We've been away for a little while, but we're going to return tonight in our study of the Book of Colossians. So, if you'll go ahead and turn to chapter one, Paul's letter to the Colossians. All right, well, for the next three Wednesdays, Lord willing, we're going to be talking about prayer. This is where we have arrived in our study in the Book of Colossians. We've arrived all the way down to verse three of chapter one. We've spent our time so far just in the greeting. But of course, it's a very rich greeting, there's a lot of good things to think about. Tonight, we're going to talk about I'd like you to consider what it means to pray with Thanksgiving. I'm going to give you and this is my intention tonight is to. Look at what Paul says in his prayer and to give you really just an overview of thankfulness in prayer. And the next week, what I would like to look at is verses three through eight, where Paul lists some very specific things for which he's thankful. And then nine and nine down. We'll probably go down through verse 11 and we'll talk about the petitions or these particular requests that Paul makes. And so that'll be the plan for the next three Wednesdays. Well, we've been looking so far at the greeting and after his greeting, Paul begins with a description of his prayers for the Colossians. Now, what I'd like to do is to read verse three. And I'd like to read down through verse twelve. Beginning at verse three, Paul says, We give thanks to the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Praying always for you. Since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of your love for all the facts. Because of the hope which is laid up for you in heaven of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel. Which has come to you as it has also in all the world and is bringing forth fruit as it is also among you since the day you heard and knew the grace of God and truth. As you also learn from a papyrus, our dear fellow servant who is a fellow who is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf, who also declare to us your love in the spirit. For this reason, we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will and all wisdom and spiritual understanding. That you may walk worthy of the Lord. fully pleasing him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power for all patients and long suffering with joy, giving thanks to the father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. Paul's prayer there, as I have just read it, can be divided up into two main parts. The first part is verses is contained in verses three through eight. This is Paul's giving of thanks or the things for which Paul is thankful. In particular, when he looks at the Colossian congregation, things that he has heard of in the report. These are things that he's very thankful to hear of. The second part, roughly nine through 11 or nine through 12. This is a listing of Paul's requests on their behalf. These are the things that Paul desires that God will provide for the Colossians. Now, you may notice that verse 11 doesn't end with a period. I have the New King James. It ends with a semicolon, looks like there. It doesn't end with a period. Well, verses 9 through 20, they break it up in the English, which is helpful, but in the Greek, 9 through 20 is one unbroken 218 word sentence. So where exactly you end the prayer, that may be up for a little bit of a debate there. I'm probably going to end in verse 11 in my own treatment of it. Verse 12, Paul goes back to mentioning things. So three through eight, he's thankful for these things. nine through eleven. He's praying for these things. Then in twelve, he's still praying, but he goes back to mentioning what he's giving thanks for. But first of all, not only is it going back to a mentioning of thanks, it's also a transition where Paul begins to describe the work of the father. That the work of the father has done giving thanks to the father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. And then from then he goes on to describe that he does this work through the sun. He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the son of his love. And then from then on, Paul's going to give some very detailed. Instructions on who the son is. But we're going to look tonight just at verse three. Notice how Paul begins. This description that he's giving to them of his prayer for them. We give thanks to the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ praying always for you. He says, we, it's not me or I. I'm giving thanks, but he says we are giving thanks. Well, who's the we? Well, I think that includes Timothy. Go back to verse one, Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the will of God and who else? And Timothy, our brother. Well, I think that Paul includes the mention of Timothy, because he knows that this will be a good encouragement to the Colossians. And in a previous sermon, we spent some time on just Timothy himself and the fact that it shouldn't just go past us that Timothy is still with Paul after all of these years. The Colossians is written towards the end of Paul's ministry. And here is Timothy after all those long years of laboring, and all the difficulty that it went through with Paul. Timothy is he still there with him? And I think Paul knows that to send Timothy's greetings also to the Colossians. This is going to be a good encouragement to them to know that Timothy is. He's still with Paul and he's still faithful in the gospel labor. Paul knows, I believe that they will be encouraged and strengthened to know that not only is Timothy still with Paul, not only is Timothy still