Praying with Paul: 'Filling the Earth with God's Goodness'

Wednesday, December 31, 2025

Philemon 1:1-16

Dear Father, bestower of freedom,

Thank you for the love and the faith which you have put in your people. Please help them share this with each other and with the world. Let this promote the knowledge of all the good that is ours in Christ Jesus. Put such joy in our hearts and such gladness on our faces that people will want to know what makes us happy.

Help each of us to render such help and comfort, expressing our love, that the hearts of all your holy people will be refreshed. Help us not to make demands on each other, but to entreat, seeking consent, so that the good we ask from others might not be given through compulsion but through free will. Help us to bind up broken relationships. Help us to be willing to step into the breach, to enable others to make amends, even if it costs us money, effort, or time.

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with our spirits. In his name I ask. Amen.

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10 Related Resources by Heartlight

Refresh
Article by Patrick D. Odum
If the gospel we believe doesn't cause us to liberate people from the chains of our prejudices and selfishness, then perhaps we don’t understand it. Patrick Odom uses the short letter of Paul to Philemon to remind us what is important in Christ.
Philemon 1:7
Devo: Today's Verse
"Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints. "
Refreshing!
Illustration of Philemon 1:7
Inspirational illustration of Philemon 1:7 -- Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints.
God's Providence? Perhaps!
Article by Steve Higginbotham
Is this any less amazing than Paul’s unlikely meeting with Onesimus? Steve Higginbotham connects us with God's amazing work at getting people together and helping them live as brothers in Christ both in Bible times and today!
See All 10 Related Resources about Philemon 1:1-16

Illustration

Filling the Earth with God's Goodness — Philemon 1-16

Other Devotionals from Heartlight for Wednesday, December 31, 2025

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About This Devotional

Eldon Degge turns the apostle Paul's writings into daily, powerful prayers.

Heartlight appreciates Eldon Degge and Meridian Publishing for permission to make this available on our website. Praying with Paul is also available as a book.

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