Golden Nugget: “I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ…may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.”

Daily Verse: “I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.” —Ephesians 1:17

Daily Message:
If we could categorize and rank all the prayers voiced around the world, my guess is that the top three would look something like this: Help me. Heal me. Bless me. 

Prayers for friends and family are variations of those same themes. We pray for marriages and jobs, tough decisions and school difficulties, present ailments and future prosperity.

But when the apostle Paul prayed for those he loved, he rarely mentioned this top three.  The big request from Paul was that people would know God better. Of all the things he could pray for—especially considering the suffering he was enduring, the hardship his friends were facing, and the bad things new believers were doing—he prayed for their understanding of God. He knew that while a perfect life may be desirable, it is useless without God.

Everything else hinges on this: real, eternal life flows from the knowledge of God. And so Paul “keeps asking,” continuously praying that they would know God better.  

Understanding God is at the top of Paul’s list. What tops yours?

Consider This:

• How could your life be different if you knew God better?
• For whom could you pray this prayer?        

Take Action:
Write down the names of your closest family members and friends on a piece of paper. Beside their name, write something that indicates their current level of spiritual understanding. Promise to pray that God would help them to know him better. Then commit to checking their progress over the next few weeks.