Our thoughts after prayer are as important as the prayer itself. We are to "be faithful" (Romans 12:12) and "devoted" in prayer (Col. 4:2). We are to pray "with joy" (Phil. 1:4), specifically and "with thanksgiving" (Phil. 4:6-7), "most earnestly" (1 Thess. 3:10), and "continually", without ceasing (1 Thess. 5:17).
I memorized Phil. 4:6-7 as a young Christian. I've repeated it hundreds of times since then. Many times my family and I faced tough times and God's direction for us was always to "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." I can tell you from decades of walking with God that His Word is true and it works.
How does God guard (protect) our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus? The next verse, Phil. 4:8, is a key to the spiritual process.
"Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy--meditate on these things."
What we think about after presenting our requests to God is important to the process of faith in our hearts. Meditate on, think about, things that are true, noble, just, pure, lovely and of good report. Doubt is not faith. Negativity is not faith. Faith is faith. Faith is "the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1) What's the result of that kind of faith? "For by it the elders obtained a good testimony." (Hebrews 11:2) Good things follow those who demonstrate faith in God.
Satan is our enemy, just as he is God's enemy. Jesus gave us an amazing insight to how Satan deals with the Word of God in our lives. Jesus explained to His disciples the meaning of the Parable of the Sower found in Mark chapters 3 and 4. "Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. And it happened, as he sowed, that some seeds fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it." As Jesus explaind to His disciples, the sower of the seed was really the one who sows the Word of God. "And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts." (Mark 4:15). Satan is one of the three archangels of God. He has powers beyond our ability to understand. He is like a roaring lion walking about "seeking whom he may devour." (1 Peter 5:8)
It's interesting that the first example of what happens to God's Word when it is sowed (taught, shared, presented, explained) among people is how Satan swoops down like a bird on a seed and devours it. That's why many Christians experience ups and downs in their lives. We have a wonderful spiritual high only to spiral downward to the bottom of despair. How did we fall so far so fast? We hear the Word of Faith and rejoice in it, but Satan is prowling around and swoops in to grab the seed before it can root in our heart and mind. We see it for just a moment, but then it's gone and we feel terrible again. What does God's Word tell us to do about that? "Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen." (1 Peter 5:6-11)
There's God's secret to living by faith! It begins with humility "under the mighty hand of God," knowing He will exalt us in due time. We cast all our cares (worries, fears, doubts, inferiority complexes, self-degradation, faithlessness, unbelief) on God because He cares for us! That's possibly the most powerful, liberating truth of all: God cares for you and me! He cares for everything that bothers us, that gets to us, that hurts us, that causes us pain, that brings us down, that messes up our life, that makes things tough, that brings tears to our eyes and aches to our heart. He cares for us! Knowing that and having God's care for us as our foundation for dealing with the devil, we "resist him, steadfast in the faith."
James gives us more insight into how to deal with Satan's attempts to take away our faith, peace and joy. "Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded ... Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up." (James 4:7-8, 10) Step one: submit to God. That's the same thing as humbling yourself under the mighty hand of God. From that position of humility and submission to God we can stand firm in faith and resist the devil and "he will flee from you." It doesn't say Satan will stand around and think about it for awhile. It doesn't say Satan will slowly walk away. It says "and he will flee from you." Satan cannot stand in the presence of the prayers of God's people who are humble and submissive to their Heavenly Father. Satan has to get permission from God to do anything to God's children. He has to receive permission from God to come into God's presence, but once there Satan continually accuses God's people every chance he gets. That's an important aspect of spiritual warfare. That's why Paul wrote that when we pray trusting God, God will place a powerful protection around our hearts and minds. We cast our care on the One Who cares for us through our prayers and supplications with thanksgiving. God protects us spiritually from the attacks of Satan to take away our faith and joy. In God's power we are able to resist the devil, steadfast in faith, and Satan will flee from us.
Our prayers are with you as you find the secrets of a powerful prayer life!
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by Permission. All rights reserved.