Ten Attributes of Prayer

What a world we are living in. Terrorism continues unabated. This week, a senseless killing of at least 19 children and parents at a teenage concert in Manchester, England. Over 100 people were injured. Bombs filled with nails and all kinds of metal objects just to make the most damage.

A hundred years ago, that would have been impossible. People would never have experienced something like that. And right now, we are facing at least four great dangers above all the others.

One is North Korea, a rogue state that's very unpredictable, defying the world, trying to get now intercontinental missiles.

Then you have Iran, still on the way to acquire nuclear arms. They are defiant.

We don't know what's going to happen in the next couple years there. Then we have Russia, a nuclear power that is quite unstable, politically and economically. They have not been able to grow economically, and so it becomes more desperate, trying to focus people's attention outside of Russia. And then the fourth is Islamic extremism. And terrorism. We don't know how much more serious that is, but I just heard last night that ISIS had declared war on the entire Western civilization, just trying to get everybody in their groups around the world to have an uprising and attack. We don't know how safe things will be in the future, but one thing is for sure.

We must not slack off on our prayer life. Over the past 50 years, America has transgressed all of these dangerous boundaries.

We just can cover the Supreme Court decisions in the last 50 years. The first one that affected religion here in America was in 1962, Ingovis v. Vitale. That was the removal of prayer in public schools by the Supreme Court.

1963, a year later, Abingdon School District v. Shemp is the removal of Bible reading in public schools by the Supreme Court. 1973, Roe v. Wade legalized abortions by the Supreme Court.

Since then, America has performed over 58 million abortions.

Presently, about 1 million abortions occur every year in America. This law means that about 1 million children annually will not be able to grow up, populate the earth, and potentially become godly offspring as far as having a life. We do believe there's this possibility that they will be raised up after the millennium. And so there is that hope, but the world doesn't have that hope.

Then in 1980, Stone v. Graham, in this case, the Supreme Court ruled that a Kentucky statute was unconstitutional, requiring the posting of a copy of the Ten Commandments on the wall of each public classroom in the state. Then in 2003, now we're getting closer to our age here in this 21st century, Lawrence v. Texas. This was the landmark decision by the United States Supreme Court that struck down the sodomy law in Texas, which is dealing with homosexuality. So now it's public, now it's allowed, acceptable.

Then in 2013, the United States v. Windsor, the case of the Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act, known here as DOMA. DOMA stated that one man should be married to one woman. Marriage is the ordained relationship through which a man and a woman can become fruitful and multiply the earth with godly children. And the last one, 2015, Obergefell v. Hodges, the Supreme Court case that ruled in favor of same-sex marriages, which is unbiblical, according to Romans 1.27 and elsewhere. Same-sex couples are unable to procreate naturally, therefore it is humanly impossible for them to be fruitful and populate the earth with godly children. Now they're coming up with all kinds of other ways, but it can't be done naturally, biologically, like a man and a woman can do, as it was designed by God. And Christ warned this generation that the love of many would wax cold because of all the problems and all the depravity that we would see around us. Notice in Matthew 24 verses 12 through 13, I'll go ahead and read it. It says, And because lawlessness will abound, the breaking of God's laws, the love of many will grow cold, but he who endures to the end shall be saved, he who perseveres in the faith. That's a person that will be saved. Now we have so many distractions and perversions that Christ knew the love of many would wax cold. People would quit developing their spiritual lives. As you can see today, it used to be a God-fearing nation as a whole. But now, kids, they're not going to church. They're going to all kinds of distractions, and they like to party and just have fun. Most have money to do so. But to do something godly, to develop spiritual character, that's not on their goals.

