when there were tough times. I hope you have friends like that. Friends who will be there for you even when things aren’t going well. I have those friends. I have a group of friends who have walked some roads with me and prayed over me and encouraged me in some of the hardest seasons of my life. I pray that you have those friends too. Paul was showing his appreciation for Onesiphorus and his servanthood and his friendship in praying for him and mentioning him to Timothy. 

Paul reminded Timothy of the times that he would know of Onesiphorus servanthood as well. Onesiphorus was obviously a faithful servant to Paul and to others. I personally want to do a better job of recognizing those in my midst who have served me and who serve others. I want to pray for blessings and mercy on them and their household. Why don’t we do this? If you know of one person in your midst who always goes above and beyond with a servant heart, why don’t we find a way to intentionally bless that person as Onesiphorus did Paul. I’m going to pray for God to show me the person he wants me to intentionally bless today. I hope you will do the same! 

A Prayer of Encouragement

“I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors, with a clear conscience, as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. As I remember your tears, I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy. I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well. For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” 2 Timothy 1:3-7

While we still have a couple more prayers to study of Paul’s we are nearing the end. I learned in commentary that Paul was also nearing the end of his life when he wrote this letter that included a couple of prayers to Timothy. When you know that it brings just a little more urgency to this prayer. Paul was imprisoned in Rome for the second time when he wrote this prayer. He knew that he would soon be executed and therefore, he knew that this would possibly be his last letter to Timothy. Remember he loved Timothy like a son. 

Paul first reminds Timothy that he still serves God. Maybe he felt he needed to assure Timothy that even though he was imprisoned again, that he was still serving God from his prison cell. There was no wavering for Paul, just because the going got tough. He also mentions “with a clear conscience”. Paul’s conscience was clear. He knew he had done no wrong in God’s eyes so even though he was in prison, and he would be executed soon, he had a peace since his conscience was clear. He then points out that he is remembering Timothy “constantly – night and day”. Now many people may argue that it would be easier to pray night and day from prison as you would have nothing else to do. But it could be just the opposite. Bitterness could creep in too as Paul knew he had done no wrong, so why wouldn’t God rescue him. Praying night and day had become a way of life for Paul and hard times didn’t change that. 

The next statement is ~ “As I remember your tears, I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy.” Chances are Timothy cried at the last parting he had had with Paul. It may have been that at that last parting, Timothy knew it would be the last, or just that Timothy relied so much on Paul’s wisdom and friendship that it moved him to tears. At any rate, Paul remembered those tears and he really wanted to see Timothy again so that he could enjoy his presence. I have friends like that. Friends that I have done a lot of life with, so much that I almost want to cry when we part, I long to see them in between so that we can be filled with joy at just being together again. 

Paul also reminds Timothy of his legacy of faith. Timothy learned about Jesus through his grandmother, Lois and mother Eunice. He knew Jesus before he knew Paul. Paul is wanting to remind Timothy that he has that legacy. My impression of Timothy is that he was quiet, possibly a little shy, very non-assuming. And possibly that made serving in ministry a little harder for him because, maybe he just had a hard time standing up and talking in front of people. By reminding him that he has this legacy of faith already, Paul may be reminding him that he knows the scriptures. He knows what to say when he preaches and serves. This legacy is important. It is important to teach our children and grandchildren about Jesus and the scriptures. It gives a foundation for them as they grow older. This is not to say that God cannot use those who don’t have that legacy, but when the legacy is there, there is a foundation built. I have seen, even in my own family those who turned their back from what they were taught for a season, but when the foundation of Christ is in their life already, the fall from grace, ends up being a fall into grace. This also reminds me, as a grandmother, that even though the raising of their children is left up to my kids, and they are doing a great job with the raising and the discipline and building character in their children, that I have a role to play to by instilling this legacy of faith into them. 

