A Prayer for Resurrection Power

            The celebration of Resurrection Day is now past.  I enjoyed the opportunity to focus my attention on the wonder of what God did for us when he brought Jesus back from death.  I want to continue to meditate on the ramifications of that event today.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ from death is the single most important event in history.  To those of you who are part of the family of believers, this is no news.  You have heard it before and it is part of your belief system.  Without the resurrection of Jesus Christ we would be hopeless and pitiful, because our entire life would be based on a lie (1 Corinthians 15).
            We accept those truths, theologically, but I wonder if we realize that the same power that it took for God to raise Jesus from the dead is available in our lives today?  It was Paul’s prayer in Philippians 3:10 that he would know the power of Christ’s resurrection.  Think about that for a moment.  Paul told the Ephesian believers that part of his desire was that they would be enlightened in order that they might know “His incomparably great power.”  He specifies that this is the power that was demonstrated when God raised Jesus from the dead.  Do you want to succeed in your service for the Lord?  Do you want power to overcome temptation?  Do you wish for the ability to accomplish great things to the glory of God?  Does your heart yearn for your marriage to be repaired?  Do you long for fruit in your business life to God’s praise?  These things come when the power of God is actively at work in our lives.
I’d like to offer a prayer that Paul prayed for the church in Ephesus (adapted from Ephesians 1:16-21). 
Dear Father, I am so grateful for my friends.  Would please give us the Spirit of wisdom and revelation so that we might know you better?  Would you please open the eyes of our hearts?  I long for us to fully understand the hope that you have called us to.  I wish for us to grasp the rich and glorious inheritance that awaits us as your children.  More than anything, I pray that we might come to understand and experience your incomparably great power in our lives.  I know that it is your power that raised Jesus from death and exalted Him to His present place of honor by your side.  I know that He rules over all things now and forever and that He is the head over all the church.  I pray that your power, which accomplished all of that, might be evident in the lives of my brothers and sisters here and now.  Would you please empower us and honor yourself in ways not seen often in this world?  I ask all of this in the name of our risen Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ.  Amen!
I pray that your celebration of Christ’s resurrection will not be over, but will be life-changing.

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