Freedom for who?

Ruth and I went to visit some friends in Bath over the weekend and so on Sunday morning we joined them at their church. The Pastor of their church (with his sleeves rolled up, ready for action) was preaching from Colossians 4 and as he did I was struck by the level of fusion in the life of the Apostle Paul; it was genuine, it was real and it was unstoppable. It really challenged me.
Here, read it for yourself:

“Pray diligently. Stay alert, with your eyes wide open in gratitude. Don't forget to pray for us, that God will open doors for telling the mystery of Christ, even while I'm locked up in this jail. Pray that every time I open my mouth I'll be able to make Christ plain as day to them.
Use your heads as you live and work among outsiders. Don't miss a trick. Make the most of every opportunity. Be gracious in your speech. The goal is to bring out the best in others in a conversation, not put them down, not cut them out.” Col 4:2-6

This is Paul’s instruction to a church.
He wrote this while in prison. This doesn’t mean that he was sat on a bunk wistfully penning these words in peaceful solitude. He was probably in a damp, cold stone walled cell. In all likelihood he had no bed at all and was tied with heavy chains to the wall! In the background… well, it may not have even been in the background, perhaps his ears were filled constantly with the sound of desperate people on the edge of sanity pleading for their to be saved.
It would not be my idea of a contemplative environment!

And yet from here Paul uses valuable space on a page to ask them to pray, not for his freedom (as you or I might, along with the rest of Paul’s cellmates) but for the freedom of the Gospel while he was there!
This is a level of fusion that I am nowhere near.
I find myself in situations that frustrate me and all of a sudden my prayer life is solely occupied, seeking deliverance from it. Hallelujah! But, from his example, that is not the focus that Paul would encourage. His attitude is that God is God. He knows our every heartbeat, and he certainly knows our every circumstance. If He thought a particular situation would not further His Kingdom or would harm our faith, He would removed us from it (Paul knew this all too well). Therefore, if Paul found himself in a prison cell, his removal from it at the right time was in safe hands; there was no need for him to take up the case as well. Instead, he encourages us to focus on sharing life where we are with whoever is near us. He wanted the freedom for the Gospel far more than his own freedom!
Do I hear an ‘Amen’? I would struggle.
So my prayer is, ‘Lord, help me to be a servant of your Gospel today. Remove my attention from my ever-present frustrations that I may focus on your Gospel and sharing it through my living, breathing and speaking. Amen.’