9 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. 10 We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives 11 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, 12 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.  13-14 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:9-14 New International Version

What do you pray for the most? For many of us our prayers are probably about our health, our family, and any situations we may be facing. In the verses above we see the sort of things Paul and Timothy were praying about for the new Christians at Colossae. They had heard how the Colossians had believed on Jesus Christ for forgiveness of their sins, and had become a part of God's family. They were no longer in that darkness in the world which is caused by Satan's lies. (We should never underestimate how great that darkness is. It's the reason why there is so much pain and suffering in the world caused by greed, lust and selfishness.) The gospel, however, rescues people out of that darkness and makes them acceptable to God. And perhaps it is because the darkness can be so great and it's hold so strong that Paul and Timothy prayed as we see in vs 10-12. What was the first thing they asked God to do for the new believers, and why? (vs 10-11)

These new Christians needed to be taught by God so that they would begin to live their new lives in the way He wanted them to live – not according the old ways they used to live. This is what the Holy Spirit brings about in a Christian's life. He brings the light of Jesus' words to our mind and heart. As they grew in understanding God's will, so their lifestyle would be more and more pleasing to God. Does that describe our life? Those who’ve been Christians for many years can still grow more in their understanding of God.

What else were Paul and Timothy praying for, and what does it tell us about living as a Christian? (vs 12)

They asked God to give the Colossians the power and strength to patiently endure in the journey they had begun, and to do so with joy and thankfulness to God for all He had done for them. To me that suggests that being a Christian in those days (and today still) is not a walk in the park. We don't need endurance and patience for things that are easy to do. Paul had spoken of the 'dominion' of darkness. That word is used of kingdoms and something powerful. Sin can have a powerful hold on people and Satan will fight against those who are plundering his dominion. So becoming a Christian means entering into a spiritual arena. There will be battles for sure.

Can you see then why they prayed the way they did? Yes, our health and our families, and issues we may be facing in life, are all important, and we’re not wrong to bring those things to God in prayer. But even more important is our need to grow in understanding God's will for how we should live, and our need for the strength He gives so that we can endure the journey. And we will need God's help to be able to be joyful and thankful even when we experience hard times for being a Christian. It's not a bad idea then to pray these things for ourselves, and also for fellow Christians. And we can pray them too for new Christians we hear about through missionary newsletters.