Saturday

Related Verses
Col. 2:7, 15
7 Having been rooted and being built up in Him, and being established in the faith even as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.
15 Stripping off the rulers and the authorities, He made a display of them openly, triumphing over them in it.

Col. 4:2
2 Persevere in prayer, watching in it with thanksgiving,

Matt. 12:22-23
22 Then there was brought to Him one possessed by a demon, blind and dumb, and He healed him, so that the dumb man spoke and saw.
23 And all the crowds were amazed and said, Is this not the Son of David?

Matt. 6:6
6 But you, when you pray, enter into your private room, and shut your door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will repay you.

Acts 1:14
14 These all continued steadfastly with one accord in prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.

Rom. 12:12
12 Rejoice in hope; endure in tribulation; persevere in prayer.

Eph. 6:17-18
17 And receive the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which Spirit is the word of God,
18 By means of all prayer and petition, praying at every time in spirit and watching unto this in all perseverance and petition concerning all the saints,

Related Reading
In the soil there is also an element that strips off the rulers and authorities and triumphs over them (Col. 2:15). This element is victorious over the evil spirits in the atmosphere. Both believers and unbelievers realize that there is something evil surrounding them. People try to be good, but something causes them to do evil…If we try in ourselves to combat the power of darkness in the atmosphere, we will be defeated. But there is an element in Christ as the soil that defeats the evil spirits. As we stay rooted in the soil and absorb its rich elements, the rulers and authorities in the heavenlies will be stripped off. There is an element in the soil that strips off the power of darkness. We have been planted into this soil, and now we must enjoy all its riches. (Life-study of Colossians, p. 458) 

—

We are rooted in Christ, who is the rich, fertile soil. Having been rooted in Him, we should go on to absorb His riches. As a tree absorbs nourishing elements from the soil through its roots, we also should absorb the riches of Christ into us…A tree’s growth depends upon the nourishment it absorbs through its roots. Since we have been rooted into Christ, we should remain in Him in a practical way day by day. In our experience we need to stay rooted in Christ. However, if we forget Christ in matters such as eating and drinking, we are not rooted in Him in our experience. When we eat our food, we may not remember Christ. After our meal we may spend some time in prayer. But even at the beginning of our prayer, we may not actually and experientially be rooted in Christ, for we may pray many unnecessary things. But in His mercy and patience, the Lord waits until we begin to pray in a genuine way. Then in our experience we absorb Christ’s riches. However, when our time of prayer is finished, it may happen that we do not go on to assimilate what we have absorbed of Him. According to the Lord’s words in John 15, it could be that we do not abide in Him. 

In the morning many saints spend time with the Lord. However, even though they spend a certain amount of time with Him, they may not absorb much of His riches. The reason is that they are in too much of a hurry. If we would absorb the riches of Christ into us as our nourishment, we should not be rushed. 

If we would absorb the riches of Christ as the soil, we need to have tender, new roots. Do not let yourself get old, but be fresh and renewed day by day. Pray to the Lord, “Lord, I want my consecration to be fresh, and I want to open to You anew. I want my roots to be tender that I may absorb Your riches. Lord, don’t let my roots get old.” If our roots are tender and new to absorb the riches of Christ, we will grow automatically with the riches we assimilate. This is to enjoy Christ and to experience Him subjectively, daily, and hourly. 

If you see that we have been rooted in Christ as the rich soil, you will be comforted and encouraged. Do not be troubled by your weaknesses…In this soil do you not have the fullness, the circumcision, the burial, the raising up, the giving of life, the wiping out of the ordinances, and the stripping off of the powers of darkness?…Take time to absorb Him, to assimilate the rich elements from Him as the soil. If you take time to absorb the Lord, you will be able to testify that in Christ you have no lack. 

Every morning we need to take an adequate amount of time to absorb the Lord. Although even ten minutes is good,…if you spend thirty minutes to absorb the Lord and to enjoy Him in the morning, you will not be bothered by negative things during the day. The “flies” and “scorpions” will not pester you, for the elements in the soil will repel them. (Life-study of Colossians, pp. 477-479, 459-460) 

Further Reading: Life-study of Colossians, msgs. 47—48, 55

Further Reading:
Further Reading: Life-study of Colossians, msg 52

Hymn: #643
1 Take time to behold Him,
Speak oft with Thy Lord,
Abide in Him always,
And feed on His Word.
Wait thou in His presence,
Submissive and meek,
Forgetting in nothing
His blessing to seek.

2 Take time to behold Him,
The world rushes on;
Spend much time in secret
With Jesus alone.
By looking to Jesus
Like Him thou shalt be;
Thy friends, in thy conduct,
His likeness shall see.

3 Take time to behold Him,
Let Him be thy guide;
And run not before Him
Whatever betide;
In joy or in sorrow
Still follow thy Lord,
And, looking to Jesus,
Still trust in His Word.

4 Take time to behold Him,
Be calm in thy soul,
Each thought and each temper
Beneath His control.
Thus led by His Spirit
To fountains of love,
Thou then shalt be fitted
His mercy to prove.