The Doorpost: We must pray

… praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints…
Ephesians 6:18

For the past few weeks, we have been considering the battle we face as Christians. In Ephesians 6, God tells us that this battle is not physical, but spiritual. The enemies we face are not human, but are the rulers of darkness in the heavenly places.

God has provided us with several pieces of armor so we can fight this battle. Our belt is truth, our breastplate is righteousness, our footwear is the gospel of peace, our shield is faith, our helmet is salvation, and our sword is the Word of God.

All these things have been provided for us. Victory is possible. But there is something else we must do if we are to stand in the battle—we must pray.

The passage above makes it clear how all encompassing our prayers must be. This is not just prayer at mealtimes, at the beginning of the day or before we go to bed at night. This is not just prayer during a church service or a Bible study.

We need to pray at all times. We must pray with all kinds of prayers and requests. We must always keep on praying. We must pray for all the saints. All. Always. This is not a part-time effort. We aren’t fighting a part-time battle.

In Luke 4:13 we are told that after Jesus had resisted the enemy’s temptations, the devil left Him “until an opportune time.” Ephesians 6 tells us our alertness is related to our prayers. When we fail to pray, we are giving our enemy an “opportune time” in our own lives and in the lives of those we fail to pray for.