Epaphras obviously did not literally pray 24/7. Paul’s “always” means that Epaphras constantly prayed for the Colossians as he had the opportunity to do so. We should look for times to pray for others and consistently make the most of these times.

In closing his letter to the Colossians, Paul gave some greetings, including one from Epaphras: “Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God” (Col 4:12 ESV).

As simple as this verse is, it gives us some helpful points in how Epaphras prayed for others and how we can pray for others today.

The first two points involve being consistent and diligent in prayer.

We should always pray for others.

Epaphras obviously did not literally pray 24/7. Paul’s “always” means that Epaphras constantly prayed for the Colossians as he had the opportunity to do so. We should look for times to pray for others and consistently make the most of these times.

We should strive in praying for others.

To “strive” or “struggle” in prayer is to work hard at it. The Greek verb here is agōnizomai from which we get our English verb agonize. To agōnizomai can mean performing as an athlete (cf. 1 Cor 9:25) or even fighting in battle with weapons (cf. John 18:36), both strenuous activities. Prayer for others should receive our diligent efforts all the same.

The next three points involve the content of our prayer.

We should pray for others to persevere.

Epaphras prayed for the Colossians to “stand” in two ways, “mature and fully assured in all the will of God.” While the tense of this verb suggests to some that Epaphras is thinking of something future (“may God make you to stand”), it is more likely that he prays for the Colossians to presently stand as they ought (thus, “may you stand”). Paul often uses the word stand (histēmi) with reference to the Christian holding to or persevering according to some aspect of his Christianity (cf. Rom 11:20; 14:4; 1 Cor 7:37; 10;12; 15:1; 2 Cor 1:24; Eph 6:11, 13, 14).¹

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