faithfully laboring for the gospel, But also this that also, along with Paul, Timothy is praying for them. We give thanks to the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying for you always. So here's this picture of Paul. He's sending this letter and the Colossians, I think, are to rightly get this picture in their head that it's not just Paul who is thinking about them, but their dear brother, Timothy, that they know. Timothy has probably done some work with them. They certainly know Timothy's reputation, and there's Timothy still right alongside with Paul, and they're both praying together. Timothy's right there praying with Paul. I think this is a good encouragement to the Colossians. Notice what he says. He says, we. I think me and Timothy, we give thanks. So Paul is joined in this prayer by Timothy. In other words, Paul and Timothy are in agreement. When they pray for the Colossians. They are both moved with thankfulness when they pray for the Colossians, this had to have been very, very encouraging to the Saints and Colossi. Both Paul, the apostle and Timothy, his assistant, are very thankful when they think about the Colossians, they think about them and they're thankful. This had to have been very encouraging to them. They are both moved with thankfulness when they think about the people of that congregation. Now, when Paul prays to the Colossians, he says this, he prays with thankfulness. This is a heart issue of gratitude. Paul's not putting on this phony face. It's not just this shallow kind of an expression. It's not just a smile he puts on his face. when he's around certain people. OK, this is a genuine heart issue of true gratitude when Paul considers the Colossians. Now, here's how I would describe it. It's a heart issue of joy for what God has done. For the Colossians. A heart issue of joy for what God has done, and it would also include this, I think. A joyful it's a there's a there's a joy and there's a joyful contentment in what God is doing, and there is a humble anticipation of further or more of more goodness of God. If I could probably that came out bad. Badly, see, I'm just digging the hole here. It's a hard issue of joy for what God has done. and joyful contentment in and humble anticipation of the goodness of God. Take a look at Ephesians, if you would, Ephesians chapter three and notice how Paul is describing a prayer for them. Ephesians 314. We know he's praying, he says, for this reason, I bow my knees to the father of our Lord Jesus Christ. From whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named. Notice what he says in verse 20. After the prayer here as he's praying for the Ephesians. Notice what he says now to him who is able to do exceedingly. Abundantly above all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us to him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen. Now this I think is The way I'm thinking of it is this is the fuel. This is what's fueling Paul's prayer. That's the the foundation that Paul is standing upon as he prays. As he says, for this reason, I bow my knees to the Father, Lord Jesus Christ, and he gives these requests that he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might through his spirit and man. He requests that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, that you being rooted and grounded in love. What is all of this? What is what moves Paul when he makes this prayer for the Ephesians? What's his confidence? Where is it all planted? Well, it's planted in him who is able to exceedingly abundantly above all that, what all that we ask, we'll ask where we'll ask in prayer. You see, do you see Paul's confidence? Why he's so enthusiastic in his prayer, why he goes to prayer Confidently, there is this there is this joyful contentment in Paul's praying because of who God is, not because of anything that the Ephesians are. It's not because of anything that Paul is. Let me show you another reference. If you'll go forward just a page or two to Philippians chapter one. Look at chapter one in verse three. Again, we find Paul praying for the people and he says this, I thank my God upon every remembrance of you. Always in every prayer of mine, making requests for you all with joy. For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now. Notice what he says, a foundation statement, being confident of this very thing that he has begun a good work in you. Will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. What's the fuel, what's fueling Paul in this prayer, where's his confidence as he prays to the Ephesians, as he prays for the Philippians, for the Ephesians, as he prays for also the Philippians, because he is able. To grant what we ask, because he is able to complete the work that he has started in you. And so what does Paul say? I pray. with thankfulness and I pray with joy. Thankful praying is an expression of a heart that's joyful. Now here this is the connection. I don't know if I've adequately built my case. But when Paul is talking about joy or when he's talking about thankfulness. I think we need to make this connection with this this overall perspective that Paul has of this this This fuel of prayer, if I could use that term, the foundation, this assurance, this confidence, this contentment. That Paul has in the sovereign working of God. Thankful praying is an expression of a heart that's joyful, but it's not the kind of joy that the world has that's very shallow and very passing happy in this and then it's happy in that and then it's something else the next day. Paul's not talking about that kind of joy. This is a deep-seated joy in the truth of who God