I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being. – (Ephesians 3:16, NIV)
I ask the Father with His great glory to give you the power to be strong in your spirits. He will give you that strength through His Spirit. – (Ephesians 3:16, ERV)
Father, out of Your honorable and glorious riches, strengthen Your people. Fil their souls with the power of Your Spirit. – (Ephesians 3:16, VOICE)
Like most parents, I pray for God to strengthen, encourage, and fill my kids with His goodness and love. Yesterday, I had a rare opportunity to see the courage and strength of heart that God has grown in my eldest child. No longer a child, my son is a bright young man, and I was able to witness the confidence and sense of self that is rising up within him. Last evening, he was recognized and celebrated not only for his role as one of the managing editors of his college’s literary and arts publication, but also for three pieces of his own writing that were selected and placed in print within the pages. For anyone, this would be a huge accomplishment. For him, this is an extraordinary feat, as his introduction to reading and writing brought only frustration and a sense of defeat, as we soon learned that he was challenged by both dyslexia and dysgraphia. Much time, energy and resources were spent to find help so that school would be manageable. His hard work, dedication and commitment proved that all things are possible through Him who gives us strength. Despite the struggles early in his education, he began to flourish in middle school and high school academically and musically, and in college, discovered his love and passion for writing. Throughout his years working on his associates degree, my son maintained a 4.0 GPA. This past quarter, he was accepted into a writing program at the University of Washington Tacoma, and is continuing his pursuit and passion in writing. I am in awe of how God works, and was blown away by the confidence and poise that he had as he both shared about his experience as an editor, and read aloud one of his published works at the launch party for the publication last evening. He had many people along the way that encouraged him, and to see the fruit of love, support, and tremendous hard work is incredible. May we ever pray for God to strengthen and encourage those around us so that they may rise up in His power and give Him glory for His goodness and faithfulness forever.
As we choose to pray,
ever the Lord hears;
praise and petitions,
our hopes, thanks and fears.
Always He’s faithful,
to hear what we ask;
He gives for the good,
strengthens for each task.
The joy that is found,
in seeing Him move;
beyond what’s hoped for,
as faithful, He proves.
All thanks be to God,
for goodness and grace;
the strength He provides,
and all of His ways.
Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that You do abundantly more than we could ask or imagine when we place things in Your hands. Thank You for Your faithfulness to love and care well for my children. Thank You for the blessing of seeing You strengthen and raise them up in new ways. Forgive me for my fears and doubts when I struggle to see how You are moving. Teach us to trust You more in all things and to pray for Your strength and courage to rise up in those around us. Lead us in Your love so that we love, support and encourage those around us as You intended. May many come into a lasting relationship with You. Be glorified O God, as we praise You for the ways that You strengthen, encourage and empower people to rise up and become who You have made them to be. Amen.
© Shannon Elizabeth Grabrick and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present
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 love and high and deep is the love of Christ. – Ephesians 3:17b-18
Revelations In Writing 