Thursday September 14th, 2023
« Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere »
10 Finally, build up your strength in union with the Lord and by means of his mighty power.
11 Put on all the armor that God gives you, so that you will be able to stand up against the Devil’s evil tricks.
12 For we are not fighting against human beings but against the wicked spiritual forces in the heavenly world, the rulers, authorities, and cosmic powers of this dark age.
13 So put on God’s armor now! Then when the evil day comes, you will be able to resist the enemy’s attacks; and after fighting to the end, you will still hold your ground.
14 So stand ready, with truth as a belt tight around your waist, with righteousness as your breastplate,
15 and as your shoes the readiness to announce the Good News of peace.
16 At all times carry faith as a shield; for with it you will be able to put out all the burning arrows shot by the Evil One.
17 And accept salvation as a helmet, and the word of God as the sword which the Spirit gives you.
18 Do all this in prayer, asking for God’s help. Pray on every occasion, as the Spirit leads. For this reason keep alert and never give up; pray always for all God’s people.
Understand
There was no war when Abraham was training his servants to fight, but the day came when he needed to rescue his nephew.
By then, he had 318 soldiers to take to war.
If you study the story of Abraham, you will realize that he never had to fight another war afterwards, but that one time that he fought was worth all the preparation he had gone through (Genesis 14:14-16).
David also didn’t start learning to use his sling on the day he slew Goliath.
He had perfected its use long before that.
He had been practicing how to use the sling long before he ever set eyes on the giant.
You never can tell when you would need to fight; on that day, your victory will depend on whether or not you had been preparing.
Ephesians 6:13 CEV says
« So put on all the armor that God gives. Then when that evil day comes, you will be able to defend yourself. And when the battle is over, you will still be standing firm »
You are to put on the whole armor of God so that you are able to stand in the evil day; be ready ahead of time.
The perfect time to prepare for war is when all is going well.
That is the only time that you have to prepare anyway, after all, you can’t start at the war front.
Is it at the war front that you would start learning to shoot a gun?
Is it when a boxer is in the ring with his opponent that he would start practicing jabs and hooks?
Read your Bible and memorize Scriptures now so that when you need to confront the devil tomorrow, you can say, “It is written” like Jesus did in Matthew 4:1-11.
Pray hard now, so that if trouble were to arise tomorrow, you can easily decree and the storm would cease.
Some people wonder why we keep fasting again and again, particularly when all seems to be going well.
I remember some years ago when I asked the people to fast for 100 days. Not long after that, a crisis broke out. I told my people, “Relax, no harm will come near you because you have already prepared; you’ve paid the price ahead of time”. Those who didn’t join us in our fast were eventually forced to still do so because there was fear all around.
Application: Make sure that you are spiritually fit now so that you will not be defeated by the devil in future.
Author: Bishop Enoch. A. Adeboye.
Edited by Naomie
Freely you received, freely you must give (Math 10:8) , kindly share this devotion, and the Lord will bless you for it .
Spread the love of Christ by clicking on the ♥
