Be Loved Prayer
Week 1 – Prayer Closet
Practicing private, intentional prayer
Prayer Practice: Be Loved
Day 5, Thursday, January 8
16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Ephesians 3:16-19
Let’s be real, this passage requires a bit of unpacking. Paul prays that the church in Ephesus would be strengthened with power from the Holy Spirit - why? So that Christ may dwell in their hearts through faith. Then Paul prays for power again that we (along with the rest of the saints) would grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ. That’s side to side & up and down. He might have Psalm 103:11-12 in mind. Here’s the deal: God is love and He is infinite. God doesn’t love at half measure - the fullness of God’s love is available to us all. We need power to grasp it and to receive it. Finally, it’s a love that surpasses knowledge. Don’t let the meaning of this phrase become too ambiguous in your mind. What’s a love that surpasses knowledge? It’s a love that moves into lived experience - not only does Paul want us to know God’s love intellectually but He wants us to experience God’s love intimately, and for this, we need spiritual power.
How to Practice
Before we begin, we need to know something about faith. Notice how Paul says that Christ may dwell in their hearts “through faith.” When someone encourages you to take something “by faith” or to know something “by faith” or receive something “through faith” they’re asking you to trust that it’s happening.
To put it another way, we need power to trust that God loves us - to accept by faith that He desires to share the fullness of His love with us.
Step One: Enter Your Prayer Closet. Give God your undivided attention and quiet yourself before Him.
Step Two: Know God Loves You. Paul prays for power to know a love that surpasses understanding. The first thing we need is “understanding” of God’s love before we can surpass it. We might consider John 3:16, Romans 5:5, Ephesians 2:4, Ephesians 5:1, and 1 John 3:1.
Step Three: Receive Power From the Holy Spirit. Acknowledge your need for God’s power. Pray, “Lord, I can’t know your love the way I want to without your help. I need power from your Holy Spirit.”
Step Four: Sit in the Love of God. Take by faith that God loves you, letting yourself experience the love of God as you sit in His presence.
Gentle Reminder
If you’re finding difficulty in receiving an experience of God’s love, try these prayer prompts: “Thank you for loving me”, “Help me to let myself be loved by you”, “I belong to you.” Review the passages of scripture from step two and remind yourself that this is God revealing Himself to us and His Word is true and reliable. The love of God is not something you earn - it’s who God is and He desires to give Himself fully to each of us.
