As we are in the sewing of the fall and a new season of school and ministry.  I wanted to share with you what we are focusing on as a church at Proclaim for our theme of the year. With wars, political divisions, financial troubles, the election, we can grow weary and disillusioned. But Christians are People of Hope. Hope is our theme for this ministry season.  We are going to consider Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians and for us Ephesians 1:15-23 this week to delve deeper into the Hope that is inside of each of us.

1 Ephesians 1:15-16 “Therefor I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers:”

Have you ever been in a conversation where someone is so excited about something that he or she keeps on talking and talking, and you are so drawn into the story that you find yourself almost holding your own breath on his or her behalf?

Well, Paul begins his sentence with the word “Therefore”, which obviously connects WHAT he is about to say, to his previous sentence. And in the original language the previous sentence starts in verse 3 and goes all the way to verse 14. One long sentence where Paul, full of excitement, praises God for what He has done for us in Christ. Take time to read it for context.

Throughout this week’s devotional, we will often use the term “behold”. To behold is more than just seeing; it’s to observe, to ponder, to perceive. In a sense this is what Paul is doing in verses 3 to 14: He is beholding Jesus Christ – pondering what God has done in Christ. And when we behold Christ, we discover that we are called to be a people of faith, hope, and love.

Paul continues his prayer in the verses we read, by giving thanks to God for the faith and love in the lives of his readers. Later in the prayer he prays for them to grow in hope. Paul refers to faith, hope and love several times in his different letters and he refers to it as a sign of a person’s maturity. But personal maturity is not a goal in itself. The larger calling is to reflect God’s glory into our world: that is our homes, places of work and communities by bringing faith, hope and love to people and societies.

And for Paul the starting point in order to grow, also to grow in hope, is to behold Jesus Christ. One of the ways we behold Jesus is in prayer. thanking Him for the impact He has already made and praying for things that God has already blessed us with in Christ in order to grow. Things like faith, Hope and love. We focus this year on hope but remember the bigger purpose.

So, we pray with Paul: Father, we praise you as we behold Christ. In Christ you blessed us with so much: to belong to you and your family, to be forgiven, to share in your purposes for our world, to be indwelt by your Spirit. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for the work you have already done in me. Help us to continue to grow in faith, hope and love as we behold You. In your name we pray. Amen

And remember Jesus loves you and so do I.

Pastor Will