And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God

Colossians 1:9-10

A few years ago, I heard a motivational speaker at the company meeting who challenged us with this question – “What more can I do to make tomorrow better than today?” That thought stuck with me and I come across it often. I think it applies to the verses above.

The purpose of Paul’s letter to the Colossians was to encourage the people to stand firm in the faith against false teaching and was the case for most of the churches he addressed, he wrote from quite a distance. We think that FaceTime and email and other instant communication tools we can close that gap, but whenever we are in Phoenix, I am reminded again and again of the opportunity we have to pray for those we only see from time to time.

Paul’s pray for these people is similar to the one he prays for other believers in the first century and there is purpose in his prayer. He wants them to grow into spiritual maturity with “wisdom and understanding” so that there is a change in their lives that is noticeable from those looking on the outside – he wants them to “walk in a manner worthy of the Lord.”

What do you think that looks like today? I think it is like a healthy tree that produces good fruit and so it is a life that is marked by visible fruit of change. I don’t think it is helpful to be narrowed down to a legalistic kind of list of do’s and don’ts. Instead, Paul points to “bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”

In Ephesians 2:10, Paul reminds his readers –

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Ephesians 2:10

Our lives are intended to be ones that influence others for good and point them to Christ. How can we walk in that kind of life today and make tomorrow better than today?