is. And I think the thankfulness with which Paul is praying has to be connected with this kind of joyful contentment or confidence in who God is. And we need to work on this kind of genuine thankfulness, not the phony face that we might put on. Not the kind of face we put on trying to pretend like things are difficult. Paul's not doing that. But a genuine from the heart thankfulness, a genuinely being thankful because there's this joy that Paul has as he prays. I think that's that's I think we need to make that connection. If I didn't make my case, come talk with me. Maybe I can better explain myself. We give thanks. When we think about you, when we're praying about you, it's an expression of joyful gratitude when Paul is praying for them. Well, let me give you some observations or applications, however you want to refer to those. And I'm going to start each of them with praying with thankfulness. Number one, praying with thankfulness will help to shape and guard your request. Praying with thankfulness will help to shape and guard your requests. Now, observe, if you will, the two main elements of Paul's prayer. What were the two main elements? He starts off with thankfulness. And then what was the second part? Then come his requests, thankfulness and then requests we read in Philippians four and verse six, Paul says in everything by prayer and supplication with what? with thanksgiving. Listen to what Paul is saying to the Philippians in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving. Let your request be made known to God. Now, how do you think? It's why would you think it's important? That in a prayer with request that it needs to also be a prayer of thanksgiving. I think it's possible that if you approach prayer without any thanksgiving, without this heart issue of genuine gratitude, do you think if that is absent from your heart that it might affect the kind it might shape the kind of request that you make of God? Do you think it might have a bearing on Your patience as you make requests of God. Listen to what John Calvin says. This is like gold on paper. Listen to what he says about this. This is Calvin's commentary from Philippians 4. He says, because many often pray to God amiss with complaints or murmuring. As though they had just ground for accusing him that is God, while others broke delay if he does not immediately obey their wishes. Paul instead joins Thanksgiving with prayers. It is as though he had it is as though he had said that those things which are necessary for us ought to be desired from the Lord in such a way that we nevertheless subject our affections to his will. And give thanks while asking. And unquestionably, gratitude will have the effect upon us that the will of God will be the chief sum of our desires. Isn't that wonderful? Gratitude, what is what is going to be flowing from this heart confident in the working of God, joyful in his purposes and gratefully content with what his will is. What kind of request will then flow from a heart that is filled with those kinds of meditations? Well, they'll probably be those are kind of requests would probably be a lot better. They're going to be more godly requests. Those kinds of requests will be more in tune with his will. Therefore, not asking a miss, as we were told that we often do. Why we don't receive what we ask for, because we're asking for all the wrong things. But what if it's with thankfulness that we ask? So notice, Paul, and he says he tells the Philippians they need to be doing this. And then as he talks about his prayer with the Colossians, he gives a display. He's actually doing that. He is presenting his requests. With a true heart attitude of thankfulness. Now, I'm not proposing for you that you have to. Pray your prayers in a certain order. I know better than to tell you, and you would know better to believe if I were to tell you that God is the kind of God where you have to you have to put your words in a certain order, he's not going to be pleased with it. All of our prayers are weak. And yet, he's delighted to hear them by the blood of his son. I'm not proposing that you have to go in a certain order. I'm not saying that if you make a request first and then you give things that you're necessarily sending. I'm not going to say that, but I'm going to say that in your prayer, in your praying that you need to have both of these elements. Now, what am I going to do with myself? I'm probably going to try to have my thanks first because I know my own weaknesses. I know that it's going to be better for me to rehearse and to plant my heart on meditations of thankfulness and of gratitude to make sure that I've got that in place first before I go to my request. I think because of my own weakness, that's what I'm going to try to do. You think about it. However, whatever the order is, I don't think is the most important thing. The issue is not a necessarily a physical order of your prayer, it's a heart issue. It's a heart issue as you pray. Are you praying with thankfulness as you make your request to the father? Are they are they flowing from a heart of genuine gratitude, of true contentment for the will of God for your life so that you could look and or you could consider what God's will is for your life. which is what you see that God has done so far and you are you're content with that in the right kind of way. And then you make your request to him. So here's the first observation. Praying with thankfulness will help to shape and guard your requests. And we see Paul doing that. Secondly, praying with thankfulness is God centered praying. Praying with thankfulness is God centered