Judy Dunagan: Holy, holy, holy God, we are so grateful to be Yours. We worship You together today in the beauty of Your holiness. Great is Your faithfulness. Your mercies are new every morning. I just praise You that through Your Holy Spirit, You know everyone in this room. You know their names, their stories. You know just what they need to hear today. I pray that Your Spirit will speak over them through the words that I share. We just give this all to You, God. 

I love Psalm 115:1 that says “Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness!”

And we just thank You for Your protection over us, Jesus. The protection that You purchased through Your death and resurrection and ascension. You are the ascended King of kings, and You have conquered the enemy. You’ve given us a way of escape from temptation. God, I just pray that chains will come off today from all of us—whatever is holding us captive. We love You, and we thank You for Your lavish love for us. In Your holy, yet very personal name, we pray, amen.

Well, friends, I mentioned Liam, my two-year-old grandson, who calls me Momo. Now he’s five. He just started kindergarten. But when he visited us, when he deemed me “Momo” was when he was two. I live in Colorado Springs. I have to brag; I think it’s one of the most beautiful cities. We have a zoo called Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, if you’re ever there. It’s tucked up against a mountain, and you just feel like you’re out in the wild with these animals.

And so, all of the sudden we’re going through the zoo, and we hear this roaring lion like I had never heard before. Apparently, lions’ roars can be heard from five miles away. It almost felt like that, like your chest is just beating as you look at this magnificent lion. And our brave little two-year-old was up against the protective glass while the lion is roaring. There’s Liam, and he goes, “Hey you. Hey you.” As if he was saying, “You quiet down now. You just be quiet.”

Well, I think that is such a beautiful example of our Lord Jesus Christ, being our protective barrier. You know, when Jesus died and rose again, and then when He ascended, He is our victorious King of kings. 

We don’t talk about the ascension much. Sometimes it’s when He ascended and gave the Great Commission to His disciples, it almost seems sad. It’s like He’s leaving them right when they need Him the most, and they’re not going to see Him for a long time. 

But really, it’s like the second triumphal entry. When He ascended it’s almost like the crescendo that is finished. Because when He ascended, we’re told that He sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 

A lot of verses related to our victory is about that position. In Ephesians 2 we are told that we are seated with Christ in the heavenlies. Ephesians 2:6, and that’s not just in heaven, when He takes us home to glory or returns for us. We are seated there with Him now.

So, we have that position of victory with Jesus Christ, now. 

The way I came up with the title of my book, The Loudest Roar, came out of ministry. As I mentioned, I was on staff at a church for twenty years. There was a woman I counseled that probably had one of the hardest stories I’ve ever heard. 

It was like one thing after another. She was worried that her husband was going to leave her, and her son was leaving the faith, and she was starting to question God’s goodness and faithfulness. I sensed a battle over her. Now, those were the decisions of her husband and her son. But the way the enemy was coming, because he knows when we are vulnerable. 

I prayed over her, and I gave her some resources. I told her I’d love to meet with her again, but after she left, I walked back to my office, and my head was really down in defeat. I just cried out to my Lord and I said, “Your Word tells us that the enemy is like a roaring lion, seeking whom he can devour. Why does he have so much power? Why is his roar so loud over us?”

And I’ll never forget it, it was like God cemented it in my heart right then that He’s the bigger lion, with the loudest roar.Amen! He’s the Lion of Judah. He is seated on the throne, and Satan is ultimately a defeated foe. 

Now, Satan has a lot of power. We see him from Genesis, when he tempts Eve, and the fall. We see him throughout the Word. We’re told he is the father of lies. We’re told he’s the accuser of the brethren. We see him in Revelation, and yet he’s on a leash, isn’t he?

But sadly, many of us, and I’ve been hearing this from many people, it’s almost like they’re starting to believe the enemy has more power than our mighty God, and they’re afraid of him. They think of all of the havoc he’s wreaking. What if we stood in the victory that Jesus won for us? Jesus died to give us this victory. 

And so, I mentioned my prayer, and that comes from 1 Peter 5:8-9. We’re told, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith . . .”

