Colossians 1:9-12 — For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness; Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:

Labor Day. Strangely, a break from normal labors — so deep breath, what should my Christian walk look like?
The first thing to note is that I need somebody to be praying for me. The Colossians had Paul in their spiritual corner, thinking about what was important for them and praying for them non-stop.
The next thing is that I need a foundation to base my walk on. I need to understand God’s will for me (not my will for me!). Now I don’t think Paul was talking about the details … He’s saying “I want you to be clear about the way God wants you to live your earthly life, and how He wants you spend your eternal life”. It’s not an abstract thing either — I am to have “wisdom” — which really translates as a knowledge of God’s rules, and “spiritual understanding” — which really translates as a knowledge of how to apply them.
It’s not just about knowledge. With prayer support in place, and knowing what I need to know, I am to be at work. To be at work, I need to be strengthened — which comes back to that prayer support!
Notice too that the strength I need is not “strength to work”. It’s strength to be patient with the people I live and work amongst, and cheerfully to enjoy the difficulties that might occur along the way.
The notion here is really a wonderful one … with the right support in place, I can form the knowledge and gather the strength I need, so that God’s will for my life can result in me sharing in the inheritance of the saints — eternal life.
There’s more to understand about the mechanism Paul is talking about here. He is providing me with an example to follow. I don’t think he’s telling the Colossians that he is praying for them just so that they will feel good — I think he’s suggesting a kind of spiritual “paying it forward” too. I should be praying for fellow Christians that they should be empowered to pass it on … and so the kingdom grows!
Now I happen to be fortunate. There are people who pray for me. There are people I pray for. I suppose that makes me part of a kingdom chain — which feels good!