praying. Paul says in verse three, we give thanks To the God and father. Of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, we give thanks to him. The congratulations is not reserved for the Colossians, if there's any congratulations, if there's any praise, if there's any center to Paul's prayer, it's not himself and it's though he is praying and it's not the Colossians, though he's praying for them. The center of his praying is God. Praying with thankfulness and we ought to say, well, yeah, well, of course, we should expect this if it's with if it's promoted with this heart attitude of genuine gratitude. Well, yeah, it would have to be a God centered prayer. Or to put it another way. God centered praying will be thankful praying. I don't think you can separate those two. Jeffrey Wilson and his commentary commentary puts it this way. He says that there was a church in Colossi was for Paul a cause of profound thanksgiving to God. The very fact. That Paul could write a letter. And send it to this town called Colossi. In the first century. And the recipients of this letter could be addressed as saints. Think about how significant that is. Did God have to do any kind of work in Colossi? Was God obligated in any way to save any of those pagans? Not in any way. And yet, observe, here's Paul writing a letter to saints in Colossi. So Wilson says the very fact that there is even a church in Colossi was for Paul a cause of profound thanksgiving to Paul. Wilson goes on to say this. As he, Paul, knew that none could be saved without the regenerating grace of God. He never congratulates his readers on their faith, but always thanks God for it. In other words, praying with thankfulness is always God centered praying. Paul's prayer thanks are directed to God. Wilson goes on. If we thus owe our salvation to God, then clearly all the praise must belong to him alone. For when all the riches of God's grace are freely lavished upon us, we are under a permanent obligation to pay tribute to that grace in the coinage of our gratitude. Thankful to him. Thankful to him. Praying with thankfulness is God centered praying. God centered praying will always be thankful praying. So here's the there's this connection between having a God centered perspective. That is, having this awareness of our dependency upon his mercy and gratitude. Awareness of our constant dependency upon him. This proper maintenance of amazement at the mercy of God. And the connection of that with gratitude, so Paul's praying is a God centered praying, so Praying with thankfulness will help to shape and guard your requests. Praying with thankfulness is God-centered praying. If that's true, then. What can we say about a lack of thankfulness in your prayers? If there's been a struggle in your own praying lately with a lack of thankfulness. Well, I would say this, it's not to be blamed on your circumstances. But rather, let me encourage you to do this. Think about how you're thinking about God. Think about how you have been considering lately issues like grace and mercy and what you deserve and what you don't deserve. If there's been a trouble or if there's been a problem with thankfulness in your own prayers has nothing to do with your circumstances. It has something to do with what you believe to be true about God. A third general observation, praying with thankfulness is praying with poverty of spirit. Praying with thankfulness is praying with poverty of spirit. In other words, it's not just how you think about God, but it's also how you think about yourself comes into play with thankful praying. You know, the Pharisee in Luke 18, do you remember how he prayed the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector? Remember what the first four words are of his prayer. First four words of his prayer. God, I. Thank you. Very interesting, isn't it? A lot of what we're talking about. God, I thank you. But then his prayer goes on. That I'm not like other men. No poverty of spirit. Extortioners. unjust adulterers or even as this tax collector. God, I thank you. Now, what comes next? What comes next in his prayer? Do his petitions come next? Do his request come next in his prayer? Listen to what comes next. He makes no requests. He says this, I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I possess. There's no request in this prayer. He says the words, I thank you. He gives the vocabulary of thankfulness, but you see that this is not a prayer of thankfulness. You understand why this isn't a prayer of thankfulness like Paul is Paul's prayers. This is a prayer that's centered on him and not upon God. It's all about him. It's not God centered prayer praying and he's not thankful, even though he uses the word. In fact, when he uses that when he says, God, I thank you, the only thing that he's indicating is that he's self-deceived. He thinks he's thankful, but he's actually not. Not only does he think he's thankful and he's not, he thinks he's justified when he's not. But also notice this, secondly, or think about this, he doesn't make any requests. Well, why is that? Why do you think he doesn't make any requests? Yeah. Because he doesn't need anything, that's why he doesn't ask for anything. He doesn't have he doesn't have any need. So the way he the way he looks at other people around him, there's no poverty of spirit. Adulterers, I'm way above that. The unjust, not even close to me. There's no poverty of spirit. But also, when in the lack of request, but instead instead of requests, humbly beseeching the Lord, oh, Lord. Have mercy upon me. A sinner, there's no request like that. Instead, it's all about consider, Lord, my