Now, my father is an author. He was a pastor for over forty years. He’s a best-selling author of the book, The Adversary, which Moody published back in 1975. His name is Mark Bubeck. It was one of the first biblically balanced books on our victory in Christ, when it came out way back then. 

And then his second book has just been renamed, it’s called Warfare Praying: Biblical Strategies for Overcoming the Adversary. Recommended highly, they are selling it here. But this is a quote from that book. My father said, 

Satan roars to make us afraid and thus more vulnerable, but our purchased right is courage to resist him. 

Don’t you love that? What it means, the purchase right He purchased through His death on the cross and His shed blood. 

Our purchased right is courage to resist the enemy. 

Friends, I just wonder, are you sensing the enemy’s attack on you like never before? Perhaps on your marriage? Or perhaps you have a prodigal, and you know the enemy is luring that child away from truth? Or perhaps you’re sensing attacks on your ministry? Have you lost sight of the victory that Jesus has won for us?

There was a season in my life when I was there, even though I had grown up knowing these truths. My dad wrote that first book when I was a middle schooler, I was in seventh grade. At that time, I had actually come under the enemy coming at me. I started having debilitating nightmares and part of the time problem was I had gone to a slumber party and had dabbled with séances and Ouija boards. I knew better, but the peer pressure, and I didn’t understand fully, even though God’s Word warns us against that, and it was almost like I had given the enemy a foothold to create this fear. 

And so, my dad started praying over me. Sometimes I’d wake up terrorized, and he would just come in my room and pray Scripture over me. He taught me about the armor, which we’re going to look at in Ephesians 6. 

So, I began to learn this at a very young age. Now I am much older than that, and I am in my early sixties, and I can tell you all these decades, I’ve had an awareness of the battle we are facing and the victory that we have. That’s my heart for all of you.

The key—and my dad used to say this—is, be brave and be biblically balanced. There’s a lot of books out there on teaching on the enemy and spiritual warfare that are not biblical, extra biblical based on the Word of God and not balanced.

I think when it comes to believers and our understanding of the enemy is that there can be two extremes. On one side you have people who blame the enemy for everything, like even their sin.

I know someone who fell into an affair, and they blamed it on the enemy. That is their sin. That was their choice. 

And then you have the other side of the spectrum, where people think the enemy is a fictionalized character and not real. That he’s just a character in horror movies. 

And probably in the middle are some believers who think, I don’t want to know this. I don’t want to think about the enemy, because I’m afraid he’ll step up his attacks on me and my family. I actually had a pastor tell me that once. 

So, again the key is to be balanced and biblical and to run to God’s Word. And God’s Word is so full of promises of our victory and His protection. In this one season when I was very vulnerable, our family moved to Beijing, China. Our daughters at the time were only three and five years old. It was with my husband’s job and we were there for three years. It was in the mid-nineties, so it was right after the turmoil at Tiananmen Square in ’89. I don’t know if you remember that or have read about it?

It was really an uncertain time, but when we first got there, our youngest daughter was sick all of the time. She had really debilitating illnesses, lots of upper respiratory problems because of the pollution, and the medical care wasn’t what I was used to in the States. 

There was one night where I was so overcome with fear for her, because I was pretty sure she had strep throat, but they wouldn’t give her antibiotics because they didn’t think it was strep. 

About three days in with a high fever, I got a glimpse of what it might be like to lose your mind to worry. I was just gripped. I realized the enemy was stepping up his attacks on me. 

Now, I’m not saying he causes anxiety or causes our anxiety, but he knows where we are vulnerable. He’s like a preying lion who is going to try an attack on those who are vulnerable. I was vulnerable that night, and I was spiraling. 

It was about 3 a.m., and I woke my husband up and had him pray over me. Kelly had fallen asleep because she had ibuprofen. The thing about China then, there was no 911, there was no urgent care, and the closest hospital emergency room was an hour and half away. 

So, I knew we needed to wait out the night. She had fallen asleep, and her fever had come down a little bit. I was trusting the Lord, but I have to tell you, I also got on the phone to my daughter’s pediatrician in the States. It was 3 a.m. my time, 3 p.m. his, and he got on the phone, can you believe it? Because when you call the pediatrician, you don’t get the doctor, but he got on the phone. He said this was a first, getting a call from a mom in China. He said, “I don’t want to diagnose her over the phone, but I’d recommend getting to the clinic tomorrow and pretty much demand antibiotics because she was prone to strep, and strep can be very dangerous if you don’t treat it.” 

