PRESSING TOWARD THE MARK
2. Fight for God by praying at all times.
You may be thinking, “Come on, Paul, be realistic! I have to make a living! I have to go to school! How can I pray at all times?”
The phrase is literally, “at every opportunity.” It’s the same idea as 1 Thessalonians 5:17, “Pray without ceasing.” The Greek word translated without ceasing was used of a hacking cough and of repeated military assaults. Someone with a hacking cough does not cough every second, but rather he coughs repeatedly and often. He never goes very long without coughing. In the case of repeated military assaults, the army makes an assault then regroups and attacks again and again until it conquers the city. In the same way, we should pray often and repeatedly until we gain the thing for which we are praying.
John MacArthur explains (The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, Ephesians [Moody Press], p. 380),
To obey this exhortation means that, when we are tempted, we hold the temptation before God and ask for His help. When we experience something good and beautiful, we immediately thank the Lord for it. When we see evil around us, we pray that God will make it right and be willing to be used of Him to that end. When we meet someone who does not know Christ, we pray for God to draw that person to Himself and to use us to be a faithful witness. When we encounter trouble, we turn to God as our Deliverer. In other words, our life becomes a continually ascending prayer, a perpetual communing with our heavenly Father.
That last sentence, that our life is to be a perpetual communing with God, is vital. Prayer isn’t just rushing into God’s presence as if you were rushing into the bank to get some needed funds and then not going back until you needed more. Prayer is going into the bank many times throughout the day because you’re in love with the banker. You enjoy talking with him.
Also, when we’re in need, prayer is not to be our last resort: “We’ve done all that we can do! Now, all we can do is pray!” John Bunyan said (source unknown), “You can do more than pray after you have prayed, but you cannot do more than pray until you have prayed.” Prayer should be the first thing that we think to do when we’re aware of a need.
Prayer is not a mere formality to say before a meal or to open a meeting. It’s the way that we acknowledge our need and dependence on God and lay hold of His promises. As John Calvin wrote (The Institutes of the Christian Religion [Westminster Press], edited by John McNeill, translated by Ford Lewis Battles, 3:20:2), “It is, therefore, by the benefit of prayer that we reach those riches which are laid up for us with the Heavenly Father.” Or, to cite Bunyan again (The Works of John Bunyan [Baker], 1:65), “Pray often, for prayer is a shield to the soul, a sacrifice to God, and a scourge for Satan.” Pray with all prayer and petition, at all times.