Daily Devotion: Pray Unceasingly

Scripture:
Ephesians 6: 10-20

Main Verse:
Ephesians 6: 18
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people.

Observation:
Is there really such a thing as the realm of good and evil? When we watch movies or read stories, the battle is always between the hero and the villain, the protagonist versus the antagonist, right versus wrong. The world acknowledges the presence of these two opposing forces. What does the Bible tell us?

Ephesians 6: 12 tells us that there is a spiritual battle "against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." From the time of Adam and Eve's fall to the present time, there is no denying that the enemy has been working extremely hard, even probably working overtime, to bring down humans, God's most precious creation. We are familiar with the fall of Adam and Eve, the fall of King David, and the fall of many men and women of God. It is for this very reason that Paul urged the Ephesian church to be on their guard and be alert at all times for the enemy is always looking for ways to hurt and corrupt the minds of men.

Application:
Why is it important for us to know about the existence and the schemes of Satan? It is because the Lord wants us to recognize the enemy's ploys. The Lord does not want us to fear him because the Spirit that is in us is greater than the one that is in this world (1 John 4:4). The Lord wants us to acknowledge that the enemy is there making his moves so we do not fall into his traps. Satan wants to hurt us because it is the only way he can hurt the Lord our Father. If we do not familiarize ourselves with his ways, we will easily stumble and fall into sin. That is why we are reminded to pray on ALL OCCASIONS, and that means we need to pray when we are presented with every opportunity to communicate with God. When we have a close connection with the Lord,  the enemy won't have any chance to enter our thoughts. Let us be alert, therefore, be always on the lookout, and pray unceasingly.

Prayer:
Father, forgive me for my shortcomings in my prayer life. I admit that there are times when I do not spend as much time communicating with you. May I always use every circumstance to be in your presence through prayer and meditation so the enemy may not enter my thoughts and hurt me. Thank you for your Holy Son Jesus. I can lead a victorious life because of Him! All praises to the mighty name of Jesus! AMEN.