But I had the rest of the night. It was really almost like a dark night of my soul. Rick had been able to fall back asleep. I knew I had to get away with the Lord. I imagined as if I had Kelly in my arms, and I just lifted her in my heart and mind. I said, “I know You love her more than I do. I know You can heal her, but You may not choose to. I am still going to follow You, but I pray for protection.” Then I prayed that she’d heal. 

But that surrender, I didn’t realize that I needed to do it. I realized later that I was making an idol out of my babies and toddlers. I remember when I had my first baby in my arms, in my heart it was like, “Thank You, God, don’t ever let anything happen to her.” It was almost as if I had made a deal with Him. 

And so that night I knew I had to surrender her to Him. I had a breakthrough in that. And the peace that God’s Word talks about in Philippians 4 that goes beyond our human understanding, just washed over me. 

That’s the only way I could sleep. I was in a battle. And the next morning, this momma bear was on the phone with the clinic. I got her in, and she got antibiotics. She’s fine, and she’s turning thirty-one, and a mother of two, but it was a terrifying night. 

But from that, I also learned that I had to dwell in God’s Word. A favorite psalm of mine is Psalm 91. I see it as a warfare psalm. Now, I just taught at another session and taught that. So, if you were in there, you’re going to hear a little repetition. That’s how passionate I am about Psalm 91. 

You can turn to it, if you want. I’m going to try and quote as much as I can, just so it would wash over you. We don’t know who wrote it. Moses wrote Psalm 90, and some of the way of the prose of it, some people think it’s Moses, some think it was David. All I know is that God has used it mightily, and so I’m just going to quote as much as I can remember. I just know at these conferences, sometimes you go from one thing to another, so let’s just dwell in these words, let them wash over you. 

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
   will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress,
   my God, in whom I trust.”

For he will deliver you from the fowler’s snare
   and from the deadly pestilence.
He will cover you with his feathers,
   and under his wings you will find refuge;
   his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
You will not fear the terror of the night,
   nor the arrow that flies by day,
nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
   nor the plague that wastes at noonday.

A thousand may fall at your side,
   ten thousand at your right hand,
   but it will not come near you.
You will only observe with your eyes
   and see the punishment of the wicked.

If you have made the Lord your dwelling place—
   the Most High, who is my refuge—
no harm shall be allowed to befall you,
   no plague come near your tent.

For he will command his angels concerning you
   to guard you in all your ways.
They will lift you up in their hands,
   lest you strike your foot against a stone.
You will tread on the lion and the adder;
   the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot.

“Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him;
   I will protect him, because he knows my name.
When he calls to me, I will answer you;
   I will be with you in trouble;
   I will rescue you and honor you.
With long life I will satisfy you
   and show you my salvation.” (vv. 1–16)

Can I hear an amen? 

You know, that is a favorite psalm for anyone. For a lot of Christian moms and spouses who have loved ones in the armed forces . . . I know a young mom, a wife, who used to write on her husband’s helmet things like when he was going to be deployed, like “salvation” and “belt of truth” and it became her prayer for him. 

So, we’ve talked about the battle we’re facing. But I want to talk about the battle plan and what is really important. I believe three things in our battle plans are the armor and God’s Word and prayer. 

We’re going to look at the armor first. And Ephesians 6:10-18, some of you are familiar with this. I’m going to read these verses over us in a minute. They were written by Paul, and to the church in Ephesus. If you look at Ephesus and study about it, there was a lot of spiritism going on there. A lot of worship of goddesses and other gods, and I think he just had a burden for these beloved believers, that they would understand their victory in Christ. 

So, this is a victory cry. From Ephesians 6:10-18: 

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. 

Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, 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. 

Now, that’s a victory cry. When I used to read that, it seemed like a lot of “to-dos” for us, right? A lot of things we’ve got to do. It says things like, be strong, put on the armor, stand against, take up the armor, withstand the evil day, having done all to stand firm, fasten on, put on. 

