Praying at All Times
“In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication…” Ephesians 6:16-18
Prayer is often one of the first things our parents or Bible class teachers teach us about when discussing how to behave as a Christian. It’s one of the first things we are taught to practice as we thank God for our food together as a family or we go around the table in Bible class and pray for whatever was on our childlike minds that day.
But what is prayer? Have you ever really stepped back to think about it? Simply put, prayer is conversing with God. The dictionary defines prayer as "an address (such as a petition) to God in word or thought.” Let the enormity of that sink in - it is conversing with our God, the Creator of the Universe. What an enormous privilege that I think we so often take for granted because it’s something we’ve likely been doing since we were children.
So why is prayer mentioned in the verses about the Armor of God? I believe it is because our prayer life is actually a part of our armor. It helps keep us strong in the Lord. You can’t expect to have a relationship with someone if you never speak to them. The same can be said of our prayer life.
Note how every piece of armor begins with an action verb.
“Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication.” Ephesians 6:13-18
Prayer is an action we are to take. We are told often in the Bible how prayer and our prayer life is a mark of a Christian.
“Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving” (Colossians 4:2).
“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).
Let’s look at a few of the examples of prayers from the Bible, and what they show us:
Hannah’s prayer for a child. It says in 1 Samuel 1:10,15 that Hannah poured out her soul before the Lord. That feeling is something I would venture to guess we have all felt at some point in our lives - when you wanted something so badly that you poured out your soul to God.
Mary’s prayer after finding out she was pregnant. Mary had just learned something that was likely terrifying (being an unwed pregnant girl), but yet, we see one of the most beautiful prayers to the Lord thanking Him for looking upon her in Luke 1:46-55.
Esther asks for prayers before approaching the King. She recognized she needed others praying for her, so she asked the entire city to pray on her behalf (Esther 4:15-16).
Hagar’s prayer of desperation. Hagar weeps and prays out to God when she is sent into the wilderness and knows that likely means death for her and her son, and God heard her and called down from Heaven (Genesis 21:15-19).
Jesus’s prayer in the garden. Before going through what He knew would be the most difficult thing He could ever face, He asked God for help - and God sent an angel to strengthen Him (Luke 22:43).
Solomon’s prayer for wisdom. When Solomon becomes king, he knows how much he needs wisdom to lead well, and that wisdom is God’s to give (1 Kings 3:7-9).
David’s prayer for forgiveness. Many of David’s prayers for forgiveness of his most well-known sin are recorded throughout the Psalms, but my personal favorite is Psalms 51 where he is pleading for God to create in him a clean heart and renew a steadfast spirit within him.
Jonah’s prayer for deliverance. Jonah was literally praying from the depths of despair, and God still heard him (Jonah 2:1-9).
These are just a few examples of prayer that can be found in the Bible, but I think it quickly gets the point across. That we are to pray at ALL times - no matter what we are facing or going through. God wants to hear about it. He wants us to remember to involve Him in our lives, and He wants us to go to Him for help and guidance.
I will end with one of my favorite quotes by C.S. Lewis.
“I pray because I'm helpless. I pray because the need flows out of me all the time, waking and sleeping. It doesn't change God. It changes me.”