Treasures are found in God’s Holy Word and this morning I prayed Colossians‬ ‭1‬:‭9‬-‭14‬ ‭ for myself and my Christian friends. Read the passage and then get some ideas on praying the concepts in the list for yourself and your friends.

⁹ For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives,^[a]10 so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, ¹¹ being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, ¹² and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you^[b] to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. ¹³ For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, ¹⁴ in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Verse 9 – Pray for commitment. I confessed my lack of prayer for dear Christian friends and committed to diligent prayer for them once again.

Paul continues with the first order of business. He wanted the people in the Colossians church to know God’s will. You want your friends to walk closely with the Spirit of God so they can know His will, too.

Verse 10 – Paul knew the importance of example to a dark world. He desired the church to live for the Lord. You can pray for your friends to live a worthy life for the Lord. Pray they have a desire to please Him. Pray their life will bear fruit. Most of us have enough intelligence and drive to produce some things. But Fruit from the Spirit is eternal and has a lasting impact. Pray that your friends desire that all their work bears fruit for His glory. And pray that they grow spiritually in the knowledge of God.

Verse 11 – We need strength to live the Christian life here on earth. Pray for your friends not to rely on their strength, but on God’s. Self-sufficiency feeds pride and rips away strength. Dependency on God guarantees that you and your friends will run harder and longer, and that is the nature of our journey here until Jesus comes again.

Verse 12 – Pray that when results happen that they will not take any credit, but will turn their face to the Lord in joyful thanks. We often forget to turn back to the Lord. Things start working out and we live in a state of relief instead of thanksgiving to our Lord.

And pray your friends understand their inheritance is eternal one day with the Lord who is full of goodness and knowledge. These ideas have a perspective far greater than the temporary evil of this world. Remind yourself what is coming while you do the work of the glorious Kingdom here.

Verse 13 &14 – Pray that your friends will focus on all they have in Christ. Their salvation is priceless and eternal. The freedom gained over sin and death is hard to fathom. Pray your friends will comprehend in small measure what their salvation in Jesus gives them now.

When my parents died, I knew I had lost the only people who prayed for me every day. As Christian parents die, we need our spiritually mature friends to step up and do the work. You don’t always need to know their particular request. Scripture covers every need. And as you pray scripture, often the Spirit brings to mind their needs.

Personally, because I prayed for my friends, I have seen temptation lessened, people return to church, moods change, needed healing, patience through suffering, strength to keep going, anxiety lessen, and more. Don’t assume your friends have someone praying for them. Faithfulness in prayer is hard to come by sometimes.

The Bible has some commands and examples about praying for one another. You can take a Bible Treasure Hunt below. And remember to pray for yourself and your friends.