Category: Prayers

Portfolio, Prayers, Prayers for the Lost, Prayers for the Unsaved

How to Pray for Prodigals (Even When They Love Their Sins)

swordandspiritwriter

Are you in anguish over a prodigal son or daughter? Far from the Lord in his/her heart? Maybe far from home as well? Even boasting in his/her sins and sinful lifestyle?

There’s nothing like a heart broken over a child. One who is far away from God, choosing destruction over blessings. Unable to do anything in your strength to change him/her. Know your good Father loves him/her more than you do. Look to Him and the promises in His Word you can stand on. There’s no pit too dark or deep that the Lord’s mighty right hand cannot pull your child from in an instant and into the Light.

The enemy’s goal is the defeat of you and your loved ones. How? He keeps your eyes on the situation and off Jesus’ Word, might, and power. Don’t fall for that snake’s traps to get you to magnify what you see above the Word of God. It may look hopeless. Like your son or daughter may never turn to or back to the Lord. Oh, but your prayers of faith as a momma or papa in Christ are powerful and mighty for the pulling down of strongholds in your child’s life.

Powerful Testimony of Answered Prayer

Without violating this loved one’s (LO) privacy with the details, I was in a situation where LO boasted repeatedly about a sin. LO stated how they loved this sin and would never stop it.

At first, I responded in anger, got short with LO, and behaved in unloving ways towards them. This happened for months until I wised up and handed the entire situation over to the Lord (with His leading and help).

Yes, I prayed during that time but hadn’t cast my care upon Him about it. Evidence being continued anger towards LO every time I saw the sin. The weight of it so oppressive, it felt like death. Because it was not for me to carry. But God’s.

From the beginning, I should have directed my anger at satan. The one who had LO captive. Engaged in spiritual warfare on LO’s behalf while loving them as Jesus would. Not condoning the sin of course.

Before I did it God’s way, I lost my peace trying to convince LO to turn from their ways. My words fell only on deaf ears each time. Even worse, because I couldn’t “keep my mouth off of” LO about it, the enemy used LO to repeatedly taunt me saying, “I love this sin. I will never stop it.” In my agony, Holy Spirit said, “That’s the enemy using him to taunt you. Don’t take the bait. Ignore it, love LO, and use your authority.” Those were the words He used to shake me awake and give it to Him. I was ticked! But this time my anger redirected towards the devil.

When anger towards LO tried to creep in again, I humbled myself under His mighty hand, resisted the devil, and he fled from me. The enemy will often use others, especially those you love most, to taunt and hurt you. His goal: division, anger, and arguments. Then ultimately utter destruction of the relationship. Don’t fall for those traps.

To be continued…

What the Lord Equipped Me With So I Could Battle His Way

So, I shut my mouth, opened my ears, and listened to the Lord. He reminded me that:

  1. People are, “hardened through the deceitfulness of sin,” (Hebrews 3:13).
  2. The minds of people in sin and the lost are, “blinded by satan,” in some way, and “the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ” is unable to shine on them. (2 Corinthians 4:4).
  3. My fight was not against LO but directly against the devil and the powers of darkness. This helped me love LO and solely direct my anger where it belonged – satan. “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places,” (Ephesians 6:12).
  4. I needed to use my blood-bought authority. “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5).
  5. I needed to stay laser-focused on Jesus and His Word no matter what I saw or heard. Let Him be the Author and Finisher of my faith (Hebrews 12:2). Not the enemy who only seeks to kill, steal, and destroy – including the Word from our hearts (Matthew 13:18-23).
  6. Again. The entire battle is a spiritual one. “Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord of hosts. What are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain; and he shall bring out the top stone amid shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’” (Zechariah 4:6-7)
  7. I needed to see LO through Jesus’ eyes. In the gospels, we see Him moved with compassion towards sinners and those afflicted with sickness and disease. Why? He saw them with both natural and spiritual eyes. See your child like Jesus sees him/her. In chains. A captive of satan. Mind blinded by that snake. Ears deaf to His truth. In darkness. The Light of the gospel unable to shine on him/her. Except by your fervent prayers and spiritual warfare. When the Lord caused me to see LO in chains, mind blinded and wrapped in a demonic prison, I could only be moved with love, mercy, and compassion for LO. All my anger towards LO. Gone. All my anger about how LO’s sin also hurt me. Gone.

With these words sown deeply in my heart, a love like Jesus’ burned for LO which fueled my fervent, effective prayers as well as my rage towards the powers of darkness.

