Laboring in Prayer ... for Others

"Epaphras, who is one of your number, a bondslave of Jesus Christ, sends you his greetings, always laboring earnestly for you in his prayers, that you may stand perfect and fully assured in all the will of God."
-Colossians 4:12 (NASB)


How often do we LABOR in prayer?

In our current entertainment-driven, microwave-everything society, we expect prayer to, at least, be something said before dinner or bed and, at most, an instant emotional/spiritual gratification for our soul. We expect to be rewarded immediately for simply giving God our time, as if He owed us that much.

But this verse recounts the story of a man, Epaphras, who is constantly in prayer for his brethren in Christ. Notice that Epaphras' type of prayer is a LABOR. It is not easy. It is not comfortable or probably even (initially) very fulfilling. Think of how we usually experience toil: I think of the image of a farmer. There is the difficult work of preparing the ground, the difficult work of planting the seed, and the difficult work of maintaining the integrity of the crop through watering and weeding. And all of this takes MONTHS to bring forth fruit. I know many a parent who has labored for YEARS on behalf of a child. I have sewn seeds of prayer for lost friends that still remain dormant years later. I believe that these seeds will one day bring forth fruit in due season.

Paul says that the purpose of this labor is that his fellow believers would "stand perfect" and be "fully assured in all the will of God." Epaphras wants his brothers to stand unwavering, not shaken by the world around them. Essentially, he is asking the Father for a part of sanctification ON BEHALF of another person. How wonderful is the work of redemption and salvation even through others on our behalf. This reminds me of the verse in 1 John that states: "If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask and God will for him give life to those who commit sin not leading to death" (16). We don't have time to explore what exactly he means by "sin not leading to death," but suffice it to say that God does call us to a very active part even in the sanctification of other believers through prayer.

Epaphras also desires that they know ALL of the will of God. It is interesting the way that Paul states that last piece of information. It is almost as if believers could possibly know (and be assured in) PART of the will of God while still missing some of it. Epaphras' labor in prayer is the work of an intercessor. He is pleading with the Father that these people not miss ANY of His perfect will for their lives, the church, and the gospel.

It is not often that I could claim to have labored in prayer. And, of the few times that I could make such a statment, the labors have been mostly for myself, my problems, my future, and my struggles. But Epaphras is laboring for the sake of OTHERS. What a beautiful picture. I hope we can all be encourged by his example. And more than that, I hope that we can all learn to follow his example by taking the time and effort to LABOR in prayer... for others.