And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with
all kinds of prayers and requests.
With this in mind, be alert and always keep
on praying for all the saints. (Ephesians 6:18)
Usually, the discussion of the Armor of
God ends with the sword of the Spirit. No more pieces of armor or weaponry are
mentioned, but I don't think it's done. We are told to "pray in the
Spirit." The Word spoken to others is the sword. The Word spoken to God is
prayer. If the sword is "of the
Spirit," and we are praying "in the Spirit" then our prayers
should properly be as much the sword as any other expression of the Word.
Even if prayer is not seen as a part
of the armor of God, it is certainly a vital tool. Soldiers don't do battle alone. They are part of an
army. That army has a commander. Communication among the soldiers and with the
commander is vital to the life of the soldier and to the victory. Praying for
all the saints, seeking prayers on our behalf from all the saints, communicating
our needs to our Commander and receiving orders and aid from Him, this is all
part of doing battle.
There is an area of spiritual warfare
that seems appropriate the mention with regard to prayer. Often, when we think
of spiritual warfare, we think of battle with demonic forces, or with social
forces. The list of enemies is a little longer: "the world, the flesh and
the devil." One sort of prayer to
keep in mind is the "Your daughter" or "Your son" prayer.
Perhaps you've heard someone (even yourself) open the subject of a child's
misbehavior to his/her/your spouse with "your son," or "your
daughter." This is also the way you can begin discussions with God about
your own failures. In effect, you are tattling on yourself. It's helped me face
battles with myself more than once.
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Birthday of
Ronald Reagan
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