The Joy of Answered Prayer

Suddenly! After over four years of praying, LO’s eyes opened. Seemingly out of nowhere. LO not only stopped the grievous sin. LO hated it. Couldn’t believe they ever did it. Never wanted to do it again. Clearly saw the problems and consequences it caused. Hasn’t done it since. Through prayer and spiritual warfare, this battle was officially won through Jesus Christ our Victory!

Hallelujah! He deserves more praise: I praise You, Lord. I praise Your Holy name. You are worthy to receive all glory and honor. I love You. Thank You for this victory.

What happened? In the spirit realm, demonic strongholds were pulled down, broken off LO’s mind, and destroyed. Whatever satan used to keep LO blinded and captive was removed through Word-based prayer and warfare in Jesus’ name. Then LO saw the sin as it was and chose life. Praise God! All based on the finished work of the cross two-thousand years ago. He already won victory over that sin, but I had to do my part and pray and believe in order to receive it. Yes, it took time, but I never gave up. You shouldn’t either.

A Prayer for Your Prodigal Child

Father, thank You for Your powerful Word, name, and blood I can use to destroy the works of the devil in the earth as Your co-laborer and joint-heir. Including for my child.

I rebuke the devil and pull down every stronghold, trap, deception, and confusion that thief is using against [child’s name]. I command his/her blinded mind to be set free in the name of Jesus. That the light of the gospel of Jesus Christ may shine on him/her in its fulness. That he/she may see sin as You see it, so he/she turns from it and towards You.

I stand in the gap for [child’s name] and pull down strongholds, casting down arguments, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. And bring every thought, every lie of satan, into captivity to the obedience of Christ.

Your Word says the deceitfulness of sin hardens people, so, I pray You take away [child’s name]’s stony heart and give him/her a heart of flesh that it receive You and become Your dwelling place.

I speak to every sin [name sins] and say: What are you, O great mountain? You shall become a plain and be no more in [child’s name]’s life in the name of Jesus.

O God, I thank You for Your mighty Word and for the great victories in [child’s name]’s life I will see happen before my eyes.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

Important Closing Thoughts to Encourage You to Not Give Up

The Lord also reminds me to say to you. You are in a war for your child. Not merely a battle. A war is made of multiple battles. I don’t know how long the war will be on behalf of your child, but don’t focus on time and lose heart. Pray and use love as warfare and win your child over to the Lord one battle at a time. Praise Him and thank Him for every battle you win no matter how big or small. Thank Him in advance for winning the war for your child. Those who are for you are greater than those who are against you and your child. Only believe!

Focus on the Good Shepherd, Jesus, who is seeking after your child day and night. Because of your relentless, faith-filled prayers, the Lord is pursuing him/her at every turn because it is His will that none perish but that all come to the knowledge of His love and saving grace. He desires that your child fulfill all the purposes and plans He has for him/her.

Fear not. Faint not. Don’t lose heart. Eyes on the One whose name is Faithful and True. I love you. God loves you and is on the case.

If you’d like me to pray in agreement with you for your child, please use my Contact page on the navigation Menu above, and send me your request. It would be an honor to pray for him/her.

Portfolio, Prayers, Prayers for the Lost

A Powerful and Effective Prayer for Unsaved Loved Ones

swordandspiritwriter

“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance,” (2 Peter 3:9)

Father, thank You that it is Your will that none perish but all be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. Thank You for hearing my cries for [loved one’s name] and passionately pursuing him/her.

I use my blood-bought authority and rebuke the enemy and cancel, destroy, and render ineffective every plot, plan, trap, and tactic he is using to keep the mind of [loved one’s name] blinded from “the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ.”

You already paid for the sins of the world to make salvation available to whosever calls upon the name of the Lord. So, I thank You for bowing the heavens and the earth to reach [loved one’s name] with the knowledge of salvation. Yes, Lord, send laborers on his/her path at every turn. Bold believers who’ll share the gospel in love and truth, so he/she may come to repentance.

Your Word says the deceitfulness of sin hardens people, so, I pray You take away [loved one’s name]’s stony heart and give him/her a heart of flesh that can receive You and become Your dwelling place.

Holy Spirit, draw [loved one’s name]. Teach him/her day and night and bring back to his/her remembrance truth You’ve taught him/her in the past. Even while he/she sleeps, give him/her dreams that open his/her ears to You and seal his/her instruction of the Way of salvation.

