Prayer & Warfare — Robert B. Thompson

Prayer for the Afflicted and the Congregation

Well, I asked the Lord to help us Lord as we come unto you tonight Lord. We are very appreciative For all the things that you have done Lord. Appreciate it so much your attention to the details of our lives your faithfulness to answer prayer.

I really appreciate it really appreciate Lord we do come on to you tonight for Michelle Lord this young lady is going through a terrible terrible Situation and worried about her children I'm sure and her husband worried and then having her gallbladder removed and now having problems with her pancreas and pneumonia.

Sounds like she's pretty well bought the ranch here Lord. I know she's in a terrible trauma terrible terrible trauma nightmare of Hospitalization. So Lord, we don't know her. We don't know our circumstances, but Lord we do pray On her behalf Lord and her husband and her children that you'll reach down and make a way for her Lord.

Make a way hear her cry unto you help Jeannie to do what she can to minister life in Your salvation Lord for this soul that is in such distress. I just ask your help Lord. Just ask your help Lord to be there in by her bedside Lord that there may be the comfort of God.

That she may know Lord that there is a God and that he cares that she has suffering in this way. Jesus help. Help Lord. We come unto you for the families that are represented here Lord. We ask that you give peace and the solution to problems.

And just your blessing on each household Lord. We pray as we proceed tonight that you will help us Lord to Say and perceive that which the Holy Spirit has in mind tonight for us in the tape land we pray in Jesus name Amen.

How many were not here Sunday morning. We're not here Sunday morning. Bill April Sandy you weren't here. Jeannie wasn't here. Regina you weren't here and Colleen you weren't here either. How dreadful?

Anyone else. You weren't here either. I thought you're here. You're here Sunday night though. Yeah, okay well put the Big model on the board would you that's very much on my mind tonight? And this is the model that we use Sunday, and I beg the patience of those who were here.

But we'll try to add some stuff to it tonight. I just as I prayed tonight. I felt Continue with this and I guess part of the reason is because some of us weren't here, but in any case We'll try to add something So that nobody will say same old same old.

Okay now I do have for everybody okay now. This is this this is. Okay, senor. And just need one now how many let me see the hands again. Larry make one for everybody one two three four five six seven.

Yeah, I do about ten. I guess because I know it ayala wants a couple. But I don't see him here. Hey get with it. This is Something the Lord laid on my heart. I mean I've been feeling that we're going to.

Spiritual Survival and the Whole Armor of God

I don't know what kind of judgment is going to hit America. But the Lord has talked to me a lot about it, and I don't want to depress you with a lot of grimness in the future. But the Bible commands us in Ephesians 6 I think it's around verse 11 to Put on the whole armor of God that you may stand in the evil day now that was written back in the first century and There's been a lot of evil days since that time.

So And maybe we'll start with that tonight, but first I would like you to those that were not here to realize that this was preached on Sunday morning touched on Sunday night and This model or diagram or outline.

Have you would refer to it is? Larry I'll bring in one so that you'll have a copy this you won't have to worry about it. But it goes along with Sunday mornings tape now. Spiritual survival, there's a lot of talk today about physical survival because of the computer.

Actually, I think wars and terrorism are far more danger to us at this time than the computer, but that being as it may the spiritual survival if you get that right I Think the physical will largely take care of itself, but if you don't get the spiritual right then the physical isn't going to help much.

So These are ten in Number there's probably a lot more, but as I prayed these were the ten that came to me. To set a time and I while I'm writing on this now, and it'll be longer than most of the recent booklets.

And so I've made some little changes and not too much though. But the first item I had set aside a time for prayer each day. Which as you hear the Sunday morning tape if you weren't weren't here I'm very as you know I'm very much into this and I've added place.

So now it will read in the book that I'm making a booklet. It will read set a time a set aside a place in time for a prayer each day. And you have to in your mind otherwise it slips along if you are not pray one of these days.

But you've got to a stab and I'll face character, and I know how busy we are. I understand all of that. Already had one anxiety breakdown from having several jobs at once and dieting at the same time and a heart attack.