Christ was so concerned about the condition of regular prayer before his coming that he actually gave a parable about it. Let's turn to Luke chapter 18 verses 1 through 8. Luke chapter 18 verses 1 through 8. Then he spoke a parable to them that men always ought to pray and not lose heart, not become disheartened, discouraged. When you're discouraged, when you're depressed, it's very hard to pray. It's very hard to have a good relationship with God. When couples fight, they're mad at each other, it's hard, God says, so that your prayers be not disturbed or unsettled. There in 1 Peter 3, you can read that later. But it's talking about the importance of having good relationships, because when we don't, prayer life is going to suffer, because people are upset, they lose heart, they lose hope, and lose faith. So because of this concern, he says in verse 2, there was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man. So here's a man that he was out just to do his own bidding. He was quite self-centered, very important. He says he really didn't care regarding man. He was just doing a job for what he could get out of it. Verse 3, now there was a widow in that city, and she came to him saying, get justice for me from my adversary. And of course, widows usually get taken advantage of, especially if the husband leaves them in a state. They don't know how to manage the business very well, and they get taken advantage of. And this was the case of this widow that she had been taken advantage of. And so she came before this judge, and it was like filing a lawsuit in those days. And she wanted justice. She wanted the person to return what they had embezzled or stolen from her. Verse 4, and he would not for a while. So he didn't pay attention. He said, what's this widow going to do for me? I've got more important fish to fry in that sense. I've got more important people that can help me out in my career, that I can get some money off of them. But a widow, I'm not going to get anything. She doesn't have anything to really give me. She's just pleading with me, pestering me, but she's not doing anything for my own welfare. So he says that he ignored her for quite a while. But it says, afterward, he said within himself, though I do not fear God, nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me, I will avenge her. I will make sure that she is taken care of, and I will punish the person who has affected her negatively. Lest by her continual coming, she weary me. So he wasn't doing it because he had compassion on her. He wasn't doing it because it was part of his job. He was doing it because she was pestering him. She was affecting his own self-interest.

Verse 6, let's see how that parable turns out.

Then the Lord says, hear what the unjust judge said, and shall God not avenge his own elect to cry out day and night to him, though he bears long with them. He doesn't necessarily answer them, but he knows the right time, the right moment to intervene.

Jesus says, I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, this is important for us, he asks, when the Son of Man comes, will he really find faith on the earth? Will he really find people that are still focused on their spiritual life, developing spiritual character, pleasing him, just like Graham Thomas mentioned about doing the Father's will, obeying him? It's not easy. We have a lot of distractions. We have a lot of things that compete on the Sabbath with a lot of things that people can do now. They have a lot of distractions. But again, there are a lot of people that are out relaxing, enjoying the Sabbath. That's great to get out and be with your family, go camping some place, and have your own little Sabbath services. That's helpful. Get away. But it doesn't mean to just forget about Sabbath services. We need to keep this in mind because we are also God's agents. We've been commanded certain things to do and to carry out the Father's will. And his will is for us to be here today because he knows how valuable it is, how much we can learn. What are we going to learn from just watching TV all day and laying back? That's not going to be helpful for the Sabbath.

So Jesus Christ asked, is there going to really be faith on this earth when he returns? Where everybody just gotten so distracted, they become so complacent and let the world, as the love of many would wax cold. That's not talking about the world waxing cold. They've been waxing cold all along. It's the brethren that need not wax cold, become cold in their spiritual lives.

Notice also how much God considers the importance of regular daily prayer.

Let's go to Matthew 11, verse 1. Matthew 11, verse 1.

I'm looking at here, and that's not the... Let me see.

I transposed this in a wrong way. Look 11.

Look 11. That was it.

Look 11, verse 1.

Now he came to pass as he was praying in a certain place when he seized that one of his disciples said to him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples. So he said to them, when you pray, say, and this is an outline prayer. This is giving the categories. He says, Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us day by day our daily bread and forgive us our sins. For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us and do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

And he said to them, this he added about prayer, Which of you shall have a friend and go to him at midnight and say to him, Friend, lend me three loaves. For a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him. And he will answer from within and say, Do not trouble me, the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot rise and give to you. I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs.