Wonderful Savior, I thank You for seeking [loved one’s name] who is precious in Your sight. I know You are doing Your part to reach him/her in mighty and incredible ways. I praise You for victory in his/her life over all the power of the enemy.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

Swords Used to Defeat the Enemy in this Spiritual Battle (Ephesian 6:17; Hebrews 4:12)

“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance,” (2 Peter 3:9)

“For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth,” (1 Timothy 2:4).

“For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost. “What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray. Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish,” (Matthew 18:11-14).

“Whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them,” (2 Corinthians 4:4).

“He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world,” (1 John 2:2).

“Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest,” (Matthew 9:38).

“Exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin,” (Hebrews 3:13).

“Then I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within them, and take the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh,” (Ezekiel 11:19).

“All your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children,” (Isaiah 54:13).

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you,” (John 14:26).

“For God may speak in one way, or in another, Yet man does not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls upon men, While slumbering on their beds, Then He opens the ears of men, And seals their instruction,” (Job 14-16).

Portfolio, Prayers

A Prayer and Blessing for the Work of Your Hands

swordandspiritwriter

And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands for us; Yes, establish the work of our hands,” (Psalm 90:17)

Father, thank You for the promises in Your Word which say You delight in blessing and establishing the work of my hands. Promises You long to see me receive by faith.

1 John 5:14-15 says, “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him,” (1 John 5:14-15). My beautiful Lord, I pray according to Your will for the work of my hands, and by faith, I have what I ask of You because You say so.

Mighty God, Your Word says I must believe in order to receive. So, by faith, fully persuaded by Your YES and AMEN promises, I…

  • commit myself and work to You and my plans will be established, (Proverbs 16:3).
  • thank You that You are, “able to keep what I have committed to You,” (2 Timothy 1:12).
  • continually magnify You “Who has pleasure in my prosperity,” (Psalm 35:27).
  • believe I “will be rewarded with prosperity,” (Proverbs 13:21) as I am the “righteousness of God in Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:21).
  • “pray, send now prosperity,” (Psalm 118:25).

Abba Father, an earthly father would want his children to succeed in all they do. How much more Your Word shows me You desire so! The One who loves me most of all.

Your Word says “the borrower is the slave to the lender,” and to “owe no one anything except love,” (Proverbs 22:7; Romans 13:8).

So, according to Your Word and will, I ask You to bless the work of my hands so abundantly that I am debt free. I praise You for sending Your Son, Jesus, to deliver me from all forms of captivity. He proclaimed liberty to the captives and released the prisoners (Isaiah 61:1) when He went to the cross for me. Including liberty from the captivity of debt. The finished work of Jesus Christ made me the head and not the tail, above and not beneath, blessed to be a blessing, a lender and not a borrower, no longer a slave,” (Deuteronomy 28). I possess these promises by faith for me and the work of my hands.

With praise and thanksgiving, I:

  • thank You for inviting me to “cast my burdens on You, so You will sustain me and never permit me to be moved,” (Psalm 55:22).
  • thank You that no matter what’s going on in the world, because I trust in Your Word, I “will not be ashamed in the time of evil, and in the days of famine I will have abundance,” (Psalm 37:19).
  • thank You that I will “never be forsaken nor will my children and descendants ever beg for bread,” (Psalm 37:25).
  • bless and “remember You Lord God, for it is You who gives me power to get wealth,” (Deuteronomy 8:18).
  • thank You for commanding the “blessing on all to which I set my hand,” (Deuteronomy 28:8)

Lord, my God, close the wrong doors and open the right ones for me and the work of my hands. Bring divine connections and hedge out little foxes, leaven, and wolves in sheep’s clothing. Protect me at every turn from the plots and traps of the enemy and those with impure hearts and motives who seek my destruction. Go before me and make my way smooth. Surround me with favor as a shield in all I do. And because I reject the paths of the wicked and delight in Your ways, I am like a “tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season, and its leaves do not wither. In all that I do, I prosper,” (Psalm 1:3).

Thank You again, Lord, for all Your YES and AMEN promises to me. I need only believe them, walk and live by faith and not by sight, knowing I will see them fulfilled by Your righteous right hand. “You, the Lord my God, will hold my right hand, saying to me, ‘Fear not, You will help me,” (Isaiah 41:13). Hallelujah! I glorify You and praise Your Holy name.

In Jesus’ name, amen.