great abilities. Consider, Lord, my superior spirituality. God, I know you must be impressed, but give me just a moment to go through the list of the top five things that I'm so good at. There's no poverty of spirit, none. It's all centered on him. Because it doesn't need anything. So let me ask you, then, in considering this point, praying with thankfulness is praying with poverty of spirit. Have you been struggling to muster thankful prayers? I think that if if you know what you deserve. And you look around and see what God has instead given you, I think that your prayers, you'll find a promotion for thankfulness when you begin to consider poverty of spirit. Part of poverty of spirit brings a radical change of perspective. I think I think about Paul. Just just in terms of when after Paul was converted and he has this he has this tremendous ministry that God gives to him. And I know that Paul. Demonstrates great progress in the faith. And I know that Paul himself preached about laying things laying things aside and pressing forward. But I just I think to myself, I wonder if I wonder how often. Even after even long after Paul's conversion that Paul didn't lay in bed at night. and think about his past and have to preach. To himself. I wonder if there weren't nights when Paul would lay in bed. And he would he would he could still hear the cries of the families that he split apart before he was converted. I wonder if those kind of things didn't echo in his head from time to time. And where Paul didn't have to go back and get back on his knees and pray for help and to preach to himself the promises that God had given to him in Christ. And so, Paul, when he looks at the Colossians, I think Paul has much reason to be thankful, even for their struggles that they're going through. Paul, he knows about struggle. He thinks he's thinking about the sins of the Colossians, but I'm sure Paul knew his own sins. poverty of spirit. I think this is a very deep well from which Paul is drawing when he says, I'm thankful. When I think about you, my heart is filled with gratitude. It must have been that a part of that is coming from this perspective that Paul would have had of his own sins. He's thankful. He's not like the Pharisee who who's going to walk into the Colossian congregation and say, look at all this stuff going wrong, these weaknesses, the sins. You've let this person come in. You're not dealing with this. You have this ridiculous tendency. Boy, I'm glad I'm not like that. Instead, Paul says when he when he thinks about them, despite all that's going on in the congregation, despite their struggles, it's he has he has what really is a very humble declaration of thankfulness. I'm so thankful for you as he's praying, praying with thankfulness is praying with poverty of spirit. The opposite of that is Luke 18 in the Pharisee there. And another general observation that I'd like for you to consider. Praying with thankfulness is an outworking or a fruit of love. Praying with thankfulness is an outworking or a fruit of love now. Do you find it surprising that Paul says this, we give thanks. Given the fact, I mean, step, step away from verse three for a little bit and consider the overall book. Consider some of the things that Paul has to tell them to quit doing. And Paul says he's thankful. The Saints and Colossi, they weren't perfect. And Paul says, I give thanks for when I think about you, the church and Colossi was not a perfect church, and Paul says, when I think about you, thankful when I'm praying for you, my prayers are prayers of thankfulness. For example, look in chapter two. Look in verse four. Look at the kinds of things that Paul is going to go on to deal with now this, I say, lest anyone should deceive you with persuasive words. Well. Some of the congregation have this propensity to go to gullibility. So Paul is having to tell them, don't be deceived, don't be drawn into this false teaching. Think about what the truth is. Down in verse 8, beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit. Why is he having to tell them this? Well, because I think this was happening with some of them. They were allowing themselves to be cheated through vain and false teaching. Look down in verse 16, let no one judge you in food or drink or regarding a festival or a new moon or Sabbaths. They were allowing this to go on. Verse 20, therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why is the living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations? Don't touch, don't taste. And Paul says, I'm thankful when I think about you. When I pray for you, I'm thankful. As if it couldn't get any worse, he says in chapter three and verse five, therefore, put to death, he remembers what you're on the earth. Fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire and covetousness, which is idolatry. Verse eight, put off all of these things, anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. They weren't perfect. They were not a perfect church. And yet, Paul says, I wonder if it's I wonder if this is surprising to us. To this group of people, Paul says, I'm thankful. Hendrickson Hendrickson says this. He says there were dangers threatening the church. Certain weaknesses, moreover, are clearly implied, but before Paul even begins to refer to these things. He, first of all, assures those to whom this letter is sent that he is convinced that the works of God's grace is the work of God's grace is evident in their lives. Do you see the perspective that Paul has? Paul is making a deliberate choice. Not to ignore the evidences of God's grace, despite all of the weaknesses. Despite all of