The very heart and soul of Paul’s prayer (see Colossians 1:9-14) is found in verse 9:
We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives.
When we hear the phrase “God’s will”, many of us tend to think about the decisions we face in life: where to go to university; the search for the right job; the decision to get married; which church to attend; which home to buy; whether or not to move; how to invest our money; when or whether to have kids, and so on.
Without a doubt, we need to seek God’s guidance and direction in such decisions.
But when Paul prays for the Colossians to be filled with the knowledge of God’s will, he has something much bigger and broader and deeper in mind. His prayer is that the Colossians would understand what matters most to God. What is God’s agenda in this world? What are God’s priorities for us as his people?
If we were to continually pray that God would fill us with the knowledge of his will, how do you think God will respond to our request?
Surely, he will compel us to read, study and meditate on scripture. As the Apostle Paul wrote elsewhere:
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
