I gathered my book today and devoted some time to soaking in all of the goodness of Gods Plan for Spiritual Battle: Victory over Sin, the World, and the Devil through Life Sentence Publishing, LLC.

As I began reading Training For The Battle, I was reminded of the importance of prayer. A lot of times people will take all of their cares to the Lord, even their lists of “I wants,” and “can you fix these” complaints. However, have you ever really considered that prayer can be a tool to connect you to God so that you can hear His voice as well? It isn’t just a gripe session. Please don’t use it as such.

This portion of the book reminded me of a sermon in church a few weeks back where the preacher went over the proper way to pray. Begin your prayer with thanksgiving. Tell God how thankful you are for the day, for the many blessings in your life, and praise His Holy Name! Then you can go into your struggles or confessions, just pouring your heart out to God. After time spent with God, be sure to close your prayer with more praises to Him. Please don’t just go to God in prayer and say, “Look God, I need you because so and so is talking about me, things aren’t going right at work, my neighbor is not being neighborly, people are rude, etc., etc., etc.” Go to God with a grateful heart praising Him. Yes, even if you are facing a great difficulty, there is such power in praising God! When you feel like you can’t go on, try just raising your hands to Heaven and praising God. It will make a difference in how you are feeling. Open yourself up to receiving a blessing from Heaven with the time you spend with God!

This portion of the book stood out to me today. Take a moment to consider what Author Russell M. Stendal is saying:

When the Holy Spirit shines God’s truth into our hearts, a transformation takes place. All darkness, gloom, and despair must flee from the light of His presence. Those who are comforted have a heart that has been softened. It’s a heart that is tender. It’s a heart that operates from God’s perspective and feels things the way God feels them because it is a heart filled with His presence. It is a heart that is repentant of the sins of the past and can recognize the consequences of these mistakes. It is a heart that continues to mourn and cry out to God saying, “Lord, change me, I don’t want to be like this anymore,” every time the Holy Spirit brings to light something that needs to be placed on the altar and disposed of.

It is a heart that when it comes in contact with someone else who is hurting, produces tears as it identifies with that person. What if that was me? How would I want to be treated if it were me? What does God want me to do for this person? It’s a heart that begins to feel the same way God is feeling when we come into contact with sin and with its devastation and destruction around us. It is a heart that can begin to implement God’s supreme strategy for victory by loving our enemies, praying for those who persecute us, and overcoming evil with good. It is a heart that understands the strategic importance of “turning the other cheek” and “going the extra mile.”

Further in this chapter, Mr. Stendal discusses how fear can take a hold of us. However, when we turn everything over to God in prayer, fear will lose its grip on us! If we are doing God’s will, He will help us overcome these fears. Pray and ask God to help calm your fears today no matter what you are facing. You can have peace through God.

As you pray, take all of these things into consideration. Also be sure to listen for God’s still small voice when you pray.