the weaknesses, he's making a choice. to see the evidences that God is working with this group of people. He's not so easily put off. Because they're not perfect. Now, think about this in his letter to in his first letter to the Thessalonians, think about I'll just read this to you. This is from chapter one of First Thessalonians. Paul says this, and as he describes a prayer, he says, we give thanks to God always for you all make a mention of you in our prayers. Remembering without ceasing, here's what he's thankful for. For the Thessalonians, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ must have been a must have been just a perfect faith, right? But he'll go on to say in chapter three of that same letter, verse nine, for what thanks can we render to God for you for all the joy with which we rejoice? For your sake before our God, night and day praying exceedingly that we may see your face and perfect what is lacking in your faith. That wasn't a perfect faith. But Paul could see that what faith there was as lacking as it was, as weak as it was, Paul could see there was genuine faith there. Perfect? No. All that it should have been? No. But Paul's thankful. I think this this praying with thankfulness is an outworking or a fruit of love. Now, we all could learn a lesson from the perspective that Paul has in his thankfulness. The circumstances in which Paul dares to express thankfulness. Paul is not ignoring the sin. You see that in the whole rest of the letter, Paul is going to jump right in the middle of it. And he is going to speak very plainly and he's going to speak very specifically. He is going to confront them on the issues going on in their congregation. He's not ignoring sin, but it's as if he looks through that cloud of all of the sins and all of their weak tendencies to see the grace of God at work. Paul isn't ignoring the problems. He isn't pretending that there aren't problems there. You know what Paul's doing? He's loving his neighbor as himself. Don't you appreciate it when people are patient with you? Aren't you thankful that there are people in your life when you mess up and you say the wrong thing and you do the wrong thing? Aren't you thankful that there are people in your life who don't just go, I'm going to move on. I'm tired of this. You're not perfect. I'm off to find somebody who's perfect. I'm going to be friends with perfect people. You bother me. Aren't you glad that you're not treated like that? Aren't you glad Paul is loving his neighbor as himself? Instead of seeing the sin and the weakness and the struggle. Saying, I've had it, I don't have anything to do with you. Instead, Paul chooses, he makes the deliberate choice to love them. To love them. Now, what is love? In 1 Corinthians 13, what is the start of that list of what love is? Love does what? Love suffers long. Love suffers long. Praying with thankfulness is a fruit of love. It's an outworking of love. Love suffers long. Look at how Paul is praying for them. He's so patient. As he would want people to be patient with him. As God has been patient with Paul. Love suffers long and is kind, love does not envy, love does not parade itself, is not puffed up. Does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil, does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth. Bears all things. Bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. These are a group of people who have a credible profession of faith. And however weak it may seem, Paul can see the fruits of their faith and he sees that they may be small. But he sees fruits of their repentance, he says in verse four, since we heard of what? In Colossians, back in Colossians one, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus. He's thankful it's not perfect, but he still loves them. And he's still thankful he's heard of their love and verse six, this gospel that the gospel has come to them is bringing forth fruit in their lives. Are you are you choosing to do this in your relationships with people? You have to be very aware of the tendency to be thankful for someone, but just so long as they don't disappoint you too badly. You have that tendency, you see that welling up within your own heart. Be aware of the tendency to be thankful for someone just so long as they meet your expectations. I'm not asking whether or not you approve. Of a total person, I'm asking, are you thankful for them? Even when they disappoint, even though they're not perfect. Can you still express thankfulness? Might be a poverty of spirit issue. Might be a God centeredness issue. Are you thankful? I guess I've seen this in relationships, a person to a person. I've seen this in the way people approach church. Somebody will come in. And they'll attend just so long until they figure out it's not a perfect church. I'm hitting the road. And you end up seeing these people that are church hoppers. And they'll be here for a little bit until they discover, well, not a perfect church. That pastor let me down, this person said that, I'm hitting the road. And you end up seeing these people that are never really settled in any place, never commit themselves to a body of Christ because, well, nobody meets their expectations. They look at churches, wherever they go, there's no thankfulness at all. Look at people, there's no thankfulness. But look at Paul. And look at look at who Paul's looking at. With their weaknesses and struggles. And tendencies, the things that the things that they are tolerating. The Paul is able to look through that in love, not ignoring the sin, he's going to deal with the sin. But in love, he begins his letter by expressing that he can