In November 2026, I am reading the Letter to the Ephesians together with my Explore group at ICF Munich. During our 30-day Bible Challenge month, we have decided to read a short passage every day and talk about it together.

To help us understand the texts better and discuss them, I would like to publish a few accompanying blog articles.

On the one hand, I will present the Letter to the Ephesians chapter by chapter in my series “The Bible – A Picture Story in 6 Languages”. In this series, I explain every Bible verse in simple words and gradually add suitable pictures.

On the other hand, I would like to listen to various devotionals about the Letter to the Ephesians, summarize them and share my thoughts. Sometimes the Bible is not easy to understand. The many names, places and historical connections can be particularly confusing.

That is why I want to explain the most important information in the simplest language possible. This way, people who are just beginning to read the Bible can also follow along more easily.

At the end of this introduction, you will also find a prayer from my series “Prayers for Relaxation”. It is intended to help us become calm, open our hearts to God’s Word and prepare ourselves for our shared journey through the Letter to the Ephesians.

Audio is being produced and put here after.

Introduction to the Letter to the Ephesians – “Through the Bible” Devotional

This summary is based on the introduction to the Letter to the Ephesians from the German radio series “Durch die Bibel” (“Through the Bible”) with Uwe Wojczak. I have summarized the content I have listened to so far in my own simple words.

Prayers for Relaxation

In my series “Prayers for Relaxation”, I combine Christian prayers with moments of peace and reflection. These prayers are intended to help you leave everyday life behind for a while, calm your thoughts and focus on God’s presence. They are about trust, gratitude, hope, inner peace and experiencing God’s love in your own life.

The Bible – A Picture Story in 6 Languages

In my series “The Bible – A Picture Story in 6 Languages”, I retell the Bible chapter by chapter in easy-to-understand language. Each verse is paraphrased, briefly explained and gradually illustrated with a suitable picture. At the end of each chapter, I summarize what we can learn from it for our own lives. The articles are published in German, English, French, Spanish, Italian and Russian. The Letter to the Ephesians is also currently being published in this series.

Read Both Series for Free in My PolyglotMona App

You can easily find both series through my free web app. Open https://polyglotmona.com/en/app-2/ and scroll down the home page to the “Faith” section. There you will find both “The Bible – A Picture Story in 6 Languages” and “Prayers for Relaxation”. All articles in these two series are available free of charge. You do not need a subscription or a password and can start reading immediately.

The Bible – A Picture Story in 6 Languages – Ephesians 1

Paul Writes Letters from Prison

Paul was a man who told people about Jesus.

He travelled through many cities and founded Christian communities.

About 2,000 years ago, he was imprisoned several times. He probably wrote some of his letters around AD 62 while he was imprisoned in Rome.

Back then, there were no telephones, no emails and no internet. If Paul wanted to tell other Christians something, he had to write a letter.

Other people then delivered these letters to their recipients.

Four letters are traditionally known as the Prison Epistles: Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians and Philemon.

Today, they are part of the New Testament.

What Are These Four Letters About?

Each of these letters deals with a particular aspect of the Christian faith.

The Letter to the Ephesians is mainly about the Christian community. Paul explains that all believers belong together and that Jesus Christ is their common head.

The Letter to the Colossians focuses especially on Jesus Christ himself. Paul explains how important Jesus is for the Christian community and for all creation.

The Letter to the Philippians is about how we can live as Christians. Paul shows that through our faith in Jesus, we can find strength, hope and joy.

The Letter to Philemon is about a particular man named Onesimus. He was a slave who had run away from his master, Philemon. Paul asks Philemon to welcome Onesimus with love.

In this way, Paul shows that the Christian faith should not consist only of words. It should also change the way we treat other people.

What Is Special About the Letter to the Ephesians?

The Letter to the Ephesians has six chapters.

It explains what a Christian community really is.

A Christian community is not simply a church building.

The Christian community consists of people who believe in Jesus Christ.

Paul compares this community to a human body.

Jesus is the head. Together, the believers form the body.

Just as the different parts of the body work together, Christians should also be there for one another.

Every person is important. Everyone can contribute something. Nobody has to do everything alone.

Paul also uses another image: the Christian community is like a house that God is building.

But this house is not made of ordinary stones. It consists of people in whom the Holy Spirit is at work.

The Letter to the Ephesians also explains that through Jesus, we can belong to God’s family.

We should love one another, forgive one another and stay united.

We can ask God for help, especially when we are facing difficulties or do not know what to do.

How Did Paul Come to Ephesus?

Paul travelled a lot to tell people about Jesus.

He also wanted to visit the city of Ephesus.

Ephesus was located in what is now Turkey.

However, Paul did not go there at first. The Book of Acts tells us that the Holy Spirit prevented him and his companions from preaching in that region.

The Bible does not explain why this happened.

So Paul travelled to other cities first.

Later, he finally came to Ephesus.

