This is the War

One week before Halloween last year, the neighbor across my house erected a purple inflatable witch with a black hat on the top and green fingers like craws stretching out in the front yard. This is the beginning of my fighting of prayer. Every morning, I walked by and prayed in my neighborhood. In the end of day, the witch inflatable leaked air and bent the waist bowing down. However, my neighbor was determined and inflated it again each day. So I kept praying. On the night of Halloween, this witch was totally “dead”, lying flat on the ground.

After the victory last year, I plan to pray again one week before Halloween this year. But my neighbor took out the witch inflatable in the beginning of October. So I am going to pray earlier than the date I planned.

The Bible tells us: Fearing God is hating evil (Proverbs 8:13). I once saw a festival of “Pagan’s pride” celebrated in Minnehaha Fall Park. The attendants who dressed up for that exactly like for the Halloween: witch, painted face of death, and horrible figures. This tell us that Halloween is the display of pagans’ pride, who are proud of being company with darkness, rather than enjoying the lovely light and truth.

My children thought I am not “Americanized” enough to celebrate the Halloween. I told them the story from an American missionary, uncle M, who was invited to share his story in our Sunday School. He has been a missionary for more than 20 years. When he travels to Asia and Africa, he saw how the devil persecuted Christians from torturing or killing them to burning down their churches. He told me that he never wants to give Satan a foothold to rob him of God’s truth by naively or ignorantly participating in the evil activities.

Remember: One step closer to the evil darkness is one step away from the righteous God. And our God is a consuming fire (Hebrew 12:29). His justice will burn down all the evil unrighteousness. Only through Jesus Christ’ blood of righteousness like fire-proof coat in the fire, the forgiven sinners won’t be consumed.

Please join me to pray for our family, neighborhood and the nations. I have asked God for the strategy and I want to write it down for calling all the saints to pray to advance His Kingdom.

Psalm 96 Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord, praise His name; proclaim His salvation day after day. Declare His glory among the nations, His marvelous deeds among all peoples. For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; He is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the Lord made the heavens. Splendor and majesty are before Him; strength and glory are in His sanctuary. Ascribe to the Lord, O families of nations, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. Ascribe to the Lord the glory due His name; bring an offering and come into His courts. Worship the Lord in the splendor of His holiness; tremble before Him, all the earth. Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.” The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved; He will judge the peoples with equity. Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it; let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy; they will sing before the Lord, for He comes, He comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in His truth.

Therefore, my prayer this week will firstly praise God. I choose several songs focusing on His attributes and sing aloud at home or walking in the neighborhood. When you worship in singing, you can feel free to pause and pray whatever God prompts in your heart.

Shine, Jesus shine.
How Great is our God.
Majesty.
Our God reigns.
Holy, Holy, Holy.
Great is thy faithfulness.
Then sings my soul.