Reflectionary XI

May (God) give you the spirit to find wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, brightening the eyes of your heart to let you see what His calling means, what hopes it contains, what a wealth of glory He means to distribute among the holy ones, and what an overwhelming power He exerts on us believers by activating the controlling force of His might.

From Ephesians 1, The Unvarnished New Testament

What an excellent prayer for the start of the year, on this, the 10th Day of Christmas!

It is hard to add to this.

What if we kept a growing list of friends and loved ones, and each day added a name to it. And for each of those days, said this same prayer for each of them? By the end of the year, we would have 365 names of people that we care enough about, to pray for.

And what could be more important than praying that your loved ones have the following:

* A spirit to find wisdom
* A spirit to find revelation
* To find wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of, or knowing, God
* To have the eyes of your heart brightened
* To understand what it means to be called by God
* To feel the hope contained in God's calling
* To be convinced of the glory we will experience
* To be known as a "holy one"
* To feel God's power
* To be controlled by God - - - the One that makes all of this happen

This prayer is better than a prayer for healing, or health. It's better than a prayer for a job, or income.

It's better than a prayer that people stay out of trouble, or that they make wise decisions, or that they avoid accidents.

It's better than a prayer that we are provided "traveling mercies".

It's better than a prayer that God bless "this food and the hands that prepared it."

A person with these special gifts from God has everything they need. All that other stuff will fall into place.

And so . . . this is my prayer for a growing list of friends, family, and loved ones, in 2014.