And lastly in this prayer, Paul reminds Timothy that after he had the foundation that he also had received a laying on of hands by Paul, to fan the flame of the gifts he already had. Timothy’s natural personality may have been a little shy and fearful, but Paul is reminding him that that fear is not from God. That God doesn’t give us fear, God gives us power, love and self-control. Paul gives us the power to live out the purpose that is His will for our lives. He loves us with an ever-lasting love and He gives us that love so that we can love others! And God gives us self-control. We don’t get to make excuses of our character flaws by saying “this is just me, this is how God made me”. Nope, through God we have self-control to work on our own character flaws, whether it be the timidity of standing in front of a crowd, or anger issues, or running our mouth too much, or whatever we have that is not a Godly trait. 

This is a great prayer to pray for someone you know who is needing to fan into flame his gifts and to pray for ourselves, if we need to fan into flame our own gifts! 

Thankfulness for Strength and Mercy

“I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.” 1 Timothy 1:12-14

This prayer comes from the first letter that Paul wrote to Timothy. This was written as personal encouragement to Timothy but was also written in such a way that it could be used to encourage the Ephesian Christians. Paul considered Timothy, a son in the faith. In this letter Paul is encouraging Timothy who appears to be considering running away and giving up his ministry. I know of and have heard of ministers who have experienced that at some point or another and I must say even as a lay minister in places of service I have had times that I have wanted to give up. Sometimes ministry can be hard, there are blessings for sure, but I also think it takes a special strength that you can only get from following Jesus to stay in there in certain seasons.

When Paul gets to this prayer in this first chapter of 1 Timothy, he wants to convey his thanks to God for giving him the strength to serve as well as appointing him to service at all. Paul wants his own gospel experience to be an encouragement to Timothy and it can be an encouragement to us as well. Paul describes himself in this passage before he started following Christ, a blasphemer, persecutor and insolent opponent. We know that Paul was persecuting Christians when Jesus found him on the road to Damascus and struck him blind. We know that Paul had an experience like none other coming face to face with Jesus. And that when Jesus found him, he was actually on a mission to kill and persecute Christians. Yet, Paul, even Paul received mercy and God’s grace overflowed for him with faith and love. 

If that is not encouragement for us, I don’t know what is, or what will encourage us. You just can’t be too far gone to be used of Christ. And Paul’s conversion proves that. Paul was a chief of sinners, yet God appointed him to be the one who delivered the word to the Gentiles. You don’t have to be smart, you don’t have to be talented or gifted, you just have to be faithful for Him to use you. I’ve often heard it said God doesn’t call the equipped, He equips the called. Just because you may have gone far into sin does not mean you have outlived your usefulness. You just have to be faithful! Paul says he was judged as faithful!

I pray I am always found faithful. I know that I have things in my past that I am not proud of. I know that I am not the smartest or the best educated, but I am grateful for the places that God has had me to serve Him. Now, as well as in the past. The places of service He has given me have always grown me and stretched me. And I always come out the other side feeling stronger. It is a pleasure and pure grace to serve you in this little ministry He has given me! Let me also encourage you, as long as we have breath in our lungs, we are meant to serve Christ. What is your place of service God has given you? He will give you the strength, His grace overflows to you. All you have to do is be faithful and He will work through you too. 

A Request and a Prayer

“Finally brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed ahead and be honored, as happened among you, and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men. For not all have faith. But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one. And we have confidence in the Lord about you, that you are doing and will do the things that we command. May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ.” 2 Thessalonians 3:1-5

Paul is wrapping up his second letter to the Thessalonians. And in it, he not only prays for them but asks for prayer from them as well. Paul knew that his ministry would succeed and prosper even more with the prayers of God’s people. This is why we ask others to pray for us and why we pray for people. I have seen it with my own eyes and heart. When a group of people commit to pray for someone, they can be praying collectively, all together or they can be scattered about but when the focus is on one thing, God’s heart can and will be moved in that direction. Paul knew the faith of the Thessalonians and he desired for them to pray for him. 

