Jesus, You have given me the concept of taking...the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, to a whole new level. As I come to the end of this study on the sword of the Spirit, I ask that You would put any last minute training in me so I can go out and win at life here and in eternity. Since my sword is empowered by the Holy Spirit and God’s Word, let Him teach me more of Your Word. Help me learn how to use it on more and more issues of life. Help me keep reading, studying, and praying that the full potential of the sword of the Spirit will be manifest in my life.

As the sword of the Spirit protects me, sets others free, and gets others ready to set others free, let it automatically get me ready to pass Your final exam (Mat 25:31-46). You are teaching me how to pass this final exam with such skill that I don’t just barely make it in to Your Kingdom. I am learning how to use the sword of the Spirit with such effectiveness that I am becoming the very best there is in You.

Jesus, You have given me a choice of where I want my benefits and rewards to be stored. You have instructed me to not store up for myself treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But You instructed me to store up for myself treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal (Mat 6:19-20). Help me know how and then empower me to obey this principle. This will help me get ready for the Christian-rewards test in 1 Cor 3:12-13 (NIV). You taught me that I can take advantage of Your power and training to get all my benefits invested in eternity.

Thank You for helping me make the commitment in Phil 3:13-14 (NIV): I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Thank You for working this commitment into my life.

Jesus, help me use the sword of the Spirit to get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and help me humbly accept the word planted in me, which can save me (James 1:21). Help me understand moral filth and evil by You helping me understand sin. Teach me that sin is anything that is harmful to me and those around me. Show me that sin is a thought, feeling, word, or deed that hurts people. Reveal to me that sin can be very pleasurable but ends up doing damage to me if I yield to it. Keep me aware of the fact that sin is often like fish bait; it can contain something good that I typically desire and need, but, with a hook in it.

Teach me that moral filth and evil can be so pleasurable that even when I start seeing the great damage it is doing to me, I can’t quit. But, if I humbly accept the word planted in me, which can save me, my sword of the Spirit can set me free. Teach me that the hardest part of being set free is for me to DESIRE to be set free. The memory of the pleasure-experiences can keep me from WANTING or DESIRING to be set free. Let me ask You to help me see how bad the moral filth and evil are.

Jesus, You caused John to write to me as a, father, because I have known You Who existed from the beginning. You caused John to write to me as a young man, because I am strong, and the word of God lives in me, and I have overcome the evil one (1 John 2:14). Teach me that the main way for me to get to know You Who are from the beginning is to study the Bible. Teach me that the main way for me to be strong, and the word of God live in me is to study the Bible. If I am going to be successful now and in eternity by overcoming the evil one, I am going to have to fully understand how to use my sword of the Spirit.

BAD DESIRES WITHOUT PRAYER: Jesus, explain to me what causes fights and quarrels among me and the people around me. Show me that they come from my desires that battle within me (James 4:1). I started out with human desires, world training, and satanic influence governing my life. I started out with wrong desires, wrong goals, wrong philosophies, wrong plans, and wrong systems and methods. This caused me to get actively involved in life with all these wrong things; and, I ended up with all the wrong results.

HUMAN EFFORT WITHOUT PRAYER: Jesus, explain to me why I want something but don’t get it. Show me why I kill and covet, but I cannot have what I want. I quarrel and fight. But, I do not HAVE, because I do not ask God (James 4:2). I have misunderstood what it is I want; instead of going after true happiness, I made a major FALSE assumption. I THOUGHT THINGS WOULD MAKE ME HAPPY. So, I decided what kind of career, job, person, circumstance, or thing would make me happy. Then, for the rest of my life, I have been putting that assumption into place and pursued happiness based on that philosophy.

Teach me that all I have to do to keep from spending my entire life pursuing happiness the wrong way is to ask God. Show me that He will help me use my sword of the Spirit to resist all of my wrong desires, wrong goals, wrong philosophies, wrong plans, and wrong systems and methods. That will set me up for a whole new way of life that has good desires, good goals, good philosophies, good plans, and good systems and methods. Plus, God will introduce me to a better experience than happiness; He will provide me with joy.

PRAYER WITH BAD MOTIVES: Jesus, there are times when I ask, but, I still do not receive, because I ask with wrong motives, that I may spend what I get on my pleasures (James 4:3). When I first learned the importance of praying and asking You for the things I THOUGHT would make me happy, I hadn’t changed that much in my wrong desires, wrong goals, wrong philosophies, wrong plans, and wrong systems and methods. I just ADDED God to my list of ways for getting things I THOUGHT would make me happy. That is when my prayers didn’t work.

As a new person of prayer, I still think I know what is best for me; I just want God to see to it that I get it. I am NOT asking God; I am TELLING God what to do. Help me learn that God is smarter than me, loves me more than I love myself, and has a lot more power than I do. Help me not just see God as my new delivery system; help me not be willing to USE Him; help me not use Him because He offers me a greater potential of making my dreams, desires, and needs come true. Let the sword of the Spirit help me get rid of all these wrong attitudes, motives, and philosophies. Let it bring healing to my faith, trust, dependency, and reliance on my heavenly Father.

Jesus, train and empower me to such a degree that I come to the place where I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith (2 Tim 4:7). Keep my efforts, determination, commitment, and expectations from becoming weak. Help them not become weak because I lack the faith that God really does exist and really does reward me when I earnestly seek Him. Teach me that without faith it is impossible to please God, because when I come to Him I must believe that He exists and that He rewards me when I earnestly seek Him (Heb 11:6). Show me that my sword of the Spirit is capable of bring me all the victories. But, if my swinging, striking, and fighting are half-hearted, I won’t win based on its full potential.

Help me realize that I have to fight the good fight; I have to finish the race; and I have to keep the faith. Put a fierce, bold, tenacious, and committed attitude into my use of my sword of the Spirit. Let faith fill my heart, so my whole attitude and motivation will be all out. When I fight, let it be such an attack against my human desires, the world’s influences, and Satan’s temptation that it can only be described as ferocious.

Jesus, help me speak the truth in love, so I will in all things grow up into You Who are the Head, that is, Christ my Messiah (Eph 4:15). As I present the truth of the sword of the Spirit, teach me that it isn’t to destroy people; it is to heal them. Teach me that I am not to attack people; I am attacking the things and the influences that are driving them. Teach me that my struggle is not against flesh and blood [humans], but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Eph 6:12).

Teach me that even though I live in the world, I do not wage war as the world does. The weapons I fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds (2 Cor 10:3-4). Keep me aware of the fact that the sword of the Spirit is You; and, You have a love-motive that You operate through. Show me that if I yield to Satan I will be a part of the thief that comes only to steal and kill and destroy; but, if I join You, I will cooperate with You and come that they may have life, and have it to the full (John 10:10). Help my sword of the Spirit to operate through Your motives of love.

Jesus, help me not merely listen to the word, and so deceive myself. Empower me to do what it says (James 1:22). Teach me that I have the sword of the Spirit for the purpose of using it. I can have it, carry it every where I go, learn all about it, and become very skilled in knowing how to use it; but, if I don’t actually use it, I lose. I have been exposed to a lot of information about it; I have prayed a lot of prayers for it; now help me intentionally, purposefully, put it into action in my life.