[ I ] Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention
of you in my prayers;

17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father
of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and
revelation in the knowledge of him:

     The knowledge God wants us to have of Him is not a mere awareness of Him. Many
     are aware there is a God but do nothing about it. There is no power in that.

     The knowledge He wants us to have of Him is more than knowing because you heard
     someone else talk about it. This is like hearing how to get saved but never
     actually receiving salvation for yourself. There is nothing life changing about
     this knowledge either.

     God desires us to have knowledge of Him that is more than an experiential knowledge
     of Him. That's like hearing and believing it to the end you receive salvation for yourself
     but that is as far as you go with it. Salvation is required but God wants you to have a
     clear and exact knowledge of Him, a knowledge that changes you, that moves you, that
     influences you and helps others around you, also.

     Paul prayed we would be given spiritual wisdom and revelation in the clear and exact
     knowledge of Him. This kind of knowledge "expresses a more thorough participation
     on the part of the knower with the object of knowledge; a knowledge that has a powerful
     influence on the knower. " [from Critical Lexicon and Concordance to the
     English and Greek New Testament, Bullinger] Its like hearing, believing, then
     acting on the knowledge to get born again and then having a clear exact knowledge of the
     power you received on the day of salvation, manifesting it and sharing the witness to
     others in a powerful way so they, too, receive salvation also.

     This really knowing God exactly and clearly and personally comes not just from attending
     a weekly Bible study, reading GWD occasionally, listening to someone else preach
     on tapes nor from hanging out every month with some Christians. These things are all a
     necessary part of it but mostly this precise, exact knowledge of God comes from your own
     personal study time on a faithful, regular basis and your faithful application of the principles you learn.

     As you grow in knowledge, and as you grow in your application of the knowledge, you will
     gain spiritual wisdom and understanding. You will have a larger knowledge base from which
     God can draw to impress truths upon your heart as you go.

     May we each be given this spiritual wisdom and revelation in the clear and exact knowledge
     of God. Amen.

-Carol Kenreigh