I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe.
Ephesians 1:18-19a
I love Paul’s prayers for the churches he writes to. I find them very instructive, especially as I pray for myself and other believers. It is so easy to fall into the habit of just praying for specific issues a person may have, whether they are physical or spiritual. Or just generally praying for God’s blessing on them. But Paul’s prayers teach me how to pray more specifically for growth and development.
In this verse and a half, we find Paul’s prayer for spiritual enlightenment, that these believers might be able to see what God has done, and is doing, for them. Specifically, he prays that they would come to understand three things.
Three Things to Understand
The first is the hope that God has called us to. The better my vision is of the eternal life God has given me birth into, the less appealing this world will be. And the more invested I will be in preparing for the future, rather than living for the now.
The second is that we would understand our place in God’s purpose. We belong to him. Out of all of the people on this planet, he has chosen us to be his portion (Deut. 32:8-9). We are the riches of God’s inheritance.
And, finally, we would recognize his power that is at work for us. The power that will transform my life, and that will enable me to do whatever task he assigns to me. I may be weak, but he is strong!
