One morning during my time with the Lord, He led me to the verse above. Usually, when the Holy Spirit shows me this powerful verse, He emphasizes the importance of "persistent" prayer, but this time was different. This time, He stressed the word, "focused."

He reminded me of Jesus' words in Mark Chapter 4, where He tells the Parable of the Sower. Here, the Savior talks about the people who have the Word of God preached to them, and how "Satan comes immediately and takes away the Word that was sown in their hearts." (Mark 4:15 NKJV) The Holy Spirit impressed upon me that just as the devil comes for the Word, he also comes for our prayers.

Satan knows that God's will for our lives is accomplished through prayer, so the last thing he wants us to do is pray. He knows that prayer limits his activities in our lives, and in the lives of our loved ones, and it greatly restricts his influence over us. He will do his best to distract us from praying and spending time in God's Word.

I once heard someone say that if Satan can't hinder our relationship with God by making us immoral, he will simply make us busy. The Lord did not call us to be busy, but to be productive and fruitful. Without praying focused prayers, we will never accomplish all that God has called us to do, because we will constantly be sidetracked by demon-devised distractions, discouragement, and detours.

Focused prayers have the power to stop the devil's diabolical strategies against us and our loved ones. Are you prepared to do what it takes to pray these kinds of prayers?

Prayer: Lord, teach me by Your Spirit to be persistent, alert, and focused in my prayer life. Show me what it means to be devoted to prayer. Fill me with an attitude of thanksgiving, especially in my prayer life. Help me to understand that this kind of prayer involves commitment and sacrifice. Thank You that as I cooperate with You in this area, nothing and no one can hinder Your awesome plans for me and mine!