So I've been there. I know what it is to work under stress, and I've got a type-a personality but none of these ten is Dispensable if you're going to survive you have to set a time and If you pray God will give you a place in time you have to set aside a Time the Lord doesn't want to get the dregs of your life.

What's left over after you do everything else. So the best time if you can swing it is in the morning. I will awaken the dawn but If that's not possible Then ask God I Was in the Marine Corps you couldn't do much praying in the barracks.

So I would get in the cab of a truck in the motor pool. Well, and then there was a buddy of mine a Nazarene by the way. Good buddy that and we used to get up around four o 'clock. Whoever wake up the other one would be the first.

Would whoever woke up first would go wake up the other one and then we go to the bleachers in Pearl Harbor. There's a Baseball field there and there were bleachers and No, it wasn't the bleachers either.

It was kind of a like a press box is what it was. But it wasn't a fancy one is shaped up in a way and we get in there and pray. Pray up the Sun. This guy and I jack something or other he was a member of the of the Nazarene Church in Pasadena as I remember so Jack and I would get up and we would.

What I'm pointing out to you is you can pray in the cab of a truck if you ask the Lord He'll give you a place and a man got answered prayer. We keep it right down in a little notepad what we had prayed about it.

I mean just like this those prayers were answered which was very reinforcing as you can imagine but If you don't you'll find you open yourself up to deception. Because Satan plays with your mind and you're not refreshing it.

You get burnout from what you're doing because you're not because television won't refresh you. It's it's not a genuine relaxer, it's just fries your brain. Prayer Will relax you and help you sleep better and alert you if you're in deception.

Keep you from burnout so that you keep being renewed like the burning bush and not to mention these answers that you get so. It's not something you can do without but in America so hard because of the materialism of our culture it's so hard to tear away from the Television and all the media and all the other things and take the time.

If you have time to watch the television you have time to pray and all I insist on is a half hour a day now. That's an absolute minimum a half hour set aside for the Lord to talk to him and As you you know there's a thing about prayer.

It's just praying always in the spirit. Where is that? Praying in the spirit as that Luke 18 when he said men ought always to pray first. Thessalonians 517 pray without ceasing. There's one. I think it's Ephesians 618.

Check that one out. Ephesians 618 I think That's it. Oh. Yeah, that's the tail end of the armor of God. That's where it is Ephesians 618. That's all right. We got all eternity on this life. You know we did boys bad news pray in the spirit.

Notice it says be alert and keep on praying for the Saints when you do that you won't gossip and slander and criticize other Christians by the way. But that I just threw that in free. It says pray in the spirit now that doesn't necessarily Mean just pray in tongues.

It doesn't necessarily mean that it's in contrast to just praying from your fleshly mind. Now if you have not had the experience of praying enough to know what it's like to get involved With God in prayer you have a treat coming.

Because just praying in your own human personality can be very boring. It's a regimen that you do and you go through your regimen. And you pray faithfully for all your relatives, and you know it's psychologically painful.

It's not the best part of the day but when you Battle through where you keep up your regimen until God says well he's going to keep at it, then God comes down like he did to Jacob and you get into a where you and God are kind of praying together and the best prayer You'll ever have Is when God tells you to pray for something and like in the second psalm ask of me.

And I will give you the nations for your inheritance see that's where God Invited Christ to pray and when you when you get into becoming a person of prayer. You'll have all kinds of adventures with God just depending on what kind of a person you are you'll have all kinds of adventures with God and There's no telling what you'll Discover in the spirit realm walk on the water with Christ at midnight.

He may give you visions. He gives you a sense of where the buzz is you know so you're not just praying without knowing what you're praying for. Sometimes you'll get gifts of the spirit by praying and find yourself praying in tongues or prophecy.

But none of these things happen if you don't set aside a time for prayer. Now when you get into the ministry it becomes very important, and I remember when Audrey and I were sent here by the Lord and God we ended up in that old sanctuary over there, and it was not holy.

It was not holy in there, and I found out many years later Why it wasn't but it was a nest of demons over there the nest of demons. They were so real I could Not my physical ear, but spiritually I could hear them screaming now I did not know the background of what had gone on in that church two years later.