So, I don’t know about you, but I’m not sure that I can do all of that in my own strength. But let’s look at the way it starts. Let’s look at the key there, Be strong in the Lord and the strength of His might that’s in Him and His might. 

And another thing about the armor, I’ve had women say to me, “I’ve had a terrible day today. I didn’t pray on my armor.” I think that’s what’s going on. It's almost like a striving or a performance. 

And something that the Lord showed me not that long ago, as I dwelt in this. I know the armor is Jesus. It’s Jesus who covers us. It’s His righteousness that can be like our breastplate. We’re called righteous if you’re new in Christ. If you’re a believer, you are righteous but only because He is righteous. 

It’s His salvation that can cover our minds like a helmet from the intrusive thoughts that can come, where you’re doubting God’s goodness, or you’re believing lies you’ve heard in our world, or what people are saying about our Lord Jesus, or the enemy is throwing lies at you. It’s His salvation that covers our minds like a helmet. 

And then it’s His belt, it’s His truth that is a belt that holds this armor on us. I love that, because we are told He is the truth, He the way, the truth, and the life. His Word is truth. 

And then we can walk in sandals of peace I believe only because Jesus is the Prince of Peace. His peace He gives us in Philippians 4. We’re told goes beyond our human understanding, no matter our circumstances. 

Those sandals also talk about the readiness of the gospel of peace. I believe that’s being ambassadors for Jesus and being willing to share Christ, even when it’s scary. You have those sandals of peace, where you can do that in peace and trust the outcome if you have a loved one that you’re praying for and want to share Christ with. 

And then when you talk about the shield of faith. If you think about a shield, there’s a handle you’ve got to grab. You’ve got to hold that. So, there is a part where our faith is very important to believe, that our Lord Jesus is shielding us. But I just quoted in Psalm 91, where it talked about the shield of His faithfulness.

So, yes, it’s our faith that can shield us, but ultimately, it’s His faithfulness that’s covering us from the top of our head to the tip of our toes—all of those pieces of the armor. 

There’s a new song out, I think it’s Christy Nockels, in a lullaby song on CD. She’s got a song on there called “Head to Toe.” You’ve got to listen to it, especially if you’re a young mom. That it’s talking about the armor on the babies, and how it protects them.

I used to pray over my children and just think of the armor. I’d joke, does the armor come in toddler sizes? But really that prayer was just really thanking the Lord. 

So, putting on the armor, I don’t think it’s striving, like, “I’ve got to have enough righteousness to be protected.” I believe it’s abiding in it, and living in it, and being aware of it, as you walk through your day. Because as believers in Christ, we are targets of the enemy. We have a lot of temptation coming at us. 

I talked about how I’m prone to anxiety and so he knew where I was vulnerable. He knew where he was going to come at me with that. I also believe that he comes at us with temptation, of course. And the thing about temptation is that he’ll try to lure you into a sin, and you fall into it. Well, first he tries to lure you in and say it’s not that big of a deal, or God didn’t really mean that, right? Like what he did with Eve. 

And then you fall into sin, it’s all about shame, condemning you, even saying, “Why confess? Why leave it behind?” You know how he works. 

But thankfully, the loudest roar is our Lord Jesus Christ, as He speaks over us, where we can be redeemed and saved and forgiven. 

We’re told in God’s Word that He hems us in from behind and before, and I think of that so much as of late as a mother of two grown daughters and now five grandchildren. I just decided that I am going to be a prayer warrior after them, and I am so grateful for that. 

I love this quote on the armor from Priscilla Shirer. She wrote an excellent study on the armor, and she goes through each piece. And this is what she said, “Your armor is Yahweh’s own armor, given as a gift and empowered by His Spirit to ensure victory.” 

So, I just want to encourage you, when you wake up tomorrow morning, just think about being robed in righteousness. Just think about being covered from the top of your head to the tip of your toes in His protection, His hemming you in. 

Now, I want to talk about our part in that armor, because in verse 17 it talks about the Sword of the Spirit, which is God’s Word. And that is up to us to dwell in it, to memorize it, to love the truths, to spend time in it. 

The enemy has to flee when we wield God’s Word, and I think Jesus modeled this better than anyone when He walked this groaning earth, when He went into the wilderness to fast. He was led there by the Holy Spirit and for forty days, it says, He fasted. 