So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks, it will be opened. If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If you then, being evil, because we're a mixture of good and evil, God is perfect. He has no evil. Know how to give good gifts to your children. How much more will your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him? So again, we see how much God wants us to be in regular prayer. And how does God consider our prayers? He's also described that in the Bible. Let's go to Revelation chapter 5 verse 8. I'll go ahead and read it to you. It says, Now when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. When we pray before God, it's like bringing him precious and fragrant incense to him. He never turns that down. We might not have the most dynamic prayers, but they are important to him. He wants that incense continually going up before him. And considering the age in which we live today, there's not much incense going up. It's becoming more and more cold. That incense has not really heated up at all. The love of many has waxed cold. And so we have to do something about that. Our salvation is at stake. And we need to renew our spiritual life every day, as it mentions in 2 Corinthians 4.

Verse 16. 2 Corinthians 4, verse 16, says, Therefore we do not lose heart, even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. So the Holy Spirit has to be renewed in us.

It isn't going to remain at the same level. It can get weaker. It can go down. And so it tells us that we need to renew that Holy Spirit. And the best way to do it is to get on our knees in a private place, have your Bible near, and be able to pray to God in earnest. And as we draw closer to Him, He draws closer to us. And we are spiritually renewed. If we don't do it, then that oil in our lamps is just slowly going out, as it says about the Ten Virgins, and how five of them didn't have enough spiritual fuel to get them over all of these difficulties. Right now, we're not living in the period of the Great Tribulation. We're living in the period of great materialism. There's a lot of wealth. And so if we're not doing our part, when things are not that difficult, how are we going to do it when they really get problematic? So this is the time to strengthen and fortify our spiritual lives before God. And so for the rest of the sermon, I'd like to share with you ten attributes of prayer.

Ten attributes of prayer. They are based on Christ's outline prayer. Those are seven parts, but amplifying them to cover ten major points. These are the ones that I have built up over the years, and I hope they are helpful to you as they are to me.

So let's go over these ten attributes of prayer. Number one, as it tells us when Christ gave this outline prayer in Matthew 6, verse 9, says, In this manner, therefore pray, our Father in heaven hallowed be your name. Hallowed means to worship, to respect, to honor. And so we address God the Father, honoring his name, what he represents, and also remember that Jesus Christ is there as our elder brother, our intercessor, and our high priest. In Hebrews 4, verse 15 and 16, it says, For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.

Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Of course, God the Father is there. Jesus Christ is at the right hand, and we should have fellowship with God the Father, and we should have fellowship with Jesus Christ as well. Notice what it tells us in 1 John chapter 1, verse 3.

John says this, That which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us. And truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. So not only with God the Father, it's also Jesus Christ. We certainly put God the Father as first. We address him, but we also remember that God's family consists also of Jesus Christ, and so we have fellowship with him.

The term fellowship there in the Greek is koinonia, and I have brought up a whole message about this, which means a partnership. You're sharing something. You're part of a family, and so we have the intimate relationship, and that first category of prayer has really changed from my understanding of the term koinonia, and I bring it up in prayer.

Boy, it's so great to have koinonia with you and Jesus Christ. What a privilege. What an honor for you to consider us as junior partners in your firm, as your children in this growing family. What an honor it is for you to extend this invitation and this putting as a category all of us in it. It really enriches.

It gives us that privilege of feeling like, yes, we're not some stranger to God. We're part of his family, just like the children when they come before their parents, and especially now grandchildren. Boy, they come. They just think that this is the greatest relationship in the world. Well, this is the way we should feel with God the Father and Jesus Christ as well. Reminds me of that story about the Roman legions one time after a great victory. They were parading through the streets of Rome, and they had this great big presentation and all the trumpeteers coming forward, and they had all of the captured soldiers, and then they had the great chariot with the emperor coming forward.