But it was a nest of vipers in there just an adult spirits to reside in they fast themselves to places. Well, I prayed hour after hour. Every morning I five days a week I was over there. I wasn't working the Lord told me don't go back to work.

I'll supply your needs which I had worked all my life up till that time and And So I spent my time praying over in that building. Until things began to change and I remember after we've been there a couple of years.

That a visiting minister said boy somebody's praying in here. It makes a difference in The building itself and in the whole climate, so you can't just give a 15-minute prayer before you Decide to preach.

I mean when you start a work or whatever there has to be a lot of prayer Goes in and I was challenged by a spirit when I had been there for a couple of months I was sitting in there praying. I was challenged.

You know what are you doing here and So things are very real in the spirit realm and more real to some people and others I guess depending on the kinds of gifts and personality that they have. But nonetheless no Christian is going to survive in the days to come if that person does not have a place and time to pray.

I remember reading about an Orthodox Jew, and he would put us all to shame. I don't know myron whether you gave me the book or not, but he he was in the gulag in Russia. Did you give me that book? He was he was an Orthodox Jew?

How he ever did I don't know but he managed to keep all the feast days, but he was in the most impossible Places and hard on him, and they weren't taking care of him Medically and he got a bad case of hemorrhoids from The course whatever they had in the prison fair.

It was too hard for his system. He was bleeding all over the place, but this guy was I mean he come to the day of Tom. He'd find a place somewhere in The gulag in his cell or out where he was working or whatever he and the most unlikely places.

He'd keep the day of at the moment, and he get the Passover. Well I'm not saying we were to regiment ourselves like that, but what he put us all to shame because all I'm suggesting. Is that you find some place?

You maybe get to work early and pray in your car. Whatever you are in your lunch break or if you can make it up in the morning. That's the best time to hit the Lord in the morning carry yourself out of the sack.

Which means you have to go to bed early you can't stay up till 11 o 'clock at night. Watching the TV and expect to serve the Lord it isn't going to happen. Ain't gonna happen. Get used to the fact that you are not an average person.

They'll all be screaming and frantic and killing each other when enough trouble comes whether it's an earthquake tornado war or whatever. Famine or whatever it is. They can't get their money and their routine is upset, and they can't get their ball game.

They're gonna go absolutely nuts. Because they're not prepared. They're not prepared. Americans are not prepared for trouble and You have got to be because you're. You have a kind of a Joseph mission.

Joseph saved his family. He saved Egypt and the other nations because he was hearing from God. And he knew to store up grain. But if he hadn't have done that they'd have been wasting it all over the place because they didn't know.

Seven years of famine. Was coming so thanks to Joseph his family was saved. Egypt was saved now right now. The Lord has given us grain by hands full spiritually the heavens are open is there if you go for it.

But there's coming darkness, and it won't be like that and if you haven't laid it up for yourself. You're not going to have anything for yourself your family or anybody else. Because you've wasted the time we have now when the heavens are open and God is revealing his word.

So You can't you cannot survive as a Christian. Watch television till 11 o 'clock stagger out of bed at 6 o 'clock. Drink your coffee a couple of piece of toast and go to work. It isn't going to function for you.

You have got to reorganize your life and go to bed early enough that you can get up early. You won't miss a thing. By not watching the television you won't miss anything. But if you don't pray you will miss something.

Now watching the television may be fun, and it is but praying in the spirit is more fun. I'm here to tell you now dry fleshly prayer out of your human personality is not fun. That's a regimen. But when you learn to take up your parable in prayer begin to touch God.

And he begins to pray along with you and gives you the burden and gives you insight and everything. You you'll be hooked on prayer. Huh. Ed I promised you one of these for you and Beth, okay, so You come to it.

I guess by practice. Well, I don't want to ask you personal questions, but I'll just ask a rhetorical question that you don't have to answer. Are you. You might be in a position to pray an hour a day and if you are I Would suggest that you do it because eventually you'll break through.

There's no there's no formula. It's just it's just you're just talking to your father. Yeah, you start on the flesh and Everything in the Christian life you have to start in the flesh. We obey the commandments in the flesh and Then God meets us.