He had to be exhausted and vulnerable. At the end of that, the enemy came at Him ferociously with three great temptations. As you read that, it’s almost like hand-to-hand combat. The swords are drawn. The enemy’s sword is full of lies and trickery, and Jesus’ sword is God’s Word.

So each time the enemy comes at Him, Jesus has, “It is written . . .” I’m going to read this because this is such a beautiful and powerful scene. 

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he [Jesus] answered, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’”

[Does that sound familiar? That’s from Psalm 91. I would like to say that he’s not very smart, because he quoted from such a powerful psalm, but he is crafty.] 

Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’” 

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” 

Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, [So, the third time, Jesus said, “it is written,” “it is written,” “it is written”] ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’” 

[And guess what happened?] Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.” (Matt. 4:1-11 ESV)

Don’t you just wish that you could see that or know what that was like? Someday, we will know. 

That’s the thing about the humanity of Christ, He’s exhausted, and He’s had this battle, and then angels came to Him. The same thing happened when He was in the garden, just hours before His arrest. He was desperate for His men, His three disciples to pray for Him. 

If you read that story, He went to them three times, “Really? You’re falling back asleep?” He needed His band of brothers, but God met Him. We’re told that angels ministered to Him there as well. 

So, I’d love to know how that encourages you, as believers, as humans who walk this groaning earth that even Jesus was tempted. Jesus had this coming at Him, the enemy thought he could beat Him. Of course, he’s going to come at us, but how can we have victory and how do we pick up the Sword of the Spirit? 

I encourage you to dwell in God’s Word, and I’m not talking about how you better have your quiet time every morning early. I know there are young moms in this room, and that is so hard. It’s not about legalism. It’s about loving Jesus and being desperate. He’s going to make a way for you. 

When I was on staff at our church leading a ministry, I was so busy. I got so burned out, and I wasn’t spending time in prayer with Him while I was serving Him. I’m sure some of you in the room can relate. 

I heard a pastor once say he had been on a ministry trip. He spoke at a leadership conference, and he started out by saying he just got back and you could tell he was weary and down. He said, “When I first found Christ, He took my breath away, and now I am just worried I am out of breath serving Him.” 

I think that’s one of the tactics that the enemy uses for those of us who love Jesus deeply and are very, very busy for Him. It’s to distract us, to be so busy for Him that we don’t really know Him anymore or go deep with Him. 

I had to cry out one Sunday. I was between two campuses to try to make an announcement about a Bible study. I found tears in my eyes while I was driving. I just cried out to the Lord. I was in the car alone, and I cried out loud and I just said, “I miss You! I want more of You. I know there’s more of You. Will You capture my heart and make a way for me to just be with You and not make it about this ministry?” 

And He was faithful in that. He will be to you, because the enemy does want to keep you distracted to where you dry up and the Word doesn’t bring you life. And so that’s my heart’s cry for you. 

In my book where I write about the battle with the swords, this is what I wrote, “How stunning to see the Living Word use the written Word as His weapon of choice.” And that’s what we can do as well. 

And so, I want to talk about part of the battle plan. We’ve talked about the armor, but I also want to talk about the roar of God’s Word. As I’ve said already, Jesus modeled this for us to have Him awaken us to the Word. 

There are different ways you can do this, through memorizing it, through dwelling and lingering in it, to reading out loud, to journaling it, especially if you feel like the battle is fierce. Just journal. Just go to your favorite psalm and journal and get it down as a prayer. 

Also, part of the battle plan is prayer, the roar of prayer. And I have to say, I think this is one of the main ways the enemy tries to distract us. I used to teach about the importance of prayer in the ministry, and I wasn’t always really praying. I had a prayer partner who started to really speak over me in that and taught me a lot about prayer. It’s so, so important to be able to dwell in His Word in prayer. 

I have some ways to awaken our prayer life that I want to share with you. A lot of people don’t see prayer as part of the armor. As you read Ephesians 6, verses 10-17, it ends with the Sword of the Spirit, but then in verse 18, it’s all about prayer. I think the enemy tries to keep us from prayer more than anything because it threatens him so much. He knows we’re worshiping God, we’re standing in the truth, we’re in the throne room praying. 

