When I was a new believer, prayer, fasting and a consistent habit of studying the Word of God were carefully woven into my spiritual foundation. I learned to pray. My church had experienced a sudden harvest of believers between the ages of 18 and 25, and the church leaders had their hands full trying to disciple young people who were added weekly in large numbers for six months. The leaders understood the power and importance of prayer; they knew this was the key not only to retaining the harvest but also to seeing a generation take its place in the Body of Christ. One of their primary objectives was to ensure that the new believers would fulfill their God-given destinies, chosen for each of them in his or her mother’s womb.
In these early days of my faith, it was my custom to spend long periods of time on my knees in prayer before God. I was unemployed and unmarried, and I had the privilege of having the freedom to set aside long blocks of time for prayer and reading the Word of God. Our church regularly engaged in corporate fasting and prayer at least one weekend per month. This was in addition to our weekly Tuesday and Friday fast days. Regular attendance at church meetings was encouraged, which, for the first two years of my Christian life, meant seven days a week and twice on Sundays. (This schedule changed after those two years.) Systematic teaching from the Word of God, prayer and deliverance were a consistent part of these gatherings. Our instruction in the dynamics of victorious Christian living was to be marked by prayer and fasting.
To help us transition into Kingdom living, we attended meetings called shut-ins. These were intense times of prayer beginning on Friday evening and ending on Sunday morning at 6:00 a.m. As the term shut-in suggests, everyone remained at the church during that time, taking only short breaks to freshen up. We also observed a water fast. Sleeping was not part of the agenda (although we were known to take brief naps). We came in on Friday evening and did not leave until early Sunday morning; afterward we left for home to prepare for the Sunday morning worship gathering. These times of fervent prayer marked me in a way that continues today. We experienced the power of God in remarkable ways; healings and baptisms in the Holy Spirit were common during these gatherings.
As a new believer who was learning how to pray, I noticed one thing that stood out about these times of prayer. People in the church would often close their prayers with the statement, “If it is God’s will, I will receive what I have asked the Lord for.” It seemed that even though they were praying in the name of Jesus, they questioned whether their prayers were legitimate requests. Is it possible that their requests were in God’s will, yet they would not receive a response? How do we reconcile delayed responses with prayers that we know are in God’s will?
As young believers, we were taught that God responds to prayers in three ways: yes, no and not yet. Delayed responses were then perceived as God either saying, “No” or “Not yet.” While I agree that these are possible explanations for delayed responses to prayers, I would like to propose another reason: Could it be that delayed responses to our prayers are the result of hindrances sent against our prayers by the kingdom of darkness? Could it be that many prayer requests are granted by God, and hell delays the response? I know for some of you this is quite a challenging premise. If we believe, however, that we have an adversary who goes about as a roaring lion, we must believe that a key strategy of this adversary is to hinder our prayers. When our prayers are unanswered, hell tries to influence our thought processes and move us from faith to doubt by whispering, “Has God really said?” or “God answers the prayers of everyone else, but He does not answer yours.” It is at this moment that discouragement can set in and convince us to stop praying and believe that God does not respond to our prayers.
The Word of God commands us to pray without ceasing. Prayer is when we commune with God. Through prayer we also petition God for our needs or other requests. Scripture encourages us to ask our heavenly Father for the things we need: “Ask and keep on asking and it will be given to you; seek and keep on seeking and you will find; knock and keep on knocking and the door will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7 AMP).
This Scripture provides some insights concerning prayer. The instruction is to ask and keep on asking, seek and keep on seeking, knock and keep on knocking. This implies an attitude of persistence. One of the most important disciplines believers must develop is the discipline of prayer. Prayerlessness does not lead you to the place of victory. Prayerlessness leads to defeat. It does not strengthen you as an overcomer in Christ. It results in being overcome as you battle the enemy of your soul. When we know that our requests are in God’s will, unanswered prayers are not satisfactory. Since we are encouraged not only to ask but to seek and knock in prayer, should we not then expect responses to our prayers?
