Tuesday Open Heavens Devotional - Overcoming By Prayer

MEMORISE: And when he was at the place, he said unto them, pray that ye enter not into temptation. Luke 22:40.

READ: Luke 22:39-41.
39.And he came out, and went, as he was wont, to the mount of Olives; and his disciples also followed him. 40.And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation. 41.And he was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed.

MESSAGE
The moment you gave your life to Jesus Christ, a battle line was drawn between you and the kingdom of darkness. Unhappy that he has lost you to God’s kingdom, Satan’s main goal is to secure your return to his kingdom. One major tool he tries to use in accomplishing this mission is temptation. The devil and his agents will bring temptations your way to make you to do things that would break your relationship with God. This is where prayer comes in. prayer is one veritable tool that prevents you from falling into Satan’s traps. This is why Jesus urged His disciples at the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. Luke 22:40 says: “And when he was at
the place, he said unto them, pray that ye enter not into temptation.” When you pray, the strength to overcome temptations is released to you. A Christian who fails to pray will sooner or later become a victim of the tempter. The extent to which you will overcome temptations is determined by how robust your prayer life is. If you have been raising and falling so often, check your prayer life and the way you study God’s word. If you can improve on both, you will experience more stability in your faith. One of the modus operandi of Satan is to show you dazzling sights that could tempt you to follow him. In other words, he presents an object of temptation in a bright and attractive way; repainting an evil thing in brilliant and attractive colours. For instance, a prostitute is labelled a commercial sex worker, in order to support the excuse that he or she is simply trying to earn a living, whereas the essence of prostitution is fornication and adultery.
In tempting people, the devil and his agents make sin look attractive and inviting, almost with an air of irresistibility. Prayer deadens these illusions by painting sin in its real colours. Every time you pray over an object of temptation, it becomes less inviting and less attractive. As you pray, the desire to sin is brought under subjection. Through prayer, we obtain grace to walk in the reality of the truth that our flesh has been crucified (Galatians 5:24). Prayer strengthens our spirit man and keeps the flesh where it belongs: crucified and dead on the cross of Calvary (Romans 6:6). It connects your spirit with the Holy Spirit and separates you from the
devil, by moving your focus towards Heaven and away from the allure of the world. How prayerful are you? No believer in Christ can triumph without using the weapon of prayer.

PRAYER POINT: Father, please give me the grace to pray like Jesus prayed while on earth.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalm 57-63, Hebrews 6:13-7:10.