And of course, the crowds were all happy and joyous, and they had all of these Roman legions on the side so that the crowds wouldn't come in to where they had to parade.

It was a military parade. And all of a sudden, one little child comes through and gets through to the street there, and one of the soldiers grabs him, the son. No, you can't do that. That's the Roman emperor there. And he said, well, he might be the Roman emperor to you, but he's my daddy.

And boy, he just hopped into that chariot. Nobody said anything. Oh, family member. This is the same way God relates to us. We are family. He cares for us. His son shed his blood for every one of us. They called us in this holy calling. What an honor. What a privilege. That takes us to the second category in prayer, Matthew 6, verse 10.

It says simply, your kingdom come. So the second category we just remember, all the things happening in this world, yes, we should really have compassion. So many things going on now. So many people are being killed in a senseless and needless way. But we have a job to do.

The best thing for this society is not to get more bread. It's not to get their political acts together. It's not to deal with going to war more than ever. No, it's for them to know the truth of God so that they can change their own lives. And so we know this kingdom is coming. We can share that good news. We can give people hope who think that society is going to somehow muddle through all of these problems. We have a sure vision of the future. We have a certainty what will happen. So we are part of God's agents to carry out the gospel. And we need to cry and sigh as those that were in Jerusalem before the Babylonian troops came, and they were not participating of all the worldliness and all the secularism and godliness or rather ungodliness that they saw. In Ezekiel 9, verse 4, this is the attitude we need to have. It says, The Lord said to him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and put a mark on their foreheads of the men who sigh and cry over all the abominations that are done within it. Yes, we have to separate ourselves from those committing such things. And we have to grieve for the society, grieve for the nations, not only here but around the world. All of the depravity, all the things, basically the dike has broken, and now just more and more permissiveness is allowed. This past week I had a very sad story of a lady who mentioned that her daughter, who wasn't in the church, but she had a grandson. He had graduated from school, and he was playing on one of these trampolines. And all of a sudden, he jumped the wrong way. He fell, he hurt himself on the concrete, he was hurting with his knee and everything. And so what did they do? Well, they said, here, take some of this liquid marijuana, because this helps relieve the pain. Well, they gave him some of that, along with some coffee. And this young man went crazy and stabbed his mother to death. And I heard this from one of the family members. And so here we are experimenting with drugs that we have no idea all the results. And the flood gates have opened up now to all of these things going on. We don't know. Maybe with somebody it's going to help. But all of these are experimental drugs. They cause hallucinations. Now, I just in the Orange County Register, I don't know how many of you read about all the different drug addicts that are just on the street that are draining the whole public health system because of just taking over hospitals. And they go from one care center to the other. And these care centers charge thousands and thousands of dollars. And they just go from one place to the other. Now, I'm sure it's not just one or two, or it's not all of them that do that. But we are living in a society that just has opened up these doors, flood gates of permissiveness. We have no idea what this society is going to look like in 10 years from now with all of these drugs available. And the police are shackled. They can't do anything about it. This is a social experiment that has never happened in the history. Not even in Sodom and Gomorrah. Did they have just a free access to all kinds of invented and chemical drugs?

They have over 80 now that are just popular. The youth know all of these drugs going on in the schools and other places. They have these 80 hallucinogenic drugs that now slowly are becoming more and more available to people. So we have to cry and sigh over the abominations that are being done in our society. Number three, Matthew 6, verse 10, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. This is where we focus on the church and the work for God to guide the church, guide the membership, guide the leadership, to bless the work physically and spiritually, to open the doors to get this gospel out to the world. And although we're a small work, but through the internet we have millions of people going through and they are receiving God's word, the message, and we need to continue to support, to be part of this great work.

Remember, it's by God's Spirit that it's going to be carried out. It's not going to be by the size or by human power, but we have to do our part. That takes us to the fourth subject, Matthew 6, verse 11. Give us this day our daily bread.