Specifically he prayed to be delivered from wicked and evil men. Paul dealt with the wicked and the evil men who were against his ministry just as we have those people against christianity today. Paul was probably praying against physical persecution, whereas at least here in our part of the world our persecution might be in the way of ridicule. We know there are people in parts of the world dealing with the physical persecution. We are seeing it unfold on the other side of the world with people dealing with evil. This is why we need to pray for them. But this is why we need to pray for each other as well. And we remember that the Lord is faithful! 

If we walk in the light of his word and his grace, He will guard our hearts and minds. I love the words “establish you”! I looked up establish and one definition is “achieve permanent acceptance of recognition for.” When we are walking with Him, putting our faith and trust in Him, giving our lives to Him, we will be established. We have a permanent acceptance. We are recognized by Him by and for our faith. And when we are His, Satan can’t have us anymore. Oh he will still try to do everything he can to trip us up. But we are sealed if we have asked Jesus to live inside of us. He is there to help us out of everything that we may get ourselves into. He is there to guard us against the temptations that will lead us down the wrong path. We are His and He is ours. When we live like that, we have protection! 

Paul then prays for the Thessalonians that their hearts will be directed to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ. God’s love never changes. He is the same today as He was yesterday and as He will be tomorrow. He is Yahweh, the very air we breathe. His name is I AM. He is the creator of the universe, He is the keeper of my heart, He is the first and the last, He is my counselor, my comforter and my friend. He is Jehovah-Jireh, my provider, he is Jehovah-Nissi, my banner, He is El Roi, He sees me, He is El Shaddai, Mighty and He is Adonai, MY LORD! He is worthy to be praised. He is steadfast and His love is for me and it is for you too. I pray that your hearts will be directed to the love of God today! And that you will be established in Him! 

A Prayer of Encouragement

“Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.” 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17

Paul has been explaining the end times and things that will happen to the Thessalonians. He is actually talking to them about the “lawless one” and that his activity is of Satan and that he will come with all power and false signs and wonders. But he is encouraging the Thessalonian Christians to stand firm. He has simply told the Thessalonians just before he gets into this prayer. 

“So then brothers, stand firm and hold to the tradition that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter.” 2 Thessalonians 2:15

We can take these words to heart as well.  When we look at all that is going on in the world, we know that there is much lawlessness taking place around us. I have said before that I am not smart enough or theologian enough to know if the things going on are the beginning of the end or not. But whether these things are the beginning of the end times, the middle of the end times, or if Jesus were going to come back today or tomorrow, the message for Christians is still the same.  We are to stand firm on our beliefs. We are to hold to the traditions we have been taught! And then we can pray this same prayer that Paul prayed for the Thessalonians for ourselves and for each other. 

Paul first recognized what Jesus had already done for us. He recognizes Jesus and the Father for who They are and he claims the love and eternal comfort and hope we have already received first. Then he asks God for more comfort for our hearts and that we will be established in our work and in our words. The timeliness of this message is not lost on me. When we started the prayers of Paul there was not a war going on on the other side of the world. I know that many people, us included are watching as things unfold and we are wondering and we are praying for the people who are in the midst of this war. I can’t suit up and go over there and fight for the Ukrainian people. But what I can do is to make sure that I am standing firm here. I can be sure that my work and my words count for something. I can pray for them and I can say this prayer for myself and for my friends that we will be comforted and established in our work and in our words. 

As we continue to watch as the craziness unfolds, please let’s continue to pray for the innocent people who are in the path of the craziness. I don’t personally know anyone who would be there. But I know people who know people who are there and they are scared for their friends and for their family. Please pray for them that they will be able to stand firm in their faith and that they will receive comfort. And while we pray for others, let’s remember what we have already received and pray to receive comfort and that the Lord would establish our work and the words that we speak so that we may be light and life to others. 

