Ephesians: The Secret of Prayer

 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 saints. -Eph. 6:18

Years ago, my mother and I were on opposite sides of an issue.  She was praying for one thing while I was praying for another.  At the time, the man I was working for was a godly Christian man, so I took the issue to him.  "God doesn't get confused." he said, "Don't you think he gets conflicting requests all of the time?"  His suggestion was that I stop praying for that specific issue because of my prejudices and ask others who were not so partial to intercede on my behalf.  Since that time, I have been keenly aware of my limited abilities when it comes to prayer and how necessary it is to use other sources for my prayer needs:  the prayers of other Christians and the Holy Spirit.  Even the apostle Paul, that brilliant writer and wordsmith recognized how limited our own words are. In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. - Romans 8:26 NIV

There is a reason for our limited ability to pray on our own behalf, one Paul recognized in his letter to the Ephesians.  For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. -Eph. 6:12-13 NIV

There is a spiritual force at work that would like to keep us confused, that wants nothing more than to make us ineffective, the power of this dark world that wants to destroy our testimony and power by making us think that we must be doing something wrong when we pray because our prayers are not being answered.  God has given us two weapons to combat the resistance of the enemy:  the Holy Spirit and the prayers of our brothers and sisters in Christ.  Utilizing both of these weapons, we will be able to stand firm.

Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel. -Eph. 6:19 NIV