Perseverance in Prayer and Divine Assistance

One of the great mistakes that has been preached today is that Jesus will do it for you. He will not do it for you. That's not scriptural. He is the sword of the Lord and Gideon you have to Do what the Lord said if you love me keep my commandments and then he will help you.

But if you wait for the Lord to do it, you'll still be waiting when you are in a nursing home probably with Alzheimer's. You'll still be waiting For Christ to do it. He won't do it because it doesn't work that way.

Because there's things the Apostles gave us commandment after commandment after commandment and there are things we are to do. And God doesn't do them for us, but when we pray he helps us. He sends grace from the throne and makes it a delight.

That's what they didn't have under the old covenant was that comfort that we have from the Holy Spirit. You know a good way to think of it is like power steering. They may have the newest and best power steering in the world.

Larry's here. You probably say it's in a mercury. I don't know but the best power steering in the world. But if you don't turn the wheel nothing's going to happen. It doesn't know whether to go right left or straight ahead.

And that's the way it is in the spirit realm the powers there, but until you turn the wheel it doesn't kick in so yes Larry will be there when you go out. He can give you a copy of that. He's got enough.

How much you run off? Oh, man, you have way more than enough, okay? So we're still working on the first one. Because the first one I quit first. Um. Yeah, why don't you do that? Just slip up your hand if you don't have one.

We've got ed fixed up back there, and I see Brian Childers came staggering in so he needs one. How's it going? Where's Brooke? No, oh a shadow work will excuse it. And maybe maybe better give Brian one for if you've got enough one for Brooke one for him and one for Brooke.

I have one here. That'll help and then Brian will need to and Malcolm needs one. So you need three more? How many got?

Bill I've also heard it rationalized. Having tried to pray that way and never really getting past the sense that it's just me and my fleshly I'm trying to do something. It doesn't work, and therefore it doesn't work for me and therefore There's never any time in which they penetrate that barrier to reach God's.

It's because they don't stay at it long enough. And you see God is looking to see if you mean business. When you'd make a decision for the Lord you have to be in there for the duration. You have to make up your mind like you say.

I heard brother Thompson say that you can break through to God to where Prayers are delight. You say I'm going to keep at it more to the rest of my life. Okay, because God wants to know how sincere are you.

Yes? That's right.

Fail. Many times when I live I know the Lord's Motivating. Getting to get out of bed, but my pleasure so we can go back to sleep. And I'll get them 10 minutes, and when I don't get up exactly the time I have set up.

Then I blow the whole thing then it's too late.

That's why you have to go to bed early because you see your body needs that sleep. Especially as hard as Tony works and so you work you see you need that sleep, so you just have to say okay? And to your wife we're going to change our routine here.

We're going to go to bed at 8 o 'clock. You know there's no law against going to bed at 8 o 'clock. There is absolutely no law against it and You won't miss a thing. Yes. And the prairie is driving.

It's like different levels. See which flies different levels of communication which is the diamant cautious Talk. There are these different levels. You get closer and closer, and you can't get that the first time.

You can't meet someone one time and get that. You have to meet them over and over and over again. And then it's developed more and more and then more is cast off and get deeper and deeper.

You know There's two good books out on prayer one is E .M. Bounds. That's a famous a classic E .M. Bounds. B-O-U-N-D-S on prayer. And how many of you have ever read the story of Praying Hyde? H-Y-D-E is that still available in bookstores.

Praying Hyde you might ask. Because once you read that you'll be changed. I mean what can happen when God gives a man a spirit of prayer. I mean it was. It's so moved that where he was near he was near a port and the people on the ships coming into the port could feel the power of God.

Pentecost the Pentecostal experience at the turn of this century. Occurred as a black man by the name of Seymour who was a dishwasher. Became burdened in prayer, and he was you know he'd do his work, and then come home and pray evidently wasn't married.

I never heard brother Seymour was married and So he had free time he'd come home and pray. Two or three hours a day just praying for God. He was a Nazarene and Then he got a burden for he felt God was telling him that he wanted to restore tongues to the church so he upped that to several hours a day and He kept that up for a year or two and the power of God fell on Los Angeles and that revival went on for about Three years night and day oh.

