The So-called Prayer Warrior

Distinguishing Between the Prayer Warrior and the So-called Prayer Warrior

This Is Not Spiritual Warfare – Part 1

What comes to your mind when you hear the words “prayer warrior?” Whose face do you see when you think of a prayer warrior? I’m not even going to go there, because the person that comes to your mind is probably strange for lack of a better descriptor, if the truth be spoken. Not to offend, however, I need to make this point. What we picture a prayer warrior to be is one of the reasons why such a term yields exclusivity. In fact, I know a lady who didn’t consider herself a prayer warrior because of the image she had of what a prayer warrior is like. That image is what I wish to attack. Before I get too far along, did I mention that this is next level prayer? Allow me to elaborate, this lady is one of the best pray-ers (people who pray) that I know. But she ran from being part of a prayer team because she didn’t consider herself a “prayer warrior.” That brings me to the reason for this message. How many others are out there who disqualify themselves from using their gifts because of a bad image we’ve upheld?

A “Prayer Warrior”: What Does That Mean?
I, myself, am a person who prays more than most, but I’ve never considered myself a “prayer warrior.” That’s one group I had no desire to be a part of simply because of the stereotype it’s been given. More often than not, we prayer warriors have created a limiting view of what prayer is and what being a prayer warrior is like.

To poke a few holes in this notion of prayer warriors, I’d like to propose a few questions.

If a prayer warrior, are you a good warrior, mediocre warrior, or great warrior?
There would have to be calibers to this position. King David had a group of 30 warriors he and everyone else during his day thought were the most superior warriors. ^[1]
If a prayer warrior, what would people think about your skills as a warrior?
How can I become a better warrior?
If a prayer warrior, how did you become one?
What does it take to be considered in this elect service branch of the Kingdom of God?
If a prayer warrior, how do soldiers get promoted in the ranks?
Back to David, how can I go from the group of 30 to David’s 3 mighty warriors? ^[1]
If a prayer warrior, what results do you have to maintain for this badge of honor?
If a prayer warrior, how does one go about becoming a better warrior?

“So-called Prayer Warrior”
What’s most interesting and what you should find shocking is that your Bible doesn’t have many references to such a position. Again, the goal is not to destroy what we know, but to help us take what we know to the next level. In scouring the scriptures, our source of truth, for prayer warrior references, I found one that is quite noteworthy for us to consider. It reads “the world is full of so-called prayer warriors who are prayer-ignorant.” ^[2] What this tells me about prayer is there is a lot of prayer ignorance out there with a common theme of using whatever they can to get what they want from God. When in fact, prayer isn’t about you getting something from God in that way. More on that at another time.

The “so-called prayer warrior” is a group of people we must know exists. If we don’t, we will confuse true prayer warriors (pray-ers, people who pray) with the so-called “prayer warriors.” Could it be that you’ve been modeling your prayer efforts after a “so-called prayer warrior” and didn’t know?

If we are going to go to the next level, we must be able to tell the difference. If King David knew the difference in who could and could not be in his elite 30, then we must be able to identify the true pray-ers from the so-called prayer warriors. What I know for sure is this. Results have always been a distinguishing marker when evaluating anything. Have you heard it said that “you know the tree by the fruit it bears?” ^[3] This means you can identify the type of tree from what it produces. The same is true with any person and even more so with a person of prayer. If you have been walking and talking with Jesus, then there will be some results that come from this. For a person who speaks with God (prays), he or she should expect something to come of it. This is next level prayer. We can distinguish the pray-ers from the so-called-prayer-warriors by the results they bear.

Question: have you examined the results you’re seeing in those who pray?

[1] ‭2 Samuel 23:20-23 NLT‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬, Bible.com, accessed January 26, 2023, https://www.bible.com/bible/116/2SA.23.20-23.NLT
[2] Matthew 6:7-13 MSG‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬, Bible.com, accessed January 26, 2023, https://www.bible.com/bible/97/MAT.6.7-13.MSG
[3] Matthew 7:16-21 NIV‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬, Bible.com, accessed January 26, 2023, https://www.bible.com/bible/111/MAT.7.16-21.NIV

All Scripture references used by permission, see our Scripture copyrights.