The speaker of the devotional understands this story in the following way: God has his own timing. Sometimes we have to wait or take a different path before a new opportunity opens up.

What Was the City of Ephesus Like Back Then?

Ephesus was a large and wealthy city.

At that time, it was located directly by the sea and had an important harbour.

Many people came there to trade.

People from different countries and cultures met in this city.

Ephesus was also home to a huge temple dedicated to the goddess Artemis, who was called Diana by the Romans.

Many people worshipped this goddess. Her temple was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

People bought small figures and souvenirs of the temple.

Merchants and craftsmen earned a lot of money from selling these objects.

Today, only ruins remain of this once-important city. The former harbour has long since filled with silt.

Paul Tells People About Jesus

When Paul came to Ephesus, he first went to the synagogue.

A synagogue is a Jewish meeting place where people gather to pray and read the Holy Scriptures.

Paul spoke to the people there about his faith.

Later, he taught every day in a building known as the school of Tyrannus.

For two years, he explained the message of Jesus Christ to the people there.

More and more people heard about it.

The Christian faith also spread to other cities in the surrounding region.

Why Did Paul Get Into Trouble?

Not everyone was happy about his message.

Some merchants earned a lot of money by selling objects used to worship the goddess Artemis.

As more and more people turned to the Christian faith, these merchants became afraid of losing their income.

A major riot broke out in Ephesus.

So Paul experienced not only success but also opposition.

Nevertheless, he continued his work.

He wanted as many people as possible to hear about Jesus.

Why Was the Christian Community in Ephesus So Important?

Paul spent a lot of time with the Christians in Ephesus.

He explained the Christian faith to them in detail and helped them build a community.

Many people became Christians.

Paul developed a close relationship with this community.

The Book of Acts even describes a very emotional farewell between Paul and the leaders of the community.

The speaker of the devotional believes that Ephesus may have been one of the most important Christian communities of that time.

Because Paul had taught the people there so thoroughly, they were also able to explore difficult questions about their faith.

That is why the Letter to the Ephesians contains many profound thoughts about God, Jesus Christ and the Christian community.

What Can We Learn from This Introduction?

We do not need to know all the names of the cities or understand every historical detail to read the Letter to the Ephesians.

At first, it is much more important to understand its central message.

God wants us to belong to him and live in his love.

He does not want us to live out our faith completely alone.

We can be part of a community where we support one another and pray for one another.

We will not always understand everything immediately.

Paul also faced difficulties. Things did not always go the way he had planned.

Nevertheless, he held on to his faith.

We, too, can trust that God is with us and helps us find our way.

Prayer for Relaxation – Walking Through Ephesians with God’s Love

Dear Heavenly Father,

I come to you now.

For a moment, I want to put aside everything that is on my mind.

My tasks, my worries, my many thoughts.

Right now, I can simply be here.

In your presence.

I breathe in gently.

And slowly breathe out again.

With every breath, I want to become a little calmer.

Thank you, Father, for loving me.

Thank you that I do not have to achieve anything special to be allowed to come to you.

Thank you that I can read your Word and get to know you better and better.

Today, a special journey through the Letter to the Ephesians begins for us.

Over the coming days, we will read together, reflect, ask questions and talk about our faith.

Please bless this journey that we are taking together.

Bless every single person in our group.

You know our thoughts.

You know our hopes.

You know our worries and our personal challenges.

You also know what each of us needs most right now.

Give us open hearts.

Give us patience when we do not understand something straight away.

Give us the courage to ask questions.

And give us joy in discovering your Word.

Holy Spirit,

please guide us as we read.

Help us not only to read the words with our eyes and understand them with our minds.

Let them also reach our hearts.

Help us take your Word deeply into ourselves.

Show us what these words mean for our own lives.

Help us recognize how great God’s love for us is.

Let this love grow within us.

Fill our thoughts with peace.

Fill our hearts with hope.

And fill our lives with your love.

Jesus Christ,

you are the head of your Church.

You bring us together.

Help us treat one another with patience and understanding.

Let us care for one another.

Let us encourage one another.

Let us be there for one another when someone needs help.

And let us grow together.

Not only in knowledge.

But also in faith, trust and love.

Father, I place this November into your hands.

Bless our Bible Challenge together.

Bless our conversations.

Bless the time each of us spends with your Word.

And at the end of this month, may we not simply know more about you.

May we have come closer to you.

May we have understood your love more deeply.

And may we share this love with other people.

Thank you for accompanying us on this journey.

Thank you that we can belong to you.

Thank you that your love carries us.

In Jesus’ name.

Amen.

A Final Thought

Perhaps we will not understand everything Paul wants to explain in the Letter to the Ephesians the first time we read it.

That is okay.

We can read the Bible slowly.

We can ask questions.

We can spend a long time thinking about just one sentence.

And we can discover again and again what God’s Word means for our own lives.

It is not about getting through the Bible as quickly as possible. It is about getting to know God better and better along the way and allowing his love to become part of our lives.

---