This year, my approach to prayer has changed- in a good way. God has been speaking to my heart and guiding me through scripture to have a deeper understanding of what it means to have spiritual authority in the name of Jesus Christ, and the freedom that comes along with that.

The other day, I was feeling overwhelmed by the things on my to-do list. I started to feel stressed and was almost in tears. Then, it hit me. I can resist that. I don’t have to give in to feeling stressed and overwhelmed just because I’m tempted. It was like a switch flipped. I said, “No. I’m not doing this anymore.” I realized it was a tactic of our spiritual enemy, and I felt indignant.

Rather than tears, I felt fired up. I adjusted my helmet of salvation and breastplate of righteousness. I tightened my belt of truth and my shoes of good news. I picked up my shield of faith, and I drew my sword. I chose to fight back. I told satan there may be times he catches me off guard, but AS SOON AS I recognize his handiwork, l will stand my ground. I WILL draw my sword and claim the authority given to me as a child of the Most High God. Scripture tells me that Jesus won victory on the cross. It tells me that I am a co-heir with Christ and that if I have accepted Him, confessed my sins, accepted His forgiveness and payment for my sins – I have victory by association.

I’m realizing that I had been cowering at the thought of addressing the enemy. I wasn’t using my sword as it was intended. My armor wasn’t secured properly in place. I ran to the Father, armor slipping, but hadn’t started to stand my ground until recently. I don’t have to keep looking back to check and make sure my Heavenly Father is still there, as a child does in a new environment. I have confidence that He is ALWAYS there, and He told us to stand our ground. He gave us a sword and told us to resist the devil. Jesus demonstrated how to use the sword while being tempted in the desert. He answered satan with scripture.  We can do the same.

After I addressed the enemy, sword in hand, I prayed to the Father, and jotted down this version of what I had prayed:

Heavenly Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, I ask that you send the Holy Spirit to bring to my attention very quickly when the enemy is attacking. Help me to be able to stand my ground and claim the authority given to me through Jesus’s death and victory on the cross and my acceptance of it. I have applied the blood to myself and to my household, and I know that we have authority over evil. I know that scripture says no weapon formed against us will prosper, so the weapons of discouragement, depression, stress, anxiety and fear, pride, anger, unforgiveness, bitterness, feeling overwhelmed… None of those will prosper because we have been bought and paid for by the blood of Jesus Christ. I know the truth, and scripture says the truth will set me free. I am free indeed. In my freedom, I thank you, Abba, for the joy that you’ve given to me, the peace you have given my soul, the healing you give me for past hurts, and the ability and the authority to exercise my power through your Holy Name over our enemy. I know it’s nothing of my own authority, but the authority of your name.
Amen