Foxhole Praying

Foxhole Praying Ephesians 6:16-17 Review/Preview • Our final call to arms: Stand Fast in God’s Power through Prayer. • So far, we’ve covered our command and God’s armor, which has 6 specific pieces. • Now, we move forward to Paul’s focus on prayer • Four Watchwords: Militant, Personal, Perpetual, and Manifold. Militant • The words “praying” and “keep alert” are the same verb form – a present participle. • Participles modify main verbs, in this case, we have two choices: “Stand” from verse 14 and “Receive” in verse 17. In my opinion, these participles modify both – they’re the chief means by which we get our ability to stand in the evil day and to receive God’s armor. • The standing man is a praying man. The well-armored woman is a praying woman. Personal • The participles we previous discussed (praying and keeping alert) emphasize the individual’s role – praying yourselves and keeping alert yourselves. • Paul does not say “let us,” but rather, “you all yourselves receive the sword praying yourselves and keeping yourselves alert.” • We cannot coast off the prayer life of another or rely solely on corporate prayer but must devote ourselves individually to it. Perpetual • The most striking feature of verse 18 is the four categorical statements: all times, all prayer, all perseverance; all the saints. • The present participles imply ongoing, perpetual prayer. • By using the verb “keeping alert,” Paul is almost certainly using Christ’s admonition to watch for nobody knows the hour of ultimate judgement (Matthew 24:36; Mark 13:32; Manifold • Paul emphasizes a prayer variety: prayer, supplication, keeping alert, vigilance, prayer for the saints. • Types of Biblical Prayer 1. Praise – Psalm 32, 95, 100 2. Personal Confession – Psalm 51 3. National Confession – Nehemiah 1 4. Reasoning with the Almighty – Genesis 18:23-25 5. Imprecatory Prayer – Genesis 69, 109 6. Complaints – Psalm 102, 142 7. Bare Personal Assessment – Psalm 42; Daniel 9:18 8. Missions – Psalm 67:4; Matthew 9:38 9. Personal Needs – Luke 11:1-12 Applications • On a church-wide level, we are going to make a pretty firm application for 2023 – Prayer built into our devotional guide • On a personal level: 1. What not to do – allow past failures discourage the present; think inside the box; go for too much 2. What to do – define prayer more correctly (as a conversation rather than a monologue); approach God as you would want your child to approach you – respectful, but familiar; as you engage God in prayer, envision the scenes God describes and revel in the privilege of it.