S138P3 – To suffer gladly: our proper request
Col. 4:2-4
Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.
Those who have experienced days of trial for the sake of the Lord will have had to make the choice Paul made here. There is a commonality among those who suffer for Christ. There is no wheel to reinvent. They might suffer in different ways at the hands of different oppressors, but the trials remain the same because their function is the same. The temptation will exist to formulate prayers in a certain way. When we experience the many frustrations of life, we might pray to be relieved of those circumstances, and we will be tempted to approach our trials just like that. The temptation is to ask the Lord to remove us from our suffering when there is a better prayer to be spoken.
Paul wrote this letter while imprisoned. Of course, his detention was not because he committed some bad act. No, he had been imprisoned because he followed the Lord. His only crime was being faithful to God in his ministry. When writing this letter, he could have asked for prayers of relief. He could have focused on finding a way out of that prison. He could have been much more self-centered. Instead, he asked for the Church to pray that God would give him opportunities in that place to continue his ministry. In the midst of his unjust suffering, his focus was not on his trouble but on continuing his work for the Lord. He did not ask to be freed from that place. He asked for opportunities to be used more there.
Suffering for the cause of Christ is a glorious thing, but that does not mean that it will be comfortable or pleasant for us. Imagine suffering to the point of martyrdom. That process likely comes with a whole host of emotions and questions we cannot begin to understand. How difficult it would be in that circumstance not to focus on the trial but to focus on the Lord. What God wants is for us to be able to endure that while still seeking to do more for him. That was the point of Paul’s request for prayer. Even having lost his freedom for Christ, he sought to do more. Father, give us the same measure of desire to continue our work for You, that the trials would ignite a fire in us to do even more.