Sometimes, I like to think of Christians as God's prayer army on earth.
An army protects the people and invades enemy territory.
In the same sense, Christian prayer warriors call on God to advance his kingdom by bringing people to faith in Christ. And they battle to fight off Satan's attempts to afflict and destroy believers and the church.
Christ commissioned us to preach the good news and make disciples of people in all nations (Matthew 28:18-20). That is advancing God's kingdom in enemy territory. Prayer plays a major role in that effort.
As well, the apostle John tells us in 1 John 3:8 that "the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil". Satan was defeated when Jesus died for our sins on the cross and rose again. But the devil remains active and works to undermine Christians physically and spiritually.
Here, prayer is vital in protecting believers, bringing healing from physical and spiritual wounds, and denying Satan a foothold in our lives.
The apostle Paul makes clear in Ephesians 6 that our real enemies as believers are unseen dark powers under the authority of Satan (Ephesians 6:12). He urges us to put on spiritual armour such as the Word of God and to "pray in the Spirit at all times and in every occasion" to fight demonic attacks.
While Jesus was on earth, he cast out demons, healed people, and preached the gospel. He spent long hours in prayer before going out among the crowds to speak and bring healing.
In my eyes, the commander of this prayer army is God. He sets out the plan of attack and defence and assigns us as his soldiers to our specific tasks.
Our duty as individual warriors is to listen to God and follow his directions. Some may be called to leadership roles, identifying targets given them by the Lord and leading groups in prayer to achieve those ends.
All armies need trained soldiers. So, some prayer warriors can be tasked to train others in the great calling of prayer.
And every believer must remember that battles are won when warriors look out for each other. When we see fellow believers are suffering, we must come to their aid - in prayer and in other ways.
This picture of an army of God helps me visualize the much bigger picture of God's eternal plan.
I may be just one person in one city. But I am part of a great army of believing prayer warriors around the world, praying that God's will will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Satan cannot stop God's children if we take up our prayer assignments - and pray.
An army protects the people and invades enemy territory.
In the same sense, Christian prayer warriors call on God to advance his kingdom by bringing people to faith in Christ. And they battle to fight off Satan's attempts to afflict and destroy believers and the church.
Christ commissioned us to preach the good news and make disciples of people in all nations (Matthew 28:18-20). That is advancing God's kingdom in enemy territory. Prayer plays a major role in that effort.
As well, the apostle John tells us in 1 John 3:8 that "the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil". Satan was defeated when Jesus died for our sins on the cross and rose again. But the devil remains active and works to undermine Christians physically and spiritually.
Here, prayer is vital in protecting believers, bringing healing from physical and spiritual wounds, and denying Satan a foothold in our lives.
The apostle Paul makes clear in Ephesians 6 that our real enemies as believers are unseen dark powers under the authority of Satan (Ephesians 6:12). He urges us to put on spiritual armour such as the Word of God and to "pray in the Spirit at all times and in every occasion" to fight demonic attacks.
While Jesus was on earth, he cast out demons, healed people, and preached the gospel. He spent long hours in prayer before going out among the crowds to speak and bring healing.
In my eyes, the commander of this prayer army is God. He sets out the plan of attack and defence and assigns us as his soldiers to our specific tasks.
Our duty as individual warriors is to listen to God and follow his directions. Some may be called to leadership roles, identifying targets given them by the Lord and leading groups in prayer to achieve those ends.
All armies need trained soldiers. So, some prayer warriors can be tasked to train others in the great calling of prayer.
And every believer must remember that battles are won when warriors look out for each other. When we see fellow believers are suffering, we must come to their aid - in prayer and in other ways.
This picture of an army of God helps me visualize the much bigger picture of God's eternal plan.
I may be just one person in one city. But I am part of a great army of believing prayer warriors around the world, praying that God's will will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Satan cannot stop God's children if we take up our prayer assignments - and pray.
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