Joy, Prayer, Thankfulness

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Scripture: Ephesians 5:16-18 (NLT)

16 Always be joyful. 17 Never stop praying. 18 Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.

Devotion:

            Our brief scripture passage today comes from the end of the letter to the Ephesians. It is contained in a section that has many commands such as these. These commands, while certainly can be taken as instructions to individuals, are clearly meant for the church as a whole as well. We tend to see in today’s church a distinct lack of joy, prayerlessness has become common, and complaining about our circumstances has replaced thankfulness. Our churches seem to be on a course that will lead them to extinction. This extinction may not mean that they necessarily close their doors, but they may go on as nothing more than another social club.

            How can we, as a church, and individual members of it get back on the right track? The first thing to realize is that we need a visit from the Holy Spirit to refresh and fill us anew with his power. The first disciples were hiding together in an upper room afraid of what might happen if the Romans or the Jews got ahold of them. The Spirit fell upon them in a powerful way and changed them in an instant. They became joyful, prayerful, and thankful when filled with this new power from heaven. The Spirit may not fall on us in exactly the same manner it did to those first believers. But the Spirit longs to fill us so that we can know the power found in him.

            The statements in the scripture above are in the form of commands. According to Paul each of these three attributes is to be a requirement for Christian living. This makes the presence of the Holy Spirit even more important in our lives. For me, and I think most believers, exercising joy, prayerfulness, and thanksgiving are not natural states we find ourselves in. We very often are bitter and complaining, prayerless, and ungrateful. How can we obey these commands from the pen of Paul? The first answer I have already discussed. We must be filled with the Holy Spirit. Second, we must gather as a church to encourage one another and hold each other accountable for these things.

            In the church we have a body of believers that share the same struggles as each of us does individually. However, the church also has the ability to let us know that we are not alone in our struggles. It seems that God grants victory to his children when they are joined together as one people in the Lord. There is no substitute for our meeting together as a church. We pray that the Holy Spirit will come down and empower today’s church to live as the first century church did.

Prayer:

            Lord, help us this day to be filled with your Holy Spirit. May our lives always display the fruit of your Spirit. Help us to be a people of joy, prayer, and thanksgiving at all times and in all circumstances. Lord bring us together as a church and fill us collectively with your Holy Spirit. May we become examples of Christlikeness in our communities. May all who see us mark the differences from the surrounding world. We ask all this in the precious name of Jesus. Amen.

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