“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 5:12
Prayer should be marked with a warning label: THIS IS WAR. Too often prayer arrives on the scene of a crisis, carried as a throw pillow, tucked under the arm of frightened Christian. Those who approach prayer seeking comfort without conquest rarely find either one.
The Fox News headline today was, “This is war.” With the streets of Paris wet with blood, French leaders appear to understand the times. Time will tell if they know what to do. In The War against evil, knowing what to do and having the will to do it are two different things.
David Lane, Founder of the American Renewal Project, understands what is at stake, and he knows what to do. For two decades he has been quietly mobilizing pastors all over America to engage in the war for the soul of a nation.
Restoring a Judeo-Christian ethic is not a political effort to take a nation back, but a spiritual movement to turn the soul of America back to God. To the untrained eye, Lane’s American Renewal Project gatherings appear to focus on leading thousands of pastors to run for office, to register their people to vote, and to take their Christian convictions into the voting booth. They are so much more.
David Lanes says, “The mission is spiritual, only the by-product is political.” He describes the difference between chess and checkers. The board is the same, but the rules are different. Prayer makes the difference. Never try to defeat an opponent with a handful of checkers when the battle calls for the knights to attack. He often reminds pastors, “This is war.”
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Pastors leading prayer meetings in their local churches prepare the way for the next Great Awakening. This is the game changer, and the key to victory in a battle for the soul of a nation. Thousands of pastors have responded to Lane’s challenge by initiating prayer meetings in their churches. This is where the power comes from to carry on a prolonged battle for the soul of a nation.
Engaging in this battle against evil to make a name or to promote a book, may achieve both without making a difference. Men and women of prayer don’t call attention to themselves. They point people to God.
“The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, and prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray.”
Samuel Chadwick (1860-1932)
“We wrestle not against flesh and blood,” is scripture, not a Hobby Lobby throw pillow. It should be tattooed on the heart of every pastor.
Prayer is not an optional method of war. It is an essential relationship with The Champion. Prayer draws the warrior closer to the side of Jesus, and He alone strikes fear in the enemy camp.
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“If I could hear Jesus praying for me in the next room, I would not fear a million enemies. The distance makes no difference. He is praying for me.”
Robert Murray M’Cheyne
The culture war raging in this nation reveals an evil urge to purge the name of Jesus from the public square with breath taking speed. The potential power of prayer is released when praying pastors defy political correctness with, “In the name of Jesus, Amen.”
My father, Don Miller, recently went to Heaven. From his hospice bed he shared his final thoughts on prayer. He propped himself up on his right elbow, looked me in the eye, and with great intensity said:
“Jesus is ready to give it away. Revival. Watch and pray! Tell them prayer is the priority. I want to pass it on. Pass it on! Pass it on! Pass it on! Potential, potential, potential. There is the potential of a great awakening, in a moment and in our lifetime. People who will want God more than anything or anybody. Oh that they would believe so strongly. Believe. Believe. Believe.”
Tearfully, I told Dad I would pass it on. He leaned back onto his bed and closed his eyes. With his face shining with contentment, he said, “Good boy.” Seven months later I can’t type these words without tears hitting the keyboard. Pastors! Believe it. THIS IS WAR! Pass it on.
Dr. Gary Miller, founder and executive director of Talk Less! Pray More! Ministries” in Fort Worth, Texas, has served for the past 40 years, as a missionary, a pastor and a professor. Since 2010, he has been actively involved in mobilizing pastors to utilize prayer and voter registration as tools to regain their voice in the public square.
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