On Colossians 1

"And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to His glorious might so that you my have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father..." (vv. 10 - 12).

God has outlined everything we need to do in order to live a life that is pleasing to Him. We need to do good works that bear fruit, grow in our knowledge of God (through His Word), develop endurance and patience and be thankful to God. The good news is that we don't have to do these things in our own strength (indeed, we can't do them in our own strength). Verse 9 says "(We) ask God to fill you with the knowledge of His will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding... in order that you may..." All we need to do is spend time with God in prayer and ask Him for wisdom and understanding so we know the good works we need to do, so that He can develop endurance and patience in us through His power, so that we can be strengthened. He will bear the fruit of our works, He will give us power to do what He asks us to do. It sounds easy, but it is difficult to have the discipline to spend the time in prayer diligently seeking God (believe me, I know!). But that is what He asks of us.