Radical Prayer with Sensory Overload
By Will Thomas
Reading the apostle Paul’s letter to Ephesians reminds me of driving in Alaska. I’ve visited the Last Frontier many times. In fact, I lived in Anchorage for a year. But no matter how many times I’ve explored that vast wilderness, my reaction is always the same—sensory overload.
I remember driving into the little tourist village of Talkeetna. The town’s claim to fame is that it is the closest settlement to Denali National Park and the jumping-off point for the many mountain climbers who attempt the big summit each year.
After the two-hour drive north from Alaska’s biggest city, I am always stunned because no matter which direction I look from the Parks Highway, I can see huge mountain ranges that seem to never end. Every scene is more breathtaking than the one before.
And just when I think I couldn’t possibly see anything more amazing, the two-lane blacktop makes a sharp turn and there it is—Denali! The monster mountain dwarfs all other peaks by comparison. Its snow-laden slopes loom above the landscape. Even though it’s still more than 50 miles away, “The Great One” seems like I could reach out and touch it.
Paul’s Glorious Picture
Reading Ephesians reads like that wilderness drive. Paul takes us on an unbelievably rich journey. He paints one glorious word picture after another. He unveils scenes of God’s glory and grace, His purpose and plan for those in Christ, and the transforming power of the gospel.
And just when I think I can’t come across anything more amazing, I turn the corner and there it is—one of the most outlandish, awe-inspiring prayers in the entire Bible from Ephesians 3:14–21:
For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 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, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
This isn’t just any prayer. Paul unleashes one of the most radical prayers imaginable. The prayer is “radical” because goes to the foundation of what praying has always been about.
In its basic form, “radical” means to go to the root or foundation of something. In this prayer, Paul takes us back to the fundamental issues of the faith and what it means to pray. He approaches prayer not as a pietistic retreat into comfort and safety, but as a call to live God’s eternal purpose.
For Paul, prayer is not about making ourselves feel better, but about preparing for battle. This radical prayer assumes that God is at work—and entreats Him to do His work in us and through us.
Framing Our Prayers
Let’s take an up-close and personal look at the apostle’s petition, with the hope that our prayers will become as radical as his.
“For this reason” (v. 14) follows an explanation of the Church’s global, or even bigger “cosmic,” mission. The Church’s living exhibition of the gospel through His people provides evidence of the power of God’s grace. The world will believe it when they see it in the Church. This is how God designed it—and it calls for serious prayer.
Next, Paul exposes the radical manner of his prayer: “I kneel before the Father.” We may come to prayer from many postures, but radical prayer requires one basic attitude. Standing with heads bowed, lying prostrate, or sitting quietly are all appropriate. But never, ever dare we pray in pride. We are never demanding as if we could tell God what to do. We are asking and submitting. Fear and trembling are always the approach of a praying person who understands the magnificence and holiness of God.
Paul describes God as “the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name.” We have no exclusive claim on God. He is bigger than our tribe or clan or nation. If He is Father of all, then we cannot pray as if we alone have a right to ask for His blessings.
Above all, our goal is to bring Him glory “in the church and in Christ Jesus.” Praying is never about us. It is always about Him. Nor are our prayers limited to our problems and dreams. Like Paul, we pray visionary prayers. We think about “all generations,” both for time and eternity.
Radical praying never settles for anything less than a radical view of God.
Content of Our Prayers
Next, Paul’s prayer turns to his petition—what he desires God to do in the lives of his readers. He asks the Father to grant three overlapping blessings. He doesn’t ask for wealth or health, protection from hard times, or easier lives.
Paul’s prayer list also doesn’t read like the admittance registry at the Ephesian General Hospital. Praying for the sick and the hurting is always good and proper. But if that is the total sum and substance of our petitions, we have missed the heart of God. We can pray for things near and dear to us, but radical praying never omits the things near and dear to the Father.
Paul’s first concern is for their inner strength. If you are strong on the inside, you can survive anything on the outside. That doesn’t mean the outside doesn’t matter. Our inner belief finds expression in our outer behavior. Both are vital. For most of us, the outer can easily overshadow the inner. That’s a part of the human condition.
Second, Paul prays that the lives of Christian friends might overflow with love. He wants them to be saturated with love. He looks forward to a day when they will have the power to comprehend how big God’s love really is.
If we know we are loved, then we can risk loving others, even those who are different from us. That’s why Paul prays that his readers—and us by extension—can grasp “how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ” (v. 18). Wide may picture the broad, all-inclusive love that encircles people groups across the geographic and cultural divides. Long could describe the unending, eternal nature of His love. The gospel has no “use by” or expiration date.
We can’t outlive or stand by waiting for the clock to run out. He loves now and forever. Could high cover those exciting, wonder-filled experiences of the Christian life? When everything is going well, it is all too easy to want to stay there, focus inward and never let go of the good times. But high love results in sharing love.
Deep might be the valley experiences, the harder and darker times. Understanding God’s love even in hard times keeps us from retreating into our shells, trying to protect ourselves from more pain and hurts. Those low moments are the very moments we need to lean on the deep love of God, along with the love of our Christian brothers and sisters.
Glorious Wrap-Up
In his third and final petition, Paul asks that his readers might be filled to the measure of the fullness of God. Christ dwelling in our hearts, being rooted in love, and being filled with God’s fullness all express the same conviction.
God is at work in our world and our lives now. He is not a God of “once upon a time.” He didn’t retire when the last apostle died. Paul’s radical prayer assumes the radical reality of God.
Sadly, the prayers of the people and churches I know best seldom mirror Paul’s radical prayer. I suspect we pray for small things because our picture of God is too small. We pray for the temporary and not the eternal because we seldom think of His everlasting purpose.
A radical visitation of the Spirit of the One “who is able to do immeasurably more that we think or imagine” (v. 20) will result in a return to radical praying. This is the sensory overload in prayer that can rekindle the power of radical prayer in a day when we can no longer “do business as usual.”
Paul’s prayer is our reminder that today the Church is empowered by the Spirit with the gift of radical and transformational prayer.
WILL THOMAS is a freelance writer and Bible teacher. He is the author of seven books, including God Is at Work and the Difference that Makes—a devotional commentary on Ephesians.
