Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.
Colossians 4:2

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
1 Thessalonians 5:16–18

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In the 2015 Christian movie War Room, there is a character named Miss Clara—an older, wiser woman who introduces one of the main characters struggling with her marriage to what she calls her “war room.” It’s a room in which she prays and lifts up her desires to God. The tagline of the movie is “Prayer is a powerful weapon.” Miss Clara has a line where she says, “You need to do your fighting in prayer.” 

The word “weapon” is probably not one that many of us associate with prayer. And yet, prayer can be just that. It is a powerful tool that God has given us to fight the enemy and to align us with  His will. And the more often we pray, the greater the impact.

The Bible is filled with stories of battles, one nation conquering another. Even today, we are surrounded by wars and destruction. If we are facing such powerful forces, God knew to equip us with equally powerful weapons. Through prayer, God arms us to face them. 

Prayer allows us to remain watchful. By maintaining that open line of communication with our almighty God who sees everything, we are invited into His plan and made spiritually aware of what not only He is doing in the world, but also what the enemy is doing. 

Devoting ourselves to prayer is a decision we need to make on a daily basis, for the enemy will try to distract us any chance he gets. Finding things to be thankful for throughout the day is a great way to reconnect with God and put our focus back on Him. I am often in awe of the many things I can count in a single moment that I’m thankful for.

The beautiful fruit of a devoted prayer life is that we begin to come before God not to receive answers to our prayers, but to receive Him, to the point of overflowing with His presence. We shift our perspective from what He can do for us to how we can serve Him. “Prayer is sitting in the silence until it silences us, choosing gratitude until we are grateful, praising God until we ourselves are a constant act of praise,” Richard Rohr, a Franciscan priest. 

Next Steps

Does your prayer life feel like it might need a little boost? Try some of these strategies:

• create a dedicated “war room” where you can pray often.
• practice finding moments of gratitude throughout your day to give God thanks.
• reflect on Bible verses on prayer, such as 1 John 5:14-15, Mark 11:24, and James 5:16.