Colossians 1:9 For this reason, since the day we heard it, we have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding.
Discernment
Is this a word you’ve heard often? This verse doesn’t use the word discernment, but it defines it very well in the assurance that the followers of Paul are praying for the people of Colossaea – asking that they be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding. In this new community, with followers trying to figure out what it means to follow this Jesus they’ve been learning about – discernment is the gift they really need.
What I’ve been noticing in these months since we’ve moved into a later phase of the pandemic, is that there a lot of people in the process of asking questions. People are asking questions about what their lives are about, what their work is, what matters to them now. People are asking questions about what comes next, what will be the way it used to be, and what will be totally different. I hope we can figure out how to make space for God’s spiritual wisdom and understanding in all of our question asking. If we embrace this opportunity for discernment, we might just find answers we didn’t even know we were looking for.
Reflection Questions:
1) What questions do you hear yourself asking?
2) Can you bring your questions to God in prayer?
3) How might discernment become part of your process?
Prayer: Dear Lord, Please be with each of us and all of us, that we might be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding. Amen