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Day 25
Praying Against Satan
By Al Menconi
Have
you ever run into a Christian who can’t
seem to get victory over a sin in his
life? Even though they pray for strength,
they can’t seem to
overcome their problem. Why isn’t
God answering their prayers?
I’d like to share something that
completely changed my prayer life. I
started my ministry in the early ‘70s,
talking about bands with a reputation
for the occult like Led Zeppelin,
Black Sabbath, and Blue Oyster Cult. One
day while talking with an expert on demon
possession, I asked why we weren’t
being bothered by demons even though
we were so outspoken about its influence.
His response shocked me. “How
do you know we’re not?” Well,
I wasn’t rolling around on the
ground with foam coming out of my mouth,
so I didn’t see any evidence. Then
he asked a question that sent chills
up my spine. “Do your children
ever wake up screaming in the middle
of the night?”
How did he know that my daughters – who
were three and five at the time – had
been waking up screaming every
night of their lives? My wife
and I were actually suffering from sleep
deprivation, and it was having a negative
influence on our relationship. We just
figured it was part of being a parent.
We kept praying that they would sleep
and hoping that they would grow out of
it. My friend asked me if I had ever
prayed against Satan
in the name of Jesus. This was a new
concept to me, but I was willing to try
anything.
He showed me that if we resist Satan,
he would flee (1 Pet. 5:9). We have the
right to reject Satan because, as Christians,
we possess the same power that raised
Christ from the dead ( Rom. 6:4-9). Eph.
6:13 commands us to put on the whole
armor of God (truth, righteousness, faith,
the gospel of peace, the assurance of
our salvation, and the Word of God) so
we can resist the evil one. My friend
pointed out that the Greek for “Word” (rhema)
in that passage refers to the “spoken
Word,” whereas the “written
Word” of God is the Greek word logos.
The implication is we should SPEAK the
Word of God against Satan.
My wife and I had often prayed to God
for our daughters to sleep through the
night, but we had never resisted Satan
with an outspoken prayer. That night,
we prayed and verbally resisted Satan
in the name of Jesus, commanding him
to flee. That was the first night that
both my daughters slept through the night
in their whole little lives! And they’ve
had normal sleep patterns ever since.
Is there a problem in your life that
you just can’t seem to overcome?
Have you prayed about it, but it still
seems to hang on? Have you tried praying
against Satan? I’m not saying that
Christianity can be reduced to a simple
formula. Nor I am suggesting something
unbiblical. When Jesus was tempted by
Satan (Matt. 4:1-11), He addressed him
directly with Scripture. He didn’t
go to the Father first and simply ask
for strength. He addressed the problem:
Satan.
Can I suggest that every Christian
needs to examine their life for the kind
of sin that can become a foothold (a
place to hold on) for Satan? And if there
is, we must confess it and turn away
from it. But as we do this, we can also
verbally tell Satan that he has no right
to bother us, because we belong to the
One who shed His blood for us. Praying
in this manner has changed my life, and
it may change yours as well.
Reflection: Think
about the kind of communication you have
had with your family and friends. How
much time is spent talking? Praying?
Yelling? Saying nothing, but watching
TV or movies with them?
Response: Do a survey
for a couple of weeks and chart your
interactions with your family and friends.
How much time is spent in a) giving direction;
b) asking about their lives; c) yelling
and/or confrontation and d) prayer? If
you are a parent, do you pray for your
children in the morning or the evening
or both? Do you pray for your friends?
How often? Do you pray with them?
Do you know what they would
like prayer for? How can you re-order
your schedule to make praying for your
family and friends a higher priority?
Verse of the Day: 1 Thessalonians 5:17
"Pray continually." (NIV)
Always pray! Don’t stop! Most
Christians assume this is impossible.
But think about it: Would God give us
a command we couldn’t obey? Obviously
not! Paul must have meant something else
besides crawling around all day with
our hands folded in prayer.
One definition of prayer could be said
to conform our thoughts to be like God’s
thoughts. Where do we find His thoughts?
That’s right, in His Word. So to
repeat God’s Word back to Him is
a form of prayer.
What would happen if we took His words
and added a tune? We would get a popular
style of Christian music. If we then
sang God’s thoughts, principles,
and values continually it would help
us conform our thoughts to His. In other
words, we could be praying without ceasing.
Isn’t it exciting how useful Christian
music can be?
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