Written about our all night prayer/worship event….
I had worshipped, I had prayed, and I was ready for battle or so I thought. I descended the steps and headed toward room number 5, eager to pray for the girls in our hotel. As I opened the door the darkness washed over me, completely overcoming me. All my energy vanished leaving me feeling defeated, weak, and powerless.
I sat down on the bed and looked around the tiny room knowing that on any other night a broken girl would be in here with a stranger, giving him what he thought he needed and getting what she thought she needed. But sex and money don’t solve anything, they don’t fill the hole in anyones heart no matter how hard they try. The room disgusted me. I felt so helpless. I cried for the girls that had been there the night before and the ones that would be there the following evening. I cried for the hurt that consumes them, for the lies that these women believe. They deserve so much more than this. I tried to pray, tried to believe that our God would use us to make a difference, but it was hopeless. The room was just too dark, the enemy too strong and too present. I left, upset with myself, upset with God for letting me feel this way. We were supposed to be battling the enemy, we were supposed to be victorious.
I wandered back upstairs into one of the other prayer rooms and sat down, still defeated and not wanting to try anymore. I flipped through the pages of my Bible coming to a halt in Ephesians. There it was, the armor of God. For the second time that night I read the passage and then I realized what my problem had been downstairs… I had forgotten my shield. How was I supposed to go into battle when I had no shield, no faith to keep me strong and to block the attacks that were thrown at me. How foolish I had been to go into enemy territory without being properly armed. I prayed for the armor of God once more, emphasizing my need for the shield of faith. Immediately I felt better, more powerful, more prepared for whatever the enemy decided to throw my direction.
I returned to the room number 5, this time with confidence in myself, and more importantly confidence in my God. As I entered the room I noticed the atmosphere was already different, the enemy was getting scared. I prayed and I prayed hard, this time believing that a difference was being made, believing that my words had power, that my God was acting. I prayed as passionately as I have ever prayed before, feeling more confident by the minute as I felt God’s presence and heard the prayers of others echoing around the room. When our prayer died down it was evident that God had moved in the room. Light had been cast into the dark corners and the enemy had been banished. The air in the room felt different, even the rest of the building felt different – lighter, freer, more peaceful.
I went to bed that night praising God for his power, his might, his faithfulness, and his forgiveness, yet still aware of the fact that tomorrow night the girls would enter the lower level rooms accompanied by their clients once more. However, I was comforted in knowing our God wasn’t finished and that satan knew his time was coming to an end. The war for the hotel was not over, but the battle had been won by the light.
The armor is a whole package, it’s all needed. Would a warrior go into battle without his sword? his helmet? his shield? No! and we shouldn’t either. The enemy is here in Vietnam, he’s in the US, he’s in your neighborhood. Whether we see him or feel him or are completely oblivious to his presence, he is there. We need to be prepared to fight at any moment. So I encourage you, and myself as well, to pray the armor of God over yourself every morning and see what a difference it makes when we stand prepared.
