Praying at all times in the Spirit with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel.

Ephesians 6:18-19

Over the past few days, I’ve been battling some pretty severe pain at times. Who would have thought that just stepping out of a Chevy Tahoe could create lower back pain? I’ve stretched and exercised and taken medication and I’ve prayed for healing.

Notice that Paul mentions the importance of prayer at the end of his list of the armor of God, but I think most of us would agree that prayer refers to the most powerful weapon in our arsenal, right?

For the follower of Christ, the armor of God prepares us for battle, but the real war is won on our knees in prayer. The commentary in my study Bibles reminds me that “prayer is to permeate believer’s lives as a universal practice, as seen by the use of “all” four times in verse 18: at all times…with all prayer…with all perseverance…for all the saints.

And notice that prayer begins “in the Spirit,” underscoring our continued dependence on God to win any fight. Paul’s words to the Romans are helpful to understand how the Spirit intercedes for our needs, even when we are at a loss for words.

“Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God” (Romans 8:26-27).

When facing a spiritual conflict or physical pain, our only certain hope is found in the supernatural intervention of God.

And so prayer shouldn’t be a last resort, we should bring out the big guns right from the start.