Warfare Prayer

So how long do you pray? Well, you can pray until there is a breakthrough. That is always good. Or you can pray until you have an answer. Or maybe God doesn't give you the answer that you want. Maybe you just pray until God gives you His peace inside. Or maybe the burden that He has placed within you begins to fade. You just keep praying until it is time to stop. And if you pray in the Spirit, God will tell you how to pray, when to pray, and what not to pray for. You just pray in the Spirit and God will show you these things.

We need to understand that prayer is the weapon of God. It is the weapon of God and we can not underestimate its power. It's piercing the heavens, it's dispatching angels. It changes things and changes lives. And we don't give it much time in our life. It should have a higher priority, the highest priority in our lives. When you are sitting there in your little prayer closet and you think, "I don't feel a thing, I don't see a thing, I don't sense a thing." And you may begin complaining, "I don't see anything going on." In those times, know for certain that God honors it when you have prayed. He will come through. He will do it. You are dispatching angels and things you don't even see are going on. But they are going on.

I want to tell you at this hour that the angels of God are busier than they have ever been. I mean they are on the move. The kingdom of darkness is rising up. Remember the Bible talks about how mad the devil is going to get? He has always been that way, he is just going to manifest it. We can not shrink back in fear. A lot you see going on in the natural is a good picture of what is going on in the spirit. That radical Islamic group is a type of Satan. What do they do? They prey on the innocent. Everybody is their enemy. They strike in places where you don't expect them to be. Those are the ways the devil works. He is just like that. Take out the innocent, take out the weak, take out the ones who don't see him coming. Take out those who are open to him. He finds the place of vulnerability and goes after it. And God wants you to see that you have a place in the battle. You have smart bombs, smart missiles, you have radar, because the Holy Spirit is there and nothing hides from the Spirit of God. He knows where everything is and we can pray effectively.

Not only should we pray that way as we pray for our nation and as we pray for our national leaders, but you can also pray that way when you pray for your family. You see the devil has those inroads into our family members. We have to know how to pray. We need to be saying, "Lord show us how to pray! Lord I want to get a smart bomb and I want to attack that stronghold the enemy has in the life of my son, daughter, aunt." We can pray that way and we can pray effectively that way. Prayer is a powerful, powerful weapon.

God wants to reach your city and the surrounding cities for His Kingdom. Don't underestimate the power that you have whenever you begin to speak the Kingdom of God and you bless. Even as you walk around your neighborhood and speak the blessing of God over every household. You may think, "What is this doing? Is this going anywhere?" I am telling you that angels are going everywhere. Legions, they get assigned. They converge on those houses.

Whenever you pray that way, God's angels are activated and His power is released. God wants to transform a city and He can do it. God wants to transform countries and He is doing it.

EXERCISE

Let's do a little exercise to help us "get on the band wagon" in prayer. In other words, let's actually stop to pray. Let's get in on this. Let's be people who pray. Let's just begin by praising and worshiping the Lord. Take a few minutes, turn on a worship CD or tape, and spend a few minutes just praising the Lord, entering into His presence and telling Him how awesome He is. He is an awesome God, isn't He? He deserves all of our praise and worship. So spend a few minutes drawing close to Him, honoring Him, worshipping Him. Think about all the awesome things God has done. How He delivered His people out of Egypt, how He came through for them again and again. Think of the things He has done for you personally. Review them with the Lord and thank Him for what He did for you. If you have trouble remembering what the Lord has done for you, invite the Holy Spirit to remind you. Think about God and why He deserves your worship and give Him that worship. (Do this for at least five or 10 minutes.)

Then begin by praying for yourself. Lift up your needs. Don't be shy, don't be timid. This is your weapon. Tell God what you need and what you would like Him to do for you. Tell Him about the things that are holding you back from walking in all that He has planned for you. Invite His lordship into your life. Tell Him what you need from Him and ask Him to meet you to take care of your needs.

Next, pray for your family. Claim them for the Kingdom. Intercede for them on their behalf. Angels are being dispatched. The heavens are opening up. Don't be shy when you pray for your family. They are your closest teammates. Some of them are not pulling their weight. You need to pray that they will. Claim them for the Kingdom if they are lost.

Now pray for those who live around you. God has called you to bring light to those around you. To be light into that neighborhood. Claim them now. God wants you to advance His Kingdom where you live. Include the people in your workplace or school. Claim all those around you.

Pray for the city in which you live. Pray for those who have responsibility in government. Pray for the churches that are in the city you live in. Don't hold back. We are piercing the heavens. The darkness is fleeing. Continue to pray for your city, begin to arm yourself up. Then pray for your state or province, pray for your governor or leader, for those involved in state legislatures. Claim any ungodly legislation that is trying to get through. Take it back. Warring angels are being released as we pray.

Pray for your nation. Pray for your leaders (In the USA this would include the president, vice president, Congress, etc. In the UK it would include the queen, members of Parliament, etc.). Lift your national leaders up. The need wisdom, they need God to divinely direct their steps so they will not turn from the right or to the left. They will be making decisions that will affect your life. Lift them up!

How long do you keep praying? Your burden is your guide.