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One major reason the Church struggles to engage the kingdom of God’s influence on earth through prayer is the misapplication of Ephesians 6:12, which states:
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”
Many Christians understand that we must wrestle against the forces of darkness that influence the spiritual atmosphere by praying against them.
While we have authority in Christ over these forces, Scripture does not command us to pray against them. In principle, there is no biblical instruction to do so, and in practice, there is not a single example in Scripture where believers engaged in such prayers.
When Christians gather to pray against the forces of darkness, they often struggle to:
1. Yield to the Holy Spirit – This hinders the Spirit’s ability to energize their prayers and release tremendous power (Ephesians 6:18; James 5:16).
2. Stay alert in prayer – They fail to recognize the promptings of the Holy Spirit, making it difficult to pray in alignment with God’s will.
3. Show reverence to God – Their display of inappropriate gestures hinders their prayers from being heard (Hebrews 5:7, NLT).
4. Focus on God – When their attention shifts to the enemy instead of God, it prevents Him from showing Himself strong on their behalf (2 Chronicles 20:12-23; Hebrews 12:2; Acts 16:25-26).
5. Pray with one accord – True corporate prayer, when unified and God-focused, attracts God’s presence and power (2 Chronicles 5:13-14; Acts 4:23-31; 5:12).
The Dangers of Misdirected Prayer
Some faithful Christians have suffered dire consequences due to misdirected prayers:
Engaging the enemy directly in prayer rather than standing firm in faith has led to tragic losses.
Depression and discouragement – When prayers focus on the enemy rather than on God, believers become weary and spiritually drained.
Loss of faith – Many give up on God because they fail to see results from prayers that are not biblically aligned.
May we all wake up to the truth of God’s Word and walk in the light of our redemption. As believers, our focus should be on enforcing our victory in Christ over the powers of darkness through faith, not engaging in unnecessary battles.
GOD’S servant: Peter Collins Obeng
GRACE COVENANT GLORY
