DEVOTION – DAY 225

Ephesians 1:18 “Eyes Of The Heart”

 

Ephesians 1:18 “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in His holy people.”

 

Paul wanted to pray for the Ephesians that God would open the eyes of their heart. In the Bible, the heart is often the source of all our emotions and feelings. By praying that the Ephesians’ eyes of their hearts be opened, Paul was simply saying that he was praying that they would discover anew their desire and longing to be the people of God, to want to yearn for a share of their glorious inheritance that awaits them as children of the Lord. Paul wanted them to have a heartfelt assurance that they were indeed God’s children and this would be evidenced by their hunger for God, and His Word.

 

We knew someone who was married to an unbeliever. She wanted her husband to become a Christian but he did not seem interested. He rejected her invitations to join her in attending church so she reluctantly went on her own. She realized that the more she shared about Jesus to her husband, the more she seemed to drive him away from the Lord. So, she decided she would pray for his salvation and she prayed that God would soften and open the eyes of his heart. She prayed for her husband’s salvation for many years. She never gave up hope. Then, a crisis struck the family and her husband was very worried. She prayed again for his salvation. Finally, her husband’s heart softened and he surrendered his life to the Lord and he said the sinners’ prayer. After that, she saw further evidence that the eyes of her husband’s heart were opened because he asked to follow her to church without the need to be invited. Soon, her husband asked to be baptized, which was another sign that he wanted to declare publicly that he was one of God’s people.

 

Let us pray: Heavenly Father, you are Merciful and Mighty. Thank you for hearing and answering our prayers. Thank you for loving us first whilst we were still sinners. Thank you for drawing us close to you and opening the eyes of our hearts to long for you. Please help us to persist in praying for the salvation of others and for the eyes of their heart to be opened to the gospel message. In the precious name of Jesus Christ, we ask and pray. Amen.

 

Questions

  1. Who can you pray for, who are unbelievers or people who have back-slided?
  2. Will you pray for them regularly that the Lord will open the eyes of their hearts to receive the gospel message, if they are unbelievers, or desire to return back to Jesus if they had turned away from Him?
  3. How have you helped someone to turn back to God? Share.
  4. Discuss how you can help someone this week to turn to the Lord?