Category: Colossians

Take a moment to read Colossians 4:7-18 before reading the devotional below. 

Paul ends his letter to the Colossians by listing all the various people who have assisted him in his ministry. We see from verse 10 that Paul is indeed writing this from prison and Aristarchus is there with him. He dispatches Tychicus and Onesimus to bring the letter to Colosse and to encourage the believers there. Paul describes these and his other companions as a “comfort,” and it is a reminder to us all of the power of relationships. We need each other to accomplish God’s work.

Here’s your freedom for today: you don’t have to go it alone. The Christian life is meant to be lived in community, working alongside each other and using all our gifts to build up and encourage the church. When we try to accomplish God’s calling on our own, we fall into various traps like pride, loneliness, discouragement, and self-reliance. When you find yourself in isolation, reach out to others who can minister alongside you. Offer prayer support to others and ask them to pray for you. Find ways to work in a team so that the fruit of your work can multiply and the load can be shared. When ministry feels heavy, it is a sign that you are leaning on yourself too much. Give yourself permission to put something down and work towards change.

Take a moment to read Colossians 4:1-6 before reading the devotional below.

Prayer defines us. Our ongoing conversation with God spills out in our lives whether we intend it to or not. What we say to others, how we use opportunities that cross our paths, and how we engage in the spiritual battles around us all stem from our prayer lives. If you are not praying, you will miss many of these spiritually significant moments in your day.

Paul tells us of two essential ingredients to a good prayer life: an alert mind and a thankful heart. Why are these important? First, if we are not alert then we will remain oblivious to the spiritual realm. Most people walk around completely unaware of the spiritual influences and events in their lives. When we are alert, we can see the activity in the spiritual realm. Second, a thankful heart positions us for battle. Satan is out to destroy, discourage, and distract. Gratitude fixes our heart on the works of God and we give him glory as he is due.

Here’s your freedom for today: you have what it takes to lead in God’s kingdom. Notice that intelligence, charm, beauty, or wealth are not listed among the things that deepen our spiritual effectiveness. Whatever the world has said you don’t have enough of, God says it doesn’t matter. Pay attention and be thankful. That’s it. Anyone who has a desire to do this can participate and grow. God’s kingdom is an equal opportunity realm where there are no entrance requirements too hard. His power accomplishes the work, you simply bring the willingness.

Take a moment to read Colossians 3:18-25 before reading the devotional below. 

Everything comes back to just you and God. Whether you are single, married, a free spirit or enslaved to your boss, everything you do is about your relationship with God. Passages in the Bible like today’s often lead us to finger pointing or elbowing our spouse or neighbor. If only he/she would act differently… And yet if we all just followed the way of Jesus we would have no need for blame.

Our heavenly Father has an eternal reward for us. So what if we spend at most 80-90 years toiling away on this earth, putting others ahead of ourselves? We have all of eternity to live in a sin-free home where none of this will be hard at all. Submitting to each other will be the obvious and natural choice. Being gentle with each other will be automatic. The more you read the Bible, the more you realize that anything hard here is relatively incomparable to how good our eternal home will be.

Here’s your freedom for today: you can make it a little while longer. If your spouse or your boss or your parent is absolutely exasperating, keep on living like Jesus. Whatever you choose to do in those relationships will be a choice for God, not for that person. That doesn’t mean you let them do whatever they want to you, but it means that even in establishing boundaries in the relationship you do it with gentleness and love. And no matter what, an eternity without these challenges awaits you. Sometimes God will give you a glimpse of home along the way as you seek to serve.

Take a moment to read Colossians 3:16-17 before reading the devotional below.

Sometimes I love the specific words chosen to be spoken through the Bible. It is unlike any other book, and it has a literary beauty that can be appreciated on natural and supernatural levels. In verse 16, the words “in all its richness” stir my soul. Paul could have just written, “Let the message of Christ fill your lives.” Instead, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul added that phrase “in all its richness,” giving it the power to soak more deeply into our hearts. Pause right now and just sit with the richness of the Gospel before you rush about your day.

This rich, supernatural power and blessing is not just for us to keep to ourselves. After we soak it in like a sponge, we next allow God to wring us out over the lives of others so that the Spirit pours into them as well. We can teach, offer counsel, lead in worship, and demonstrate gratitude to bless and encourage each other. And when God has squeezed our sponge-hearts, we must sit and soak again to refill.

Here’s your freedom for today: everything you ever need to give flows directly from the Holy Spirit. There is not one single thing you need to offer the world all by yourself. If you are feeling spent or depleted or dry, then you are in a soaking season. It is okay to stop giving for a time in order to refill. Verse 17 says that everything we do or say comes from the position of “representative of Christ.” We cannot do that well if we do not sit with him long enough to know his heart. We are the spokespeople of Jesus’ message. If you want to operate in that position, be sure you have a solid handle on his talking points and action steps.

Take a moment to read Colossians 3:12-15 before reading the devotional below.

In yesterday’s post, we talked about getting some new clothes — fine linens instead of tattered rags. But how do we do that? Where do we get these fancy new things? In verse 12 we find the answer: mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, and love. Let’s examine these before you go setting round 2 of New Year’s resolutions that are bound to fail. “Try harder” is not going to be the way we put on these new clothes.

We always have to start by receiving before we have anything to give. What does it mean for you to embrace God’s mercy, kindness, and love towards you? How can you experience God’s gentleness and patience when you are struggling or you make mistakes? When we simply sit in the presence of God, he changes us. Often we default to self-help because that is what our culture says we need. But what we need is God-help, and it involves a lot more sitting than we tend to prefer.

Here’s your freedom for today: the Holy Spirit will fill you when you hold still. Take your spiritual to-do list and throw it away. Get a blank piece of paper instead and keep it in your Bible or posted somewhere to remind yourself that you are no longer striving. Imagine what the Church might be like if we all spent a whole lot more time just sitting in God’s presence. It is only out of that place that we can offer mercy, kindness, and love to the rest of the world. Be filled before you pour and you’ll find you never run out.