It’s often said that motherhood is the most challenging labor of love. For approximately nine months, a woman carries the unborn child inside her body. It takes intensive labor to bring the baby into the world, and it’s a spiritual battle to raise them to adulthood.
If you have children, you’re all too familiar with the fight to protect them from evil. With such trouble on every hand, and so much out there trying to entice children, it’s enough to keep mothers and fathers in prayer continually. As a mother, God has ordained you to be a spiritual warrior.
The very gates of Hell rattle, and demons tremble when mothers pray for their families. They know that the Lord moves when He hears the supplication of a Mother Warrior, as He holds them near and dear to His heart.
The Plea for a Child
The Book of Genesis records the life of Abraham, the Father of Nations. Formally known as Abram, this patriarch was an immensely wealthy man. He had a beautiful wife named Sarai, plenty of gold, livestock, and the best money could offer at the time.
However, Abram and Sarai longed for a child. Genesis 23:1-27 says that God visited the 99-year-old Abram one day and said he and his wife would have a son. When 90-year-old Sarai heard the news, she had to laugh.
Then, the Lord changed their names to Abraham and Sarah. While Abraham was a man of faith and was called the Friend of God, this promise was difficult. How could a couple who were nearly 100 years old give birth and raise a baby?
As human nature would have it, this aged couple got impatient. One day, Sarah offered to give her maid, Haggar, to Abraham as a second wife. Haggar was young and strong and could provide them with a child quicker than God’s timing.
In about nine months, Haggar, the maid, birthed a son by Abraham, and they named him Ishmael. Sure, to God’s promise, Sarah later conceived and bore the Promised child, Isaac.
Abraham’s household paid a dear price for stepping ahead of the Lord. Sarah became jealous of her husband’s relationship with Haggar and Ishmael. She started to be cruel and vindictive toward her former maid.
The Prayer of a Warrior
Sarah lied to Abraham in another twisted scheme and said that Ishmael was mistreating his little half-brother, Isaac. She pleads with her husband to send the maid and her son away.
In Genesis 21:14, the older man finally gave in to his wife’s complaining. Early that morning, he gave Haggar and their son a bottle of water and a loaf of bread. He sent them away to fend for themselves in the harsh Beersheba wilderness.
Of course, the food and water were soon depleted, and there was nothing to sustain them. In desperation, Haggar placed Ishmael in the shade of some trees to rest. She knew that they would quickly die of dehydration.
Her mother’s heart knew that the young child would die first, and she couldn’t bear to watch. God heard Haggar and her son weeping and wailing and sent an angel to them. The angel led them to a large pool of refreshing water and said God would bless Ishmael and make him the father of a great nation.
This Mother Warrior cried to the Lord during starvation and thirst to save her son. They had been mistreated and abandoned, and God stepped in when he heard their cries. Heaven hears and reacts when praying mothers call on the Lord.
A Warrior’s Sacrifice
Scriptures teach that King Solomon was the wisest mortal to have ever lived. Solomon only asked for wisdom when God came to the young king and offered him whatever he wished. The Lord not only gave him insight but made him probably one of the wealthiest men in human history.
King Solomon’s wisdom and riches were discussed throughout the kingdom of Israel and beyond. When the Queen of Sheba heard of the splendors of this young ruler, she traveled to Israel to investigate. Afterward, she exclaimed that she hadn’t even heard half of the wonders of Solomon’s kingdom.
1st Kings 3:16-28 shares the most well-known feats of King Solomon’s wisdom. Two young harlots each gave birth to a baby boy, as the story goes. In those days, it was common for prostitutes to live and