Not What I Thought
If you have prayed with me in our church prayer time on a Wednesday evening, or in the "prayer room" on a Sunday morning, or any other given time or place, you may have heard me quote from Ephesians 3:21. In fact, in time of need, I may have prayed in this manner, "I pray that you would do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think", in relation to a problem.
Now, to pray such a prayer is not incorrect, technically, because God certainly can "do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think" in every and any situation, but it is not what God was talking about through Paul in this passage.
The fact of the matter is, he was talking about being able to know the love of Christ and being filled with the fullness of God. Notice he mentions "the width and length and depth and height" of his love and, in fact, acknowledges that it passes knowledge, so it seems to be an impossible prayer request. Nevertheless, he says "according to the power that works in me". That power is the power of the Holy Spirit, who makes his home in the heart of every believer. Without the power of the Holy Spirit, we could never begin to comprehend the fullness of God's love, but with his power, there is no limit to our understanding.
I, for one, have barely scratched the surface of understanding God's love. Why is this so? I have been a believer for over 35 years. This whole section of scripture begins with "I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ". I have prayed on many occasions. I am a woman of prayer. But honestly, I have spent very little time praying that I would be able to comprehend the love of Christ. Do you pray that you might know the love of Christ experientially? I, for one, would like to be more intentional about this very thing. If, however, you "catch" me using this prayer in the way I mentioned above, don't be surprised because I have used this prayer in this manner for a very long time.It gives me hope and confidence that when I pray God can and does do so much more than I could ask and think. And honestly, I don't think that's a bad thing.
Now, to pray such a prayer is not incorrect, technically, because God certainly can "do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think" in every and any situation, but it is not what God was talking about through Paul in this passage.
The fact of the matter is, he was talking about being able to know the love of Christ and being filled with the fullness of God. Notice he mentions "the width and length and depth and height" of his love and, in fact, acknowledges that it passes knowledge, so it seems to be an impossible prayer request. Nevertheless, he says "according to the power that works in me". That power is the power of the Holy Spirit, who makes his home in the heart of every believer. Without the power of the Holy Spirit, we could never begin to comprehend the fullness of God's love, but with his power, there is no limit to our understanding.
I, for one, have barely scratched the surface of understanding God's love. Why is this so? I have been a believer for over 35 years. This whole section of scripture begins with "I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ". I have prayed on many occasions. I am a woman of prayer. But honestly, I have spent very little time praying that I would be able to comprehend the love of Christ. Do you pray that you might know the love of Christ experientially? I, for one, would like to be more intentional about this very thing. If, however, you "catch" me using this prayer in the way I mentioned above, don't be surprised because I have used this prayer in this manner for a very long time.It gives me hope and confidence that when I pray God can and does do so much more than I could ask and think. And honestly, I don't think that's a bad thing.
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