History's replete with this kind of thing. David Brainerd who ministered to the Indians is another one that God gave him phenomenal power. No, not everyone can do this. They're not trying to burn you say you've got a Pray that many hours.

I said a half hour a day, but you may find that some of you have a ministry of prayer, and you didn't know it. And it'll begin to pick up and pick up now. There was a past some of the God pastor of the Assembly God Church in National City.

That used to pray six hours a day. And he said I can't do it if I don't get my six hours, and I can't function now. You know you know that's like a Teenager starting off to lift weights and trying to clean and jerk 300 pounds.

I mean isn't gonna happen. So you have to build up to that and it's not for everybody to be a praying hide or an EM bounds. But you'll never know whether it's for you. Until you begin to discipline yourself to pray every day, and if God has more for you along that line He'll begin to entice you into it and pretty soon you get you can't wait to get to pray.

And you're asking God to wake you up in the morning. And he does he does and the first thing you know you're praying two hours a day. It goes too quickly now when I was praying every morning over there in the church.

That was no drag that was no tour de force on my part. I was enjoying it thoroughly. So but I've been praying and making it a point of prayer since I was in Bible school. When I was teaching Sunday school in the assemblies of God on Sunday morning I used to get there 6 6 30 in the morning and pray until it was time for Sunday school.

And that's really I know it was that kind of prayer that eventually landed me down here. It was because I was Enjoying the prayer and God was meeting me and the class was blessed. And I got to where there wasn't even room down where I was Teaching and I was some of the people were around the corner and just hearing it on the on the microphone so You can't tell what God will do.

So I'm giving you here a minimum. I'm telling you won't survive. Much less find out if you've got a gift of praying. If you don't set aside a place and a time you have to resolve to do this because our culture is killing us.

It's killing us. The big corporations want your soul. They just don't want you to work eight hours a day. They want your soul. They're calling for your soul. Nowhere is this more true than in the computer industry.

I mean the the competition is so intense you have to give yourself to it body soul and spirit. Same thing is true working in Washington DC. If you're a part of one of the president's cabinet or something they want your soul and To say a half hour a day to pray at first blush.

It seems that's not possible to me. You don't know. Yeah, I'm work like having two jobs. I my employer wants me there 12 hours in. I understand, but it's survival. And if you go to God and say Lord, I want a place and time to pray and I mean business God will hear your prayer and he'll do that now it God may meet you the first time you hit your knees or you may be six months plowing through the brambles and.

And so when you set yourself to something like this you have to say Lord. You're going to be hearing from me every morning as long as I live so you might as well meet me now. It won't be too long me. You know, you remember there's a parable about that where Jesus said about this person wanted the Holy Spirit to minister to his friends that my friends come have no bread and.

So he asked the good man of the house for bread. He's honest. I'm better with my kids. What's the put down he blew it off? I blew it off and the guy kept it up and kept it up. And what did the good man of the house say?

He said I'm gonna get no sleep around here. This guy's gonna leave me alone. He's throwing stones in the window. So he gets up and gives him the bread that he asked for for his friends not because he wanted to.

Or because he was compassionate but because he couldn't get any sleep. And then he gave us another story about this unjust judge and the widow kept coming to avenge me on my adversary avenge me on my adversary and Jesus said He this judge didn't fear God or man, but the woman wore him up.

This wore him up. And so Jesus said ask and He shall receive Seek and You don't find Knock and it shall be open which is a lesson in what's called importunity. That is you don't quit asking until you receive.

You don't quit seeking until you find. You don't quit Knocking until it's open. It may not happen the first time. It may not happen for a year. I think brother Seymour was at it for two or three years praying seven hours a day.

But you see by that time the spirit was taking over and giving him the burden that God wanted to restore tongues. It was not a dry prayer in which he came home from washing dishes and then Regimented himself to pray seven hours a day.

That was not the case by this time he had entered into the spirit of prayer and people that do let that like Ian Bonds or Frank Hyde or David Brainerd or any of the other famous prayer warriors of history the Pastor at National City.

He wasn't dreading get up in the morning. Oh Lord, what will I do? I've got to pray six hours and I'd rather be going around with my bag lunch to the Rotary Club and To the hospital and everything else instead.