So, I’m going to end our time with just what I call “the wonder of prayer.” These are all “w” words, so if you want to take notes, hopefully you can remember these ideas. My heart about these is that you can pick one or two of these ideas and just cry out to the Lord to awaken or revive your heart for prayer.

And so, the first one is “Worship Prayer.” I have a key verse for each of these, because I love God’s Word so much. 

I exalt you, my God the King,
   and bless your name forever and ever.
Every day I will praise you and
   extol your name forever and ever. (Psalm 145: 1–2)

I encourage you to go to Psalm 145, even this weekend or when you get back home, just dwell in this worshipful psalm. It’s actually a work of art. We’re told in Hebrew it’s an acrostic poem in Hebrew, so each verse is consecutive within the Hebrew alphabet. 

David wrote that. I imagine that he was most likely hiding in caves, and that’s how the Holy Spirit inspired him. He’s so gifted. So, I would encourage you to do that. Enter into His throne room with worship. 

Often, I would just dive into my prayer requests, especially when I felt under attack. My prayer partner is the one who taught me to begin in worship when we get together for prayer. We’d just lift Him up through His names and attributes and just even being quiet, maybe play worship music.

It just switched in terms of just my heart for prayer, but also, the enemy just has to flee when we worship. Worship is a weapon against him as well. 

And then we have “Word of God” prayers. Psalm 119:92–93,

If your law had not been my delight,
   I would have perished in my affliction.
I will never forget your precepts,
   for by them you have preserved my life.

Can anyone relate to that? I know part of my story that honestly, I could have died or had spiraled out, like I shared in China, emotionally without the Word of God. One way, if you’re really distracted, struggling with anxiety, or feeling really under attack, is read Scripture out loud. I mentioned Psalm 145. I’ll do that sometimes. I just begin my prayer time and my time of worship in reading out loud. It’s amazing how your mind stays captive to the truth of God’s Word when you do that. It’s part of your worship, and it helps you not spiral to fear. And again, the enemy has to flee.

And then, turn Scripture into prayer on behalf of those who you are worried about. I shared a little bit in the last session about how many moms and fathers are dealing with prodigal children. It seems like more and more are leaving the faith, and it’s a huge burden. You can cry out to the Lord and the worry or the fear you have and turn it into prayers on their behalf. 

I wanted to invite you, if you want to go to my website, it’s JudyDunagan.com, I have a downloadable free guide. It’s not in my book. I called it “The Power of Praying Scripture.” That’s how passionate I am about this. There’s different topics there. I have one if you’re fearful, and one if you’re being tempted, one if you’re burdened for a child. And then there’s a worship prayer, and also a lamenting prayer. 

The next one is “Written Prayers.” And the verse is, Psalm 62:8,

Trust in him at all times, you people;
   pour out your hearts to him,
   for God is our refuge.

I think one of the best ways to pour out your hearts out to Him is to journal your prayers. I’m not saying that you have to be a good writer, just pour out your heart. Again, it helps your mind not wander. It can be an act of worship, an act of surrender. 

And then there’s a sacrifice of prayer, of praise and thanksgiving when you pray. When I went through a really dark season of my life, the Lord just really impressed on my heart that I needed to turn to praise, even in the midst of that. The Psalms talk a lot about a sacrifice of praise. 

And so, what I would start to do in my journal is at the top of the page, I would just write “Sacrifice of Praise.” Then I would just start writing the things I could be thankful for. There’s something about thanksgiving that I also think makes the enemy stand down. 

Under “Written Prayers” I wanted to mention, though, there are prayers written by others that you can read. Not everyone is probably comfortable with that, but my father for years has had that in all of his books. He writes doctrinal, scriptural prayers. Moody even carries one called “Warfare Prayers.” There’s another pamphlet called “Prayer Patterns for Revival,” that has seven prayers to pray for revival, to cry out every day. 

As a young pastor, that was his heart for revival. He was a prayer warrior. That’s how God led him to write this book. And so, I also decided to do that in my book. At the end of each chapter I have a short prayer related to the topic that I’m teaching. But in the back I have my dad’s prayer that he wrote on Psalm 91. I wrote a prayer on Psalm 139, and then one to pray for your children as well. 

