Jump Start # 801

Colossians 4:12 “Epaphras, who is one of your number, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, send you his greetings, always laboring earnestly for you in his prayers, that you may stand perfect and fully assured in all the will of God.”

Epaphras is what I consider one of the third tier names in the N.T. Many do not know him. He’s not an apostle. He didn’t write any books of the N.T. He’s not as prominent as even a Timothy, Titus or Mark. Yet, he plays a role and this verse reveals much about his character, heart and love for the Lord and the disciples.

The apostle Paul had several worthy Christians around him that he used to carry his letters to churches or on occasion even stay and work with churches when he traveled on. These people were vital to the work. Paul couldn’t be everywhere. Others were necessary to teach and encourage. Epaphras was one such person.

What we find refreshing and unique is that Epaphras was laboring earnestly in his prayers. Generally, that expression, ‘laboring earnestly,’ is connected to preaching and teaching. That we understand. We don’t think of laboring in prayer. One modern version uses the expression, “Wrestling for you in his prayers.” That thought brings the idea of effort, struggle and intensity. Epaphras was really working hard in his prayers for the Colossian church.

That thought is very interesting. It tells us that praying for someone is more than simply mentioning their name. I think that is an easy habit to get into. We are often encouraged to pray for the sick and to pray for the shepherds of the church. We do. But what we do is simply  make the statement, “be with the shepherds and help the sick.” It can be almost reading a check list or a to-do list. Does the mere mention of someone cover “praying for them?”

Epaphras was laboring earnestly in his prayers for the Colossians. That seems much more than “Lord, be with the Colossian church,” or, “Lord, help the brethren at the Colossian church.” Laboring earnestly carries the thought that he stayed on that subject. He prayed. He prayed specifically. He prayed many words. He put effort into that. He stayed with that thought.

That thought is one that I need. There are so many people and so many situations that need prayers. It’s hard to think of all of them. Sick people. Hurting people. Young families. There are those who are dating. There are those who are lonely. There are those who are struggling spiritually. There are those who are looking for the Lord. There are those who are in leadership roles. There are neighbors and family members. There are co-workers. There are mayors, governors, congressmen and the president to pray for. There are our soldiers to pray for. Then there is the church itself. So many to pray for. A name here, a few seconds on this one, five seconds on that one, and we pray through a host of things. But in the end we have basically mentioned their names. I’m not sure if that’s good or bad, it strikes me that Epaphras labored earnestly in prayer for the Colossian church. Situations do that for us. Someone really struggling. Someone very sick. Someone causing us much grief. Those times, we spend longer and deeper and more earnestly in prayer.

Try the Epaphras model today. Think of something or someone that means much to you and labor earnestly in prayer on that. Spend some time. Go into detail. Exhaust yourself on one item. Prayer doesn’t have to include the whole creation in every prayer. Pray for one thing. Pray hard about one thing.

Epaphras was praying for the Colossian church to stand firm and be fully assured in the will of the Lord. That thought would entail teachers teaching the pure word of God. It would include the members uniting together on the common Gospel of Jesus. It would involve the members believing the message preached. It would include a growing faith and confidence in the Lord. Those things would result in changing lives and attitudes. It would affect their worship and their sharing the word with others. Those things would lead to a stronger church. Great things to prayer about. Epaphras may have visualized each member of that church and thought about their situation and prayed about them. A strong church comes from strong members. So as Epaphras prayed about each person, growing more in faith with the Lord, the church would become stronger.

That is a great model for shepherds to do today. We all want the church to prosper, grow stronger and be faithful to the Lord. How about praying for each person to that goal? That’s earnestness. There is laboring.

These prayers would also affect the preaching that Epaphras would do. As he longed for their growth, prayed for their growth, he would then teach them that in his preaching. This is a great model for preachers to follow. Praying for the strength of the church and then following that with the type of lessons that would bring that about.

I heard last night, in another congregation a couple of hours from where I live, that a man was teaching about prayer. He revealed to the congregation some of the people that he prayed for. He had pictures of these people on the powerpoint. The last picture he talked about was ME. I was taken about that. First, I thought why me? It seemed a bit embarrassing to me. He had benefited from our Jump Starts and that was something he prayed about. The more I thought about that, the more touched I felt. I hadn’t thought much about that. He had. He had prayed about it. He even shared that with others. He was doing what Epaphras was doing. He never said anything about that, in fact, someone else told me. They presented it with, “Your picture was on the screen at church last night.” That startled me. Why? What did I do? Then I heard the reason. I expect there is someone out there that prays for you. You may not even know it. You are special to them. You have touched their lives somehow. They are thankful for you. They are wanting God to help you, bless you, lead you and encourage you.

Epaphras wasn’t praying for himself, he was laboring in prayer for others. So, put some time in your prayers. Focus a bit more on some. Ask God to help them. It doesn’t hurt even to let someone know that “I’m praying to God about you.” When you think about it, it is more special that someone mentions your name to the God of Heaven than someone putting your picture up on a screen in church.

Thanks, Jay. That made my day when I heard about that!

Now, let’s roll up our sleeves and get busy praying!

Roger