Now that focuses especially on those that need that bread, that aren't sure if they're going to get it or not. That means protection, food, jobs, and health. In 1 Corinthians 12, verses 25 through 26, Paul says about the body of the church that we're all members, that there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another, caring for one another. And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it. Or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. So we're happy when somebody is blessed. We feast on that. We are so happy, but when somebody is sick, when somebody loses their job, when someone is going through difficult times, all members suffer with it. We all sympathize and we empathize. It's a beautiful word. It means putting yourself in the other person's shoes and realize what they're going through. Have empathy, one for the other. In James chapter 5, verse 16, it says, confess your trespasses to one another. And here it can deal with physical infirmities, things that are happening to us. He says, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. So it's talking. It's not talking about confessing your sins before other people in this way. But it does talk about these physical trespasses that we go through, that you may be healed. The effective fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. So prayer does mean a lot. Look at how Mark Rorem has recovered. And right after that prayer request went around the world, all of a sudden he started feeling better. He came out at least temporarily. We're thankful for that. He looked like he just was going downhill completely. So I have broken down this category of give us this day our daily bread into the fifth point, which is the spiritual bread that we need. Provide us with your Holy Spirit. He already talked about how Christ said, look, if a father isn't going to give a child who asks for bread, he's not going to give him a stone. So how much more can God provide that Holy Spirit to us if we fervently ask it? And so that's something that we can cover in our prayers. The nine fruits of the Holy Spirit. Those are love, joy, peace, long suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. So it's very nice when you're praying to just think about those fruits of God's Spirit. Are they growing in me? Am I developing them? Is God providing more for me? I'm asking him to do so. I need more love. I need more joy. I need more peace. I need more long suffering when a person is going through health problems. I need to be more kind and goodness and faithfulness and gentleness and self-control. So again, when you repeat it and repeat it, it starts growing on you. It becomes more natural. It becomes more normal to be thinking about those fruits during the day.

And this takes us to the next category, Matthew 6, verse 12. And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And this is dealing with sins. And forgive us our sins as we forgive the sins of others. So this I've broken down a bit more as well. We have to think about what it says in Matthew 5, 33, during the day when we pray. Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar and there, remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go your way. First, be reconciled. That comes from a word in Greek, dia lasso, which means to change thoroughly. Okay, you've got something against that person, and it's something that upsets you, that it's a thorn in the side. Well, here you pluck it out. You actually change your nature. You get rid of what has been causing the problem. You're able to reconcile. It says to your brother and then come and offer your gift. Now that has to do with somebody if you know they have something against you. But what about if you have something against them? They did something to you. It says in Matthew 18, 15, moreover, if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fall between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. So it doesn't say not do anything about it, but go to them in a private setting and be able to talk with a person sometimes more than one person's involved. But those that are involved, a person should take the initiative. Let's talk about it. Let's discuss it. That's important when we remember about how God forgives our offenses toward him, our sins, as we forgive those who offend us. It takes us to the seventh category, which has to do with this attitude. Actually, this starts with the fifth category, which is, God, I need your Holy Spirit. One of the things I need it for is to be able to forgive the person, to take the step, to help reconcile myself with my brother. And also, the seventh is to remember to walk humbly before God and man. Help me through your Holy Spirit to walk humbly before God and man. As we read in Micah 6, verses 6 through 8, it says, With what shall I come before the Lord and bow myself before the high God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, ten thousand rivers of oil? That's a lot of money. People would say, boy, that person is really spiritual. But God's not interested in cows being slaughtered or oil being poured before him. He says, Shall I get my firstborn for my transgression? Is that what God wants?