Now, I’m not trying to sell you my book, I promise. I am all about these resources getting into your hands. But the idea is praying prayers that are already written by others. And another thing are prayers written by God’s Word that you can pray for your own family or yourself. 

I do that with the High Priestly Prayer in John 17 that Jesus prayed over the disciples. It also said that He was praying for us, those who were coming after them. There’s parts of that prayer that I pray for my children. So, dwell in that. 

You can pray some of Paul’s prayers, just pray them out loud or write them out for yourself or for your children. 

We have a Bible study based on that called “On Bended Knee.” That’s a phenomenal study. I’m sure they’re selling it this weekend. It’s by Crickett Keeth, “On Bended Knee,” where she looks at different prayers. It’s such a great way to dwell in Scripture and to borrow the prayers of those who have gone before us. Then I want to talk about “Weeping or Wrestling Prayer.” The core verse for that is Psalm 13:1–2,

How long, LORD? Will you forget me forever?
   How long will you hide your face from me? 
How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
   and day after day have sorrow in my heart?
   How long will my enemy triumph over me?

Do you hear that, that lamenting prayer? That was David. “How long?” I wonder how many of you in this room have had “how long” prayers? Maybe you’re in the midst of them. 

I know I have. How long, Lord, will this go on?

So, I encourage you to run to Him with your sorrow. I hadn’t really been taught that until that season where our family was hit so hard, and I was in counseling with a biblical counselor. She said, “I’m not sure that anybody has ever talked to you about the suffering Savior.” 

We’re told in Isaiah that He was a Man of Sorrow acquainted with grief. He stood at a friend’s grave and wept. He wept over the city of Jerusalem. He grieved. He sweat drops of blood in prayer. He had “how long” prayers before His arrest. He’s such a compassionate Savior, and He wants us to come to Him with our lament, with our weeping prayers and also our wrestling prayers. 

I know many are struggling with hard questions. Jesus wants us to come to Him with those and cry out to Him—which again can be an act of worship.

There’s a wonderful book on lamenting called The Sacred Sorrow by Michael Card. I found that years ago when I was in the midst of all that. He looks at how Job, Jeremiah, David, and then Jesus lamented. He teaches you how to write lamenting prayers. 

You know, there are almost more lamenting psalms than praise psalms. And so, it’s a rhythm that I don’t think we’re taught enough about and that can really bring great, great comfort. 

And then the last one I wanted to mention was “Woman to Woman” prayer partners. And the verse for that is, “For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” (Matt. 18:20 NIV) 

I mentioned my prayer partner, Joanie. She has been such a gift to me. We no longer live near each other. She’s about fifteen years older than me. She’s the one who taught me the rhythm of worshiping the Lord in prayer and in confession and then praying for others. 

She came to me once when our family was under it. She heard a story that had just happened in California, where two friends, two women, were biking in the mountains. One of them got attacked by a lion. They had stopped to fix something. This lion got a hold of her and he had her in his mouth. Her friend grabbed her legs and held on to her and started screaming. Other bikers came around and started throwing rocks at the lion, and he left. Of course, she was injured, but she was saved. 

I’ll never forget it, Joanie said to me, “That’s me right now. I’m hanging on to your legs through prayer that our enemy, the roaring lion, can’t get you, can’t have you.” I’ll never forget that.

And so, I want to encourage you, if you don’t have a prayer partner, start asking the Lord for one. Or be brave and ask a friend who you know is a prayer warrior to come along beside you. 

I had just started a leadership position, in the women’s ministry at my church in Michigan, and knew I needed a prayer partner. I started praying. Joanie asked for a meeting and said, “I’m looking for a prayer partner. Do you know anyone who understands warfare?” 

And twenty years later we’re still dear friends. I text her when I’m speaking like this. She’s just very, very precious to me. So that community in prayer is so important. 

Well friends, I wanted to end our time with one more prayer. Actually first, I wanted to ask you as you look at all of these different ways to pray—“Worship,” “Word of God,” “Written,” “Weeping or Wrestling,” and “Woman to Woman”—to take some time, whether it’s at the end of this or tonight. Ask the Lord, maybe choose one or two of those. If it’s something you’ve not done, just start to explore that and make that part of your prayer life. 

