Always Thank God
November 8, 2022
Colossians 1:3 ” We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you.”
Paul started this letter to the people of Colossae immediately giving thanks and praise to God. Paul was definitely a man of prayer, and he started a lot of his letters the same way. Before I get deeper into the history of this scripture, I want to ask you, if you got a letter from someone and the first thing they wrote was, I thank God for you and I’m praying for you, how would you feel? Wow! I’ve often sort of gloss over the intros to these books, but when you start thinking of it as a personal letter, which they were, it really makes you look at it different.
In this scripture, Paul is telling the believers that we, meaning He and Timothy, has been praying for them, and he is rejoicing knowing that there is such a vibrant group that is thriving even though he is not there with them personally, in fact, he has never even met them! Paul had started many churches, but many others were started by the people in those churches, which is the case with this church. To Paul this is extremely encouraging because that is a sign that the gospel is spreading among the Gentiles, even though he doesn’t have any direct influence on them, and it was happening in other regions as well.
I think you’ll agree, encouraging each other is so important! Life is tough! We are all dealing with struggles and hardships and there are many times that we may feel like we’ve been knocked down! But the great thing is, God is there. No matter what, God is there. And when you have friends who are there for you, encouraging you, and telling that you are important and that God loves you, it can change your entire outlook on the situation.
That’s why it’s so important to share the Word of God with others. You may be the first person that tells someone that God loves them, and that you are praying for them.
Everyone had to learn about God from someone else, right? Who did you learn about Him from? I learned about Him because my mom took us to church from the time we were babies. Every single Sunday. She passed away 5 years ago, but if the person who told you about God is still in your life, thank them. Let them know what a difference God has made in your life.