I gotta pray. That was the best part of his day so when so Realize that we're not talking about that some dry Practice that's the worst time of your day. That you force yourself to get down and stare at the wall and pray for your aunt Minnie.

We're not talking about that. We're talking about learning. To pray in the spirit and it goes along see the preceding verses to the one you're looking at. How to do with putting on the armor of God? Yes.

It's supposed to be that way. Yes, you really do make God. God does not mind being held accountable in that way. I think he'd rather delights that his children believe him enough to take the time to pray.

But you see if God did not answer He would break his own word because he said if you will ask anything in my name, I will do it now I've got didn't do it. He would break his word. Now the and I remind God of that especially when I'm praying as I do every day.

To be kept from deception and I say now Lord. I'm asking you. Today I want you to take out of my mind and heart everything that is not of you and. And everyone's to us and I'll remember the covenant. The covenant is if you shall ask anything in my name I will do it.

I say father. Remember the covenant. This is what you've said and This is what I'm asking. And there's nothing wrong with that. See that now when you say but I asked something and I didn't get the answer.

When Jesus said if you ask anything my name, I will do it. He didn't say how soon and That's critically important. Because sometimes you ask for things That are not really what you want. You're asking for a metaphor instead of the real thing.

You're asking for something that you think will give you what you want. But God reads what you really want and he knows he's asking for the wrong thing. So as you keep on praying and believing God, you don't pray once for something you Every day with praise and Thanksgiving let your request be made known to God.

Okay, so you keep reminding him and God the minute you prayed the first time the machinery went into motion because otherwise his word it would be breaking his word and John 3 16 wouldn't be true. The whole thing is true.

Okay, so when you ask anything in his name God said in Jesus name, he will do it. All right, so we prayed once the machinery's going so you don't forget that you don't let God forget that. I've asked that and but God is working on that and if it's a wrong prayer.

Over a period of time God will show you. This is not really there's a better way. You're not asking for the right thing. Now, I suppose you could pester God to the place where he gave it to you knowing it was not good for you.

To just let you learn by experience not to force the issue. Trust God that when you pray God reads your heart and he gives you the answer that is the answer. Now sometimes you pray and you get the answer that week and other times it may be 30 years later.

But that doesn't cut any ice. Let's stop and then you say 30 years later. You know what's going on in that time. God is preparing you to receive your answer. Without it destroying you and being able to keep it and that 30 years was necessary for that to be true.

And you don't want an answer before. You're able to handle it appropriately and Maintain it. You don't want that. You don't really want that. Unless you're some kind of a schlamiel, you know, you don't care what happens to you just as long as your flesh is pampered.

But if you really want Something good from God that is enduring God has to answer the prayer. This is what he said in the word. He doesn't lie. You will get it. So you never give up on your dreams. I Think God spoke something to me a couple of days ago.

That was marvelous. And it's really a help when you get too determined to have your own way and This is what came to me. There is not there is nothing in the creation That is truly desirable. Unless God makes it desirable.

Divine Desire and the Rest of God

I might be a little bit profound. But what it's saying is there is nothing in the creation whether it's relationships things or circumstances That is inherently desirable to you. Now you may want it Because your flesh is involved.

Or something else is involved that's causing you to desperately desire something. But it's not really desirable. It's not truly desirable, but you don't know that The only thing in the creation as far as you're concerned, and I'm concerned That is truly desirable is that which God makes desirable To us and when God makes something desirable to us He always gives it to us because his word says he opens his hand.

It satisfies the desire of every living creature. And again, he says delight yourself in the Lord now. Give you the desires of your heart. But you see we have it's like the little boy. Who's a born poet.

But when he's five years old, he wants to be a fireman. Because he saw a red truck and heard the siren. The worst thing in the world I want to know. Oh dad get me a fire truck. I want to be a fireman.

He doesn't want to be a fireman. See his desires are Superficial. Are you following me now when you ask for something God? Determines whether you're a someone with a real gift for poetry. That's asking to be a fireman and he knows that will never fulfill you.

He knows your motivation is Superficial it's because you saw the red truck and heard the siren and all the kids running down the street. And this is the old days, you don't remember anyway, all the kids run down the street.