APPLICATION
One of the most important disciplines believers must develop is the discipline of prayer.
Communing with God in prayer is a characteristic of a healthy Christian life. It is most frequently referred to as devotional prayer. During devotional prayer, we learn to hear the voice of God. Incredible worship arises in us as God reveals His character and nature. Great strength is imparted as we commune with God. Although devotional prayer is an essential aspect of the believer’s life, it is not the subject of this book. In these pages we will discover hidden truths concerning a dimension of prayer most often referred to as warfare prayer.
Many believers approach prayer from a passive position, thinking they need not do anything other than to ask once and wait. But we must keep on asking, keep on seeking, and keep on knocking. This book is intended to be a guide for engagement in strong, militant prayer that will help you to partner with heaven to see more of your prayers answered. As you read, you will discover how to pray more effectively and move your life forward. We have been called to rule on earth. This means that we walk in dominion and exercise Kingdom rulership:
And God blessed them, and God said unto them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.”
Genesis 1:28
Warfare prayer is praying in the midst of our spiritual battles. Christians have an enemy in Satan and his demons (see Ephesians 6:12), and prayer is commanded in the context of putting on the armor of God (see verse 18). Warfare prayer does not mean praying harder, praying more decisively or assuming authority we do not have. It means praying according to Scripture, trusting in the power of God and submitting our will to His. Warfare prayer is using the spiritual weapons of faith to overturn unrighteous edicts that have been written against us by the powers of darkness. “We live in this world, but we don’t fight our battles in the same way the world does. The weapons we use are not human ones. Our weapons have power from God and can destroy the enemy’s strong places” (2 Corinthians 10:3–4 ERV).
God has given spiritual weapons to believers to war against the kingdom of darkness. Not only that, we do not fight alone. All of the resources of heaven are available to us to ensure our victory as we war in faith, trusting in the finished work of Christ. Our weapons are not human in nature; our weapons are supernatural. God gives us supernatural ability to overthrow the powers of darkness that are hindering our prayers. The might of heaven is released on our behalf when we pray in faith. Ministering angels are assigned to each of us, the heirs of salvation. Think about this for a moment. When you pray, angelic forces are released on your behalf! “And concerning the angels He says, ‘Who makes His angels winds, and His ministering servants flames of fire [to do His bidding]’” (Hebrews 1:7 AMP).
God does not stand back and leave you to engage the spiritual realm alone. He has armed you with every weapon you need to overcome the powers of darkness. He sends His angelic forces to war alongside you on your behalf. You have the power of His Word and the finished work of Christ in your arsenal. When you use these powerful weapons, the enemy must bow. Any demonic force holding your goods, which are your inheritance, must let go.
We are commanded to pray in faith and not waver or doubt. Could there be a dimension of prayer that Christians have overlooked or neglected? Could it be that there are hindrances to prayer that must be overcome? Is it possible for the kingdom of darkness to hinder responses to our prayers? We must learn how to become consistent in prayer, to continue asking until our prayers are answered. Far too many believers fail to receive a response to their prayers and settle for less than what God has planned for their lives. The reality is that effective prayer works. Dr. C. Peter Wagner wrote,
Not all prayer works, but effective prayer does. Powerful prayer works. . . . Not all prayer is equal. Just as some prayer is effective, so some is ineffective, and some is in between. Just as some prayer is powerful, so, unfortunately, some is equally impotent.1
This book will provide principles to help you and others become more effective in praying and experiencing answers to your prayers. As you experience answers to prayers, you become more encouraged to pray. Not receiving answers to your prayers is much like having a phone conversation with someone in which you are the only person engaged in the conversation, or in which the other person makes promises that are not fulfilled. That is not who God is. He is faithful and true. God told Jeremiah, “I will hasten My word to perform it” (Jeremiah 1:12). If indeed Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever (see Hebrews 13:8), then we can no longer settle for not receiving answers to our prayers. I encourage you to meditate on the truths set forth in this book and allow Holy Spirit to illuminate revelation to help you to rise and engage heaven in a way that you see more answers to your prayers.