Does Your Prayer Pack a Punch?
 By Darlene Osborne, Editor
The Christian Online Magazine

Does your prayer pack a punch? In other words, is your prayer a powerful one? When you are in a fight with Satan, do you always come out the winner?
When we pray, our prayers should make a difference, first in our own lives and then in the lives of others. If our prayers aren’t making a difference? If nothing seems to be happening we aren’t much of a threat to Satan, our enemy.  He won’t consider us very powerful in the Kingdom of God. This is not good! We want Satan to fear us.  Remember what the demon spirit told the seven sons of Sceva in Acts 19:14&15,  “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?” Those certain men didn’t pack much of a punch did they? They had never been heard of by that demon. The devil knows who is powerful in the Kingdom of God and who isn’t. He knows who’s genuine and who’s fake. Who to run from, and who he doesn’t have to run from.
In this particular scripture these men were counterfeit. They were trying to tap into a power that they weren’t trained to use. And let me point out in the very next verse it states these sons of Sceva were overcame by the evil spirit in the man and it prevailed against them so that they fled out of the house both naked and wounded. I think it would be safe to say here, NO they didn’t pack a powerful punch.
Most of the time our bark is bigger than our bite. Many of us make a lot of noise in the kingdom of God, but when it comes right down to it what are we getting done for the Kingdom of God? That is the real issue. Is our bark bigger than our bite? 
While we are at church we boast of big things. We tell the devil where to get on and get off at while we are under the Anointing of the Holy Ghost. But let us return home, isolated from other fellow Christians, and then see how much power we have.
We need to realize that we have just as much power over Satan at home as we do at church. When are we going to figure out that he is a defeated foe? Are we ever going to comprehend Satan's power is limited and at times he is actually powerless but at all times God’s power is UNLIMITED.
Satan may walk about as a roaring lion but his power is no match for God’s power. The devil’s bark is certainly bigger than his bite. Let us remember that he is merely a bully trying to pick on God’s children and we all know what happens to bullies. They almost always get beat up.
Praying is the Key to Power
When our prayers reach the throne they are packing a punch!
Parents, remember when your children were young and they would go outside to play. When they called out mommy or daddy you came running to see what they wanted and to see if anything was wrong didn’t you? God is like that as well. When we pray God hears us. When we call on His name in prayer He will come to us to see what is wrong and how to help.  Jesus’ prayer packed a punch because He reached the very throne of God. When our prayers reach the throne of grace, they too, pack a powerful punch. When Jesus prayed, God listened to what He said and done what He asked! 
I John 5:14-15 tells us that when we pray, if we ask according to God’s will, He hears us and if he hears us we know we will have the petitions that we desire of Him. Now that is a powerful prayer packing punch don’t you think?
A Powerful Prayer that Jesus Prayed
Lazarus was raised from the dead!   Do you remember this powerful prayer Jesus prayed.
Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me. And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it that they may believe that thou hast sent me. John 11:41-42.
Then Jesus went on to raise Lazarus from the dead. Jesus gave death a powerful punch, literally in front of God and everybody. The crowd was then amazed at what He had done.  Even Jesus didn’t take His prayer time lightly. He was the Son of God and He always prayed with such POWER!
The Model Prayer packs a punch
Our Father which art in Heaven
Hallowed be thy name
They kingdom come
Thy will be done
In earth as it is in Heaven
Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our debts
As we forgive our debtors
Lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil
For thy is the Kingdom, the power
And the glory forever. Amen
Lets examine the prayer above because this is our model. We must imitate this prayer.

1.     It begins with addressing the prayer to the Father and admiring Him as the Holy one.

2.     An important factor in this prayer is that the prayer must always ask the Father’s will be done

3.     It states the need for daily bread by emphasizing a need not a want

4.     In asking for forgiveness we must be willing to forgive others also

5.     We are to ask for God to deliver us from evil.

6.     And give glory to the Father again in closing.

When we pray we should make sure we have all the ingredients that makes the prayer powerful. We then need to take those ingredients and blend them together with love and faith. Faith works by love. We cannot leave out these two last ingredients. The prayer won’t turn out right if we do.

For example if we are baking a cake we have the eggs, the oil, the batter and whatever else we need to bake the cake.   We blend them together and put them into the oven. But, as my husband has made a special point to tell me often, “if you don’t bake this with love it won’t taste right.” This is so true. And let me tell you, my husband knows when I have just thrown something together and when I have taken my time and put a lot of work and care into it. I can’t fool my husband and when we pray, we can’t fool God either. We must always use love and faith. And without faith it is impossible to please God.  I believe without love that it is impossible to please God also.

Posted with permission
Darlene is Founding Editor of The Christian Online Magazine/ChristianMagazine.org  
Copyright 2000 by Darlene Osborne

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