In my meditation on the Epistle for this coming Sunday from
1 Thessalonians 2:1-8, the warmth of
Paul’s affection for these folk in verse 8 (and continues through the chapter).
“So deeply do we care for you that we are determined to share with you not only
the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you have become very dear to
us.” This is characteristic of the thanks for people that permeates the
prayers of the New Testament Epistles. Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s I Loved this People echoes this theme
with which I have resonated for every congregation I have served in pastoral
ministry, most poignantly in time of pain.
Now in my “retirement” as I pray each of those prayers, I am
prompted to remember those with whom I have served with great gratitude. In
this time of my life, I am particularly thankful those who have shaped me
through the years. Each day’s parade seems altogether too fragmentary a sample
of those who have left their mark on me. I’m not going to attempt to make
public a comprehensive list, but I have collected some stories that strike me
as having been of remarkable significance.
Those of you who have been following me for some time know
that I have prayed through the Psalms monthly since 1970 or 71. (the date +30,
+30, +30, +30, skipping the lengthy 119 and using it by itself on the 31st)
Having used the prayers of the New Testament Epistles to guide congregations in
praying for the church, this past year I added them to my routine. As I have an
inventory of 15 such prayers, I get through them twice each month. I have found
that to be an exceptionally stretching for my prayer life in this transitional
time of life (“retirement,” moving to Wisconsin, caring for Candy with her
Alzheimer’s).
For your convenience, I have copied the prayers of the New
Testament Epistles here with the dates I use each one each month noted. Notice
how often God is thanked for the people to whom the letter was written. How
might this shape your relationships with people dear to you?
Romans 1:8-10 1,
16
First, I thank
my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed
throughout the world. For God, whom
I serve with my spirit by announcing the gospel of his Son, is my witness that
without ceasing I remember you always in my prayers, asking that by God’s will I may somehow at last succeed
in coming to you.
Romans 15:5-6, 13 2,
17
May the God of steadfastness and encouragement
grant you to live in harmony with one another, in accordance with Christ Jesus,
so that together you may with one voice glorify the God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in
believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
1 Corinthians 1:3-9 3,
18
Grace to you
and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I give thanks to my God always for you because of the
grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus, for in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech
and knowledge of every kind—just as the
testimony of Christ has been strengthened among you—so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you
wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you may
be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful; by him you were called into the
fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
2 Corinthians 13:7-10 4, 19
But we pray to
God that you may not do anything wrong—not that we may appear to have met the
test, but that you may do what is right, though we may seem to have failed. For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for
the truth. For we rejoice when we are weak
and you are strong. This is what we pray for, that you may become perfect. So I write these things while I am away from you, so that
when I come, I may not have to be severe in using the authority that the Lord
has given me for building up and not for tearing down.
Ephesians 1:15-23 5,
20
I have heard
of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, and for
this reason I do not cease to give thanks
for you as I remember you in my prayers. I pray that
the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of
wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may
know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his
glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is
the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the
working of his great power. God put this
power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his
right hand in the heavenly places, far above all
rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named,
not only in this age but also in the age to come. And he has put all things under his feet and has made him
the head over all things for the church, which is his
body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
Ephesians 3:14-21 6,
21
For this
reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom
every family in heaven and on earth takes its name. I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may
grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his
Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in
your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with
all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge,
so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to
accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all
generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Philippians 1:2-5, 9-11 7, 22
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and
the Lord Jesus Christ.
I thank my God every time I remember you, constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all
of you, because of your
sharing in the gospel from the first day until now.
And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more
with knowledge and full insight to
help you to determine what is best, so that in the day of Christ you may be
pure and blameless, having produced
the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and
praise of God.
Colossians 1:2-12 8,
23
To the saints and faithful brothers and
sisters in Christ in Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.
In our prayers for you we always thank God, the Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ, for we have
heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the
saints, because of the
hope laid up for you in heaven. You have heard of this hope before in the word
of the truth, the gospel that has come
to you. Just as it is bearing fruit and growing in the whole world, so it has
been bearing fruit among yourselves from the day you heard it and truly
comprehended the grace of God. This
you learned from Epaphras, our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful
minister of Christ on your behalf, and
he has made known to us your love in the Spirit.
For this reason, since the day we heard it, we have not ceased
praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s
will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you may lead lives worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to
him, as you bear fruit in every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of
God. May you be made
strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be
prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the
inheritance of the saints in the light.
Colossians 4:2-4 9,
24
Devote
yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with thanksgiving. At the same time pray for us as well that God will open
to us a door for the word, that we may declare the mystery of Christ, for which
I am in prison, so that I may
reveal it clearly, as I should.
1 Thessalonians 1:2-5 10, 25
We always give
thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers, constantly remembering before our God and Father your work of faith
and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. For we know, brothers and sisters beloved by God, that he
has chosen you, because our
message of the gospel came to you not in word only, but also in power and in
the Holy Spirit and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of persons
we proved to be among you for your sake.
1 Thessalonians 3:10-13 11, 26
Night and day we pray most earnestly that we
may see you face to face and restore whatever is lacking in your faith.
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, just as
we abound in love for you. And
may he so strengthen your hearts in holiness that you may be blameless before
our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.
2 Thessalonians 1:2-4, 11-12 12,
27
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and
the Lord Jesus Christ. We must always
give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters, as is right, because your
faith is growing abundantly, and the love of everyone of you for one another is
increasing. Therefore we
ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your steadfastness and
faith during all your persecutions and the afflictions that you are enduring.
To this end we always pray for you, asking that our God will
make you worthy of his call and will fulfill by his power every good resolve
and work of faith, 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 3:1-2, 5 13,
28
Finally,
brothers and sisters, pray for us, so that the word of the Lord may spread
rapidly and be glorified everywhere, just as it is among you, and that we may be rescued from wicked and evil people;
for not all have faith.
May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to
the steadfastness of Christ.
2 Timothy 1:3-4, 16-18 14, 29
I am grateful
to God—whom I worship with a clear conscience, as my ancestors did—when I
remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. Recalling your tears, I long to see you so that I may be
filled with joy.
May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus,
because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chain; when he arrived in Rome, he eagerly searched for me and found
me—may the Lord grant that he
will find mercy from the Lord on that day! And you know very well how much
service he rendered in Ephesus.
Philemon 1:4-7 15,
30
When
I remember you in my prayers, I always thank my God because I hear of
your love for all the saints and your faith toward the Lord Jesus. I pray that the
sharing of your faith may become effective when you perceive all the good that
we may do for Christ. I
have indeed received much joy and encouragement from your love, because the hearts
of the saints have been refreshed through you, my brother.
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