The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul. God says, No, that's not where I'm at. You can do personal sacrifices, but that's not really what's most important to me. He says, He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? But to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God. And so, yes, in order to love mercy and do justly, you need to be humble before man as well. So it's good to remember every day, help me to walk humbly before you and man. Don't let me get arrogant. Don't let me get prideful. Don't let anything hinder me from walking humbly before you and God and man. That takes us to the eighth attribute. Simply put, guard my lips, O Lord. As it says in Psalms 141 verse 3, David prayed, Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth. Keep watch over the door of my lips. It's so easy to offend. We all do it. We can't control that tongue. We say things that are hurtful, sometimes unintentionally, but it still hurts. It still affects the person. And so every day, this is a part of prayer. Guard my lips. Don't let any hurtful thing come out that's going to offend, that's going to affect others. Now, that doesn't mean we become one of these foot guards. It doesn't mean we just get stepped all over. There are moments to be firm, to be strong, but also with the right words. So all of this has to do with forgiving others, how we treat others, taking care of our words before others. And that takes us to the ninth attribute. Matthew 6, 13 says, Again, this is such a broad subject. I've broken it down into a couple of steps.

Remember 2 Corinthians 10, verse 5. It says, So please let my thoughts always be able to be examined, that will be pleasing to Jesus Christ. Every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. Help my thoughts be the ones that Christ would approve of. Focus on the things that are inspired by God, not by Satan. Again, things that are within the territory of God. Is this something that God would promote? Is this something that comes from his inspiration? Or is it coming from Satan? Well, maybe 50 years ago, there were a lot of good things that society was doing that still was pretty healthy and good. But we see the percentages going down in those things that are inspired by God. And we see the percentages of going higher up those things that are inspired by Satan. And many of them are subtle. You have to examine them, but it's always good to ask, well, did this come more from Satan's territory? Or is this part of God's territory? So again, we don't want to be led into temptation to go into Satan's territory, because it's a lot harder to get out once you're in it. He can really stimulate and capture the person and take them for a bad ride.

And finally, we have to ask God to restrain Satan and all the damage he wants to do. That's deliver us from the evil one. Restrain him from all the damage that he wants to do to us, to our family, to the church. Restrain him, because God has powerful angels that can do that.

And Satan would like to wreak havoc on the church and in our own personal lives.

And that takes us to the 10th attribute, Matthew 6, verse 13.

Christ ends the prayer here that I outlined. The last point, it says, For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. In a sense, we go back to the first point. How do we honor God? How do we hallow His name? Well, it has to do with His kingdom, with His power and glory.

This means that we end with encouragement, confidence, and hope. God is in charge. Nothing for Him is impossible, and He is all good and all loving.

Sometimes there are lessons for us to learn, but God is not tempted by evil, nor can He tempt people to do evil. So He is all good, and He is all love. And so we know that His is the kingdom, the power, and the glory. He is going to win. Satan is not going to get the best.

We have our Father and Jesus Christ on that throne. Nobody can unseat them. Nobody can remove them. No matter what happens down here on the earth, Satan and Jesus Christ are on their throne, and they are in charge. They are love, and they are all good.

So remember these 10 attributes in prayer, and hopefully it will help us. It doesn't mean we have to go over each one, but just like incense has to be cut up and ground finally into little pieces, God wants us to not just say, oh Father, here I am. Thank you for what you've given me. Thank you for this and that. And now protect us this night or help us during the day and end it there. That's a big chunk of incense that hasn't been broken down very much. The incense is finally granulated, and so we should remember that God wants us to break it down, to think about the things that we need to go forward, putting on the armor of God, being ready for that difficult moment. Let's go to Ephesians chapter 6. Let's finish there in Ephesians chapter 6, because effective prayer means putting on the armor of God every day, renewing ourselves spiritually. It says in verse 10 of Ephesians 6, finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. He's the one that has the power. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil, for we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day those times of difficult trials, and having done all to stand, stand therefore having girded your waist with truth. Having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace, above all taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one, and take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints, and for me that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that in it I may speak boldly as I ought to speak. So hopefully you'll take this, put it in your spiritual toolkit to be able to bring out as you need every day of our lives.