Dec 14

Colossians 4:2
Memorise Matthew 26:41
“…Continue in prayer, and watch…”

Paul returns to general exhortations to the entire church in Colossians 4:2 “Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving.” Watch and Pray. This was the exhortation given by Christ to the disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:41), but sadly they failed in this regard. The word ‘continue’ in Greek means to persevere; we need to persevere in prayer, and never neglect to pray. Whether we are a husband, wife, child, servant or master, we need to continually pray that we be aligned to His will, to pray for strength to do His will, and to always be thankful for this grace. Here Paul also exhorts to watch in the same, and be alert to danger. The word watch in Greek has the meaning of keeping awake. We need to be continually on our guard, for if we let our guard down and stop praying, we will so easily fall prey to the world and to worldly wisdom. Watching requires diligent studying of God’s Word, and then actively applying it in our lives. It requires active discernment in all matters in life, to ensure that we never fall prey to the wiles of the devil. No matter how busy we are, we must always pray, and we must always watch!

As Christian students, you too need to watch and pray. If you do not keep watch, you will so easily be influenced by your friends who apply worldly methods to improve their studies. Some may swear by self-esteem workshops, or by miracle working tuition teachers who only have time on Sundays, or to take life easy and not study so hard! Make sure you always use your sword of the spirit, which is God’s Word, to teach you to guard against the world and worldly wisdom. Continually commune with God through prayer; seeking to know His will, seeking to fulfill His will in your study life. Without prayer, receiving one low academic score will suddenly cause great uncertainty in your mind, for you have not been seeking His will, but following your own heart instead. With prayer, the same low academic score will prompt you to continue seeking His will. Over time, His will for your life will become clearer and clearer to you.

Thought: Is it possible to know God’s will for my life without prayer?
Prayer: Thank you Lord for wanting to show me the way through this dark world.