2026_04_12 God's Armor: Prayer

Here's our challenge. 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. Satan and his minions are out there seeking to deceive us in order to destroy us, our lives, our families, our kids, our communities. But, God has provided two great resources to meet this challenge. First, God has provided his full armor to protect us. Therefore, put on the full armor of God so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground. [00:59:30] (43 seconds)  #ArmorOfGodStandFirm

God is sovereign. He rules over all. And his master plan for the world will indeed come to pass by his mighty power. But whether his specific will, in our specific circumstances, come to pass is dependent upon us depending on him. His will in our lives, our families, our communities will be accomplished only as we ask, as we pray in expectant faith, as we depend upon his grace moment by moment, to bring about the fullness of God's will in our lives. [00:50:09] (87 seconds)  #PrayExpectantly

Prayer is essential for God's will to be accomplished. Now, that goes against some people's theology. Some falsely believe that what God wants will always be accomplished no matter what. And that's a tragic misunderstanding of the sovereignty of God. God is sovereign. But he has willed to work through us, his people on earth. because we don't think it's important. The bible clearly teaches that the lord does not desire evil, yet evil is all around us on every side. He doesn't want us to sin, yet we sin. He desires us to love our neighbors as ourselves, yet we don't. [00:48:58] (72 seconds)  #GodWorksThroughUs

Saturated in the spirit. Like a dry sponge. We we've been plunged into the water, but we just we keep that crusty shell. We need to release that shell. Let go. And just let the spirit soak us until we're saturated. Spirit filled prayers are guided and prompted by the spirit. Paul tells us in Romans eight twenty six and twenty seven that the indwelling spirit intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express and enables us to pray in accordance with God's will. [00:40:03] (35 seconds)  #SaturatedInSpirit

Now, obviously, we can't be continually speaking prayers aloud to God. And Paul knew this. What he was commanding is that we walk in a continual awareness of God's presence so that every action and word is done unto the Lord. The believer's entire life is to be one grand prayer to God. Every act, word, or thought is offered as a prayer to the Lord. We repeatedly remember him and repeatedly speak to him That's radical. Let it be, Lord. Let it be true in my life. [00:42:25] (57 seconds)  #LifeAsPrayer

And father, way back at the beginning of humankind, You made this promise that we would crush the serpent's head. And so, Lord, let us rise up in faith and confidence knowing that indeed greater are you that is in us than he that is in the world. Let us ask in faith, inspired by your spirit, walking daily by your spirit, praying, beginning our days in prayer, and letting our our full days be lived as a prayer to you. Always aware of your presence. Always depending on your grace. Well, I see how far I have to go, and I wanna be a holy man. [01:01:14] (49 seconds)  #GreaterInUs

Prayer is so central to the believer's life that Paul tells us we're we're supposed to pray all the time about everything. Paul uses the word all four times in this one verse. 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 Lord's people. The great scholar John Scott wrote John John Scott wrote, most Christians pray sometimes with some prayers and some degree of perseverance for some of God's people. [00:41:16] (42 seconds)  #PrayAlways

Putting on the armor isn't simply a mental checklist that we go through at the start of the day. Rather, it's a lifestyle. A lifestyle of learning to walk in integrity, of seeking to live out the life of Christ, of embracing the peace that we have with God and others, of daily trusting in God and his promises, of standing firm in our salvation, of learning to speak forth god's word with authority to push back Satan. All of these require the empowerment of the holy spirit that's released in our lives as we pray. [00:38:19] (40 seconds)  #ArmorLifestyle