A Prayer to be Glorified

“To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power, so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.” 2 Thessalonians 1:11-12

“To this end” in some translations “Therefore”. What is the therefore there for? Well apparently the Thessalonians had come under some persecution and tribulation between the first and the second letter that Paul wrote to them. He spends the first portion of this letter explaining persecution and how it is to be expected when we become Christ followers. But this prayer in this letter shows that our resolve when we come under persecution is not to simply white knuckle it and put on our martyr faces and hold our resolve to endure. But even when we come under persecution for Christ’s sake, we should still be glorifying and praising our God. 

I think early on in my Christian walk, I was under the impression that trading my crazy lifestyle I had gotten myself into for the Christian walk meant that I would resolve to live stoically and I could have a a good martyr face. Nothing could be further from the truth. I have had my fair share of trials and tribulations but walking with Jesus is by no means something I have to just resolve to do with the face of a martyr. He is the joy and the strength of my heart in the midst of any trial and tribulation. You see when you look at whatever you are going through in comparison to the cross, well it pales in comparison. My Jesus suffered and died on a cruel cross. Nowhere have I ever been persecuted or tormented the way Jesus was. So He deserves more than for me to just throw my head back and hold my head up with my martyr face. It is much more of a testament for him for me to walk in a manner that is worthy of the calling He has put on my life. 

Because of what Jesus has done, our resolve should not be one of stoic martyrdom, but should be fulfilled by resolving for good and for the work of faith by his power. I love the way John Piper always says Jesus is most glorified in me when I am most satisfied in Him. That is in essence what this verse is saying. Following Jesus does not mean that we will not come under some trials, persecution and/or tribulation. However, when we are following Jesus, and when we are actively pursuing relationship with Him, when we are finding our satisfaction in Him, our lives will be glorified in Him, no matter what comes our way. We will be a reflection of His glory, according to His grace. 

I admit that I can fall into a trap of stoic resolve from time to time. Can’t we all? But that is where the enemy wants us to be. And I don’t ever want to give him even a fraction of satisfaction. If we are showing non-believers that type of resolve when we come under persecution, trials or tribulations, why in the world would they trade what they have for what we have. But when we show that we can walk worthy, and that we can still exhibit good works and faith in the midst of our trials, and our lives can glorify God even in the midst of persecution, trials and/or tribulations that is when our lives look attractive to non-believers. 

May we all live worthy of our calling! May we all find our satisfaction in Him even in the midst of the day to day stuff, and especially in the midst of the big stuff that comes our way so that He may be glorified! 

Prayer for Sanctification

“Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.” 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

Paul has spent much of his letter commending the Thessalonians and then telling them the things they should be doing to live the Christian life. This is his final prayer for them in the letter. In this prayer he is letting them know they can’t do it alone. He doesn’t just want them to be good, he wants them to be sanctified. I looked up sanctify to get its meaning. It means to be set apart, holy. Paul doesn’t want the Thessalonians to just be good or to go through the motions of the Christian life, He wants them to be holy, to be set apart. He also is recognizing that this is the work of God himself. It’s not something they can achieve on their own and its not something we can achieve on our own either. 

This Christian walk is not just about being good, or not doing bad things. We can never be good enough on our own to be sanctified. But by the same token, we will never be so bad that we cannot be sanctified by God. There is nothing in our past that is so bad that Jesus blood cannot cover. There is nothing in my past that Jesus has not forgiven. And believe me, I have some things that the enemy has sure tried to tell me God would never forgive. There is nothing in your past that Jesus blood cannot forgive either. And when the God of peace sanctifies us, he does it completely, and that is the only way to reconcile your past to gain peace. It’s not something you or I can do, we can’t work hard enough, we can’t study enough, we can’t read enough bible or be “good” enough, only God can do the sanctification work in us and bring us peace to reconcile our past, our present and our future. 

