"I pray that out of His glorious riches, He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.
And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp
how wide and long
and high and deep
is the love of Christ,
and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” Ephesians 3:16-19
I pray this for you…
There is something powerful in praying Scripture.
I pray this for you.
I encourage you to pray this over yourself.
I encourage you to pray this over the ones you love, and --
I encourage you to quietly pray this over the people you encounter who will present challenges in your week.
Rooted & established in love…
Why did Paul pray that believers would be rooted and established in love?
Because, when we are --
we become more stable,
more secure,
more of who we are,
more of who we were created to be.
When a plant's roots are healthy and go down deep, when it has been well-established in its place, when winds and storms come, while they flex, they do not break. While they might be overwhelmed, they are not overcome. While they are moved, they are not removed from their secure foundation.
When we are deeply rooted in God's love and securely established in Him, when the winds and storms of adversity come (which they do, and they will) while our circumstances are moved and impacted, our foundation remains strong. Our 'who-ness' in Him is unaltered. Our faith-filled trust in the One Who is Master over the storm, keeps us stable and brings hope in, for, through and after the storm.
To know this love which surpasses understanding…
Many of us can acknowledge that God loves us with an intellectual, theological assent, but His love is one which desires to be known beyond that. He desires us to know His love by experiential encounters and interactions with Him in our every-day life. Just as we experience the love of a mate, a parent, a child or friend - we can, and are invited to, experience His love in those intimate and extravagant, small and simple encounters we all long for.
Filled to measure of all the fullness of God...
Paul's prayer goes on to say (v. 19) "...that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God".
What a mind-blowing concept! Read that again!
Filled with the fullness of God and of His love!
What a change that would bring to the way we relate to ourselves, to others, to Him, to the hard times and the happy!
Ask God to plant you firmly in His love today.
The strength, the certainty and the joy this firm footing of love, will bring will be immeasurable. It will bring benefits to your inner and your outer life; provide ability for each interaction, opportunity or challenge; and lead you to have a Kingdom perspective as you interact with people, problems, and purposes.
Belinda Tigell is an Australian singer-songwriter, speaker, teacher, worship leader and author. Find her regular blogs on belindatigellministries.com. Follow her on her social media pages: www.facebook.com/BelindaTigellMinistries www.twitter.com/BelindaTigell www.instagram.com/belinda_tigell www.facebook.com/BelindaTigellMusic www.soundcloud.com/btm-7
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