he can see through that and he can see that there are evidences of God at work. He can see fruit that the gospel is bring forth in their life. They're not where they will be ultimately. They're not where Paul is going to request that God will bring them to. They're not to that strength yet. Paul will pray for them. But he's still thankful. He's still thankful for them. And then finally, this last observation, then praying with thankfulness is an act of repentance. Praying with thankfulness is an act of repentance. What do you think Paul might be repenting of here? If you're going to be praying in this manner, as Paul, I think, has given us a good example to follow. Thankful praying. It's not based on our circumstances. It's based upon the foundation of God's goodness, it's based upon the foundation of his promises. Well, I read to you earlier from Philippians four verse six, but I intentionally did not read the first part of verse six. And I said, but in everything by prayer and supplication with Thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God. How does that verse begin? Be anxious for nothing. Be anxious for nothing. Praying with thankfulness is an act of repentance from anxiousness. Now, once you think about What might have been a temptation for Paul? Do you think Paul might have been tempted to anxiousness when he got a report back from Colossae? He gets this report. And this report begins to tell him of. Maybe the report included some of the things, some of the fruit of the gospel. The faith weak, but there were some there was this display of faith in Christ. But then the report went on to talk about this, subjecting themselves again to man-made regulations and these false views of spirituality. And neglecting proper meditation on who Christ is, failing to consider the completeness that they enjoyed in him. You think Paul might have had a temptation to anxiousness. I don't know if it's just because I'm a pastor, but. I think that would have been a temptation for me. A temptation of anxiousness, wanting the best for these people, you know, Paul's been praying for them. He's getting he has sent off reports and he gets this news that's less than desirable in some ways. And Paul doesn't give in to anxiousness, he doesn't give in to worry. Instead, he does, as he has instructed the Philippines, be anxious for nothing. He's not going to he's not going to give in to sinful, sinful kind of concern. But what is he going to do instead? In prayer and supplication with Thanksgiving, he's making his request known to God. Let me end with this with this reminder from, if you will, from Matthew, Chapter six. Where our Lord talks about worry. If thankfulness has been a struggle for you. It's hard for you to be thankful in your prayers. Then I would ask that you consider this possibility. It might be an anxiousness problem. If you are in a very difficult situation and you struggle with bitterness. Or worry. Well, consider the words of your Lord to you, Matthew six and verse twenty four. Jesus says this. No one can serve two masters. For either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other, you cannot serve God and mammon. Therefore, I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food in the body, more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap or gather into barns. Your heavenly father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you, by worrying, can add one cubit to his stature or one cubit to his lifespan? So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They neither toil nor spin, and yet I say to you that even Solomon and all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now, if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is and tomorrow is thrown into the oven. Will he not much more clothe you? Oh, you have little faith. Therefore, do not worry, saying, what shall we eat or what shall we drink or what shall we wear? For after all these things, the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly father knows that you need all these things, but seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. And all these things shall be added to you. Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Praying with thankfulness. Is a choice that you make. To be repenting of anxiousness. To be praying with thankfulness. It's where you have decided that you will seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness. And you will not allow all of these other concerns to turn into anxiousness. Well, what's going to happen in Colossae? Well, what's going to happen? This infection of fat teaching is horrible. Well, what's going to happen to them? Is how is God going to take care of them? What if he doesn't take care of them? What's going to happen? There's none of that. There's none of that anxiousness in Paul's expressions to them. Yes, Paul is going to work with him. Paul's not a fatalist. He is going to use the means that God has given to him to work with them and to help them and to give them the help. But there's no anxiousness with Paul. Instead, Paul's not worried in full confidence. that God is going to take care of everything. God takes care of the grass. He takes care of the flowers. You know what? I can rest myself in God. And I can flee from all worry. I can flee and repent and lay aside all anxiousness. And I can begin my letter to the Colossians by saying, I'm thankful. I'm thankful when I pray for you. I'm thankful when I hear about these reports of your faith. I am thankful when I hear about the fruit that the gospel is working in your life. I'm thankful. May God strengthen us in these things also.