Battle Ready

I started reading this book on prayer the other day, and one of the suggestions the author makes is to pray through the armor of God. If you aren't familiar with the armor metaphor, go to Ephesians 6 and start reading in verse 10. Paul is giving us a fabulous picture of what it looks like to be prepared for battle as a believer. This morning when I was rereading those verses I was struck by a thought. . .

Verse 12 says this:

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

We put on the armor of God not so that we can fight against flesh and blood (physical people in this world), but so that we can take a stand against Satan. Satan is the father of lies, and his greatest weapons are the lies that he uses to ensnare us and draw us away from God (Jn 8:44).

When we pray, we connect to God - who is Himself truth. We come face to face with all that is good and right and holy. Once we have prayed, it becomes more difficult to fall for Satan's lies. Once we begin living a life of connectedness to our Savior it becomes less appealing to live by the standards of the world.

And unfortunately, the opposite is true. When we are disconnected from Christ, when our prayers are nothing but laundry lists of requests or rote repetitions, or when we simply aren't praying at all, it becomes very easy to begin living out the standards of this world. In those moments, the honest truth is that the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms have won in our lives.

It is heartbreaking to see so many "Christians" living outside of the call of Christ. Sometimes I am shocked at how much sin is justified by people who claim to love and know God. But I shouldn't be surprised. I shouldn't wonder how this happens and why it is so easy for me to fall into the same snare.

Like I said yesterday, I think many of us struggle with prayer. We have a hard time being consistent in our communication with God. But I truly believe that if we want to succeed in this battle against the father of lies; if we will find any hope in pursuing Christ in this life; if we long for our lives to be more than words - living sacrifices offered to our Savior; well, we simply must pray.

We've got to figure out how to stay connected to God all the time. We have to understand what Paul means when he tells us to pray without ceasing. We have to take the time to understand prayer and find the motivation and inspiration to make it more than it often is.

If we don't, we will fall for the lies and live a life of spiritual lukewarmness. . . I don't know about you, but I want more.


Onward Christian soldiers. . .