Do you ever feel powerless? Have you ever felt like you had no control of what's going on in your life and no way to fight back? I think we all have felt that way at some point. The good news is that God gives us weapons to fight against the enemy. When you feel powerless, go to the spiritual arsenal that God provides for us to equip us with His power! In Ephesians 6:10-18, the Bible lists out the Armor of God in great detail: the Sword of the Spirit, the Helmet of Salvation, and so forth. At the end of the parts of the armor, prayer is mentioned: Prayer Tip #22 - Prayer is a Powerful Weapon! "Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints-" - Ephesians 6:18 Along with the other parts of the armor of God, prayer is a weapon in itself! "Praying always" means that even though we have the other parts of the armor, we can't neglect prayer. This means that we are to have a lifestyle of communication with God. It's making talking with God part of your daily routine and lifestyle. Yes, we can stop and pray, but we can also pray throughout our day by offering up small, one-sentence prayer such as "Jesus, help me", or "God, be with my friend", "Lord, please protect my children." Talking to the Lord becomes a natural part of our life. "Being Watchful"- Since there is no armor for our backs, Prayer is a way that we are "watching our backs." Some situations in life call for an all-out battle, and that's when you get on your knees before God and really cry out to Him in prayer, waring in the spirit. You can also enlist others to pray with you. James 5:16 says that "...The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective." When you feel weak, you can be strong in God through prayer. The Apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians: "...when I am weak, then I am strong." Prayer is a way that we display our dependence upon Christ, and gain strength from Him. Prayerful Lives are Powerful Lives Prayerless Lives are Powerless Lives
Call a Friend - Take time to call a friend sometime this week to pray together over the phone. Prayer Points - (Pray over these requests)
Praise God for the spiritual weapons of the armor of God and prayer - weapons to equip us for victory!
Praise God that when you feel weak, you can be strong though Him.
Ask God to help you strengthen your prayer life and develop a lifestyle of communication with Him, by "praying always."
Ask God to protect, strengthen, and guide our entire church family.
Ask God give wisdom, understanding, and discernment to our Pastors, staff, and church leadership.
Ask God to meet the individual needs of every member and visitor of Mid-Way: emotional, spiritual, physical, financial, and personal.
SUGGESTED PRAYER - Dear God, I praise You for the Armor of God and prayer. Thank You for equipping me with spiritual weapons for success and victory in my life. I thank You that I can talk to You through prayer and that You empower me when I am weak in my own strength. God, I want to develop a lifestyle of communication with You. Help me to learn to "pray always" and make my prayers powerful and effective. Lord, I cover my entire church family in prayer - every member, child, visitor and new-comer. God, I ask You to meet every need they have: every spiritual need, physical need, financial need, emotional need and personal need. I know that every detail of our lives is important to You and that You care deeply for us. Jesus, I ask You to supernaturally protect us from the enemy of our souls. May every evil plan he has be thwarted by You, and may You, Jesus, take everything the enemy means for evil against us and turn it around for our good and Your glory! Bless our Pastors, leadership and congregation, today and always. In Jesus' Name, Amen.