That’s the next step of this sanctification, when we are sanctified by the God of peace himself, then our whole spirit, soul and body can be kept blameless until the coming of our Lord. The God of peace is the only one who can reconcile our past and walking with Him and living in the sanctification that He has already done in our hearts is what will keep us blameless until Jesus return. We will not live sinless lives, that is impossible. But when we are set apart by God, we will never be able to remain in sin. Sin will not be a comfortable place for us anymore. We will not have peace when we sin if we have been sanctified through Him. 

And the last part of this prayer is just the reassurance. “He who calls you is faithful, he will surely do it.” All we have to do is accept it. I think, or at least I know I have in my past felt I had to work so hard for this Christian life. When really, Jesus has already done the work.  I just have to accept what He has freely given already. And then to live to my calling, to live in the sanctification that He has done. 

Do you know someone or, maybe you yourself have had a hard time reconciling sin in your life with the present. This is a great prayer to pray for that person. The one who is tormented by memories, or having a hard time shedding the guilt and shame of a lifestyle. Pray for them to be set apart, to be sanctified completely! When you are sanctified completely there will be peace and you will be kept blameless until the day of Jesus return. He is faithful to complete the work in me, He is faithful to complete the work in you or in anyone you are praying for. 

He will surely do it! 

A prayer for Direction, Love and Holiness

“Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you, and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you, so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.” 1 Thessalonians 3:11-13

When Paul writes in his letter “Now may our God and Father himself” it shows that he is redirecting his letter to the Thessalonians to write out his prayer to God for them. Paul has spent much of his letter commending their faith and their love, but He wants more for them. And he really wants to witness it in person. So the first thing that Paul is praying for here is to come to the Thessalonians. Why? Because Paul knows that he can encourage them with written words, but nothing is like in person learning. I think the same holds true for us. I am a reader, I love to read books that are written to encourage faith by Christian authors. But nothing fills me up like sitting under the teaching of my pastor or other Christian teachers. I love a good conference that fills my soul. I think that’s what Paul was getting at here. He knew that his written words could encourage the Thessalonians, but nothing would encourage them like sitting under the teaching of the apostle. So Paul was praying that God would direct his path to the Thessalonians. 

The next thing Paul prays for them is that their love would increase for one another. Now I think from what I’ve read that the Thessalonians were doing a lot right in this department as well. They loved each other but they still had room to grow in love. Love is something that is never completely full. As you give it away it only grows more and more. Paul wanted their love for each other to grow more and more just as his love for them was growing more and more. I love our church and the people of our church and as my love grows for them, it only has more room to grow, but I truly believe, it grows more and more when we are seeing each other and attending regularly. And as we grow in love for our people and our church and for the people of God, our hearts are more established in holiness. 

Now I know that we will never fully arrive at holiness on this side of glory. We can’t, but we can continually, until we take our last breath, grow toward holiness. I think one thing that Paul is saying here is as your love grows for each other, your thoughts become more and more holy toward each other as well. That is when our hearts are established in holiness. 

This prayer shows Paul praying for three things, he wanted to be with the Thessalonians to teach them, he wanted their love to be bountiful and he wanted them to have true holiness in their hearts. I think this also shows three things that are important for us today. 

I believe we were made for community. The past couple of years have been challenging for us to have community. I know for me personally, I can read lots of books, I can watch lots of teaching on videos, I can listen to lots of podcasts, but nothing compares to having my community and sitting under some in person teaching. 

As we grow in our communities under in person teaching, I pray that our love grows and abounds more and more. Take note, the enemy loves nothing more than to tear down our communities. He has had a hey day with it the last couple of years, hasn’t he. But another way he tears down is to tear down our love for each other. I pray for my community and I pray for yours that our love will abound more and more for each other. Let’s try to recognize and not give heed to the enemy when he is tearing us down and give grace to each other and just love each other. With all our faults with all our hurts and with all our shortcomings, let’s pray that our love will cover them and will abound more and more. 

And because of that love we have for each other, our hearts can be established and can grow toward holiness. When our Lord returns or he calls us home whichever comes first, may he find us established in holiness.