It is not new that some Christians do ask why we have to pray since we are children of God and covered by His protection. Truly we are children of God once we have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Saviour. It is also true that the Lord promised to protect us, but you have to know as a child of God that the world and earth which we live in is a battleground. It is a place of intense spiritual warfare. The wars in the spirit are more real than the beauties available here on earth. And therefore, we must be vigilant and watchful. One of the admonishments that Apostle Paul gave us in the scriptures is to ‘‘pray without ceasing,’’ (1 Thessalonians 5:17, NKJV). This shows that prayer is important. It is a means by which we communicate with God. In prayers, we pour out our hearts to God, that is, telling Him how we feel, what we need to be done, what we don’t like etc.
We cannot but pray despite being children of God because the earth is LORD’s, but there is an adversary that is ruling the world in a way that is not conformable to the ways of God. And by so doing, the adversary fights with us, the chosen ones of God which seek to carry out the plans of God on the earth. Now, because God has given us the earth rightfully (see Psalms 8), there is a battle for supremacy on who should rule on the earth. Therefore, as a child of God, you must know that you must rule on earth to show forth the Glory and fulfil the will of God.
Oftentimes, the warfare in the spirit starts from the realm of the mind, that is, temptations, or thoughts which do not align with the will or word of God. There is a constant effort by the devil to corrupt our minds and mess it up so that we can be filled with all unrighteousness; and when this is achieved, the evil works of the devil can be revealed through man and spread to all the earth, thus signifying him as having control of the prevailing situation(s). But God has called us to show forth His Glory so that the good works of the Lord can be revealed through us, hence we have dominion on earth with the help of the Holy Spirit.
Thankfully, God didn’t hide all this from us. We are soldiers of Christ. That is why we were given spiritual weapons to fight the enemy, and this can be seen in Ephesians 6:12-18. Verse 18 says, ‘‘praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.’’
In order to stand strong, we need all the weapons of spiritual warfare, that is, armor of God which are: truth, righteousness, gospel of peace, faith, salvation and word of God; all these are to be combined and present every time and used in prayers. It is with the mouth that we make the declaration that activates these weapons.
Therefore, in order to stand in times of spiritual warfare, do not close your mouth, because it is by it that you declare salvation, truth, the word of God, words of faith and righteousness and the gospel of peace. Open your mouth and pray, declaring the words of God by faith and you will always be victorious.