I’m going to close with a prayer, it’s a Puritan prayer. We don’t know, it’s probably a 200–300 year-old prayer. I found it in a book called The Valley of Vision. It is a powerful prayer about the armor. It’s just amazing. And so, I’m going to speak that over us as we pray, and then I’ll close at the end of it after this prayer.

O LORD, I bless thee that the issue of the battle
   between thyself and Satan
     has never been uncertain,
     and will end in victory.
Calvary broke the dragon’s head,
   and I contend with a vanquished foe,
     who with all his subtlety and strength
     has already been overcome.
When I feel the serpent at my heel
   may I remember him whose heel was bruised,
     but who, when bruised, broke the devil’s head.

My soul with inward joy extols
   the mighty conqueror.

Heal me of any wounds received
   in the great conflict;
     if I have gathered defilement,
     if my faith has suffered damage,
     if my hope is less than bright,
     if my love is not fervent,
     if some creature-comfort occupies my heart,
     if my soul sinks under pressure of the fight.
O thou whose every promise is balm,
     every touch life,
   draw near to thy weary warrior,
   refresh me, that I may rise again
     to wage the strife,
   and never tire until my enemy is trodden down.

Give me such fellowship with thee
   that I may defy Satan,
     unbelief, the flesh, the world,
   with delight that comes not from a creature,
   and which a creature cannot mar.
Give me a draught of the eternal fountain
   that lieth in thy immutable, everlasting love
     and decree.
Then shall my hand never weaken,
   my feet never stumble,
   my sword never rest,
   my shield never rust,
   my helmet never shatter,
   my breastplate never fall,
     as my strength rests in the power
       of thy might.

How powerful is that? Written by someone probably 200 years ago, who was in a mighty fierce battle and ran into these truths. I do have that prayer in my book. I got permission from the publisher to do that, and it has been life-changing. I just encourage you to get a copy of the prayer and read it out loud when you feel that the battle is very fierce. 

I’ll just close our time in prayer. I’m available if you need prayer. My book is for sale. There are some flyers if you didn’t get one in the back with information about it. And thank you so much for our time together. You’re a dear dear group of people, and I will be praying for you. So, let’s just pray. I’ll just close in prayer. 

Oh Father God, again we thank You for the armor. Jesus we thank You that You do cover us with Your armor, Your righteousness, Your peace, Your truth, Your salvation, Your faithfulness. Help us to be mighty warriors, because of the victory You have won for us. 

Thank You that as believers, we don’t for victory, we fight from it. Victory has already been won. We just need to pick up our sword and wield it like You modeled it, Jesus. Make us prayer warriors. Just burn it in our hearts to want to come into the throne room and pray. Your Word tells us in Hebrews that is the throne of grace and mercy. 

Help those who are in the room who are struggling with sin in their lives that they can’t get free of. Help them to run to Your throne of mercy and confess and just be made whole again through You. 

We thank You. You died for those sins. Lord Jesus, we thank You that we can walk in sandals of peace even in the turmoil of this world. We thank You that ultimately the enemy is a defeated foe. We’re told in Your Word that his future is a lake of fire. He has a lot of power now, so teach us how to stand firm against him. Teach us to be a light in this dark world. 

We worship You with those in Revelation who said, “Worthy is the Lamb to be slain” You are the one. You are the first and the last, the beginning and end. You are high and lifted up, and You are on the throne. Thank You that Your Word teaches us that You intercede at the right hand of the throne of God. You’re seated there, and You pray for us. 

Other times when we don’t have words to pray, we’re also told that the Holy Spirit groans for us in prayer. So, the truth of that triune God is that in our battles we’re facing, it should just take our breath away, and we are so grateful. 

So thank You, Jesus, for being high and lifted up and on the throne. But also with us, Emmanuel who has walked this groaning earth and knows every way we’re tempted and knows how to provide a way of escape for us. So, thank You that You are our protector, defender, our shield, our fortress, our rampart, our redeemer, and our savior. 

In Your mighty and holy, holy, holy name we pray, amen. 

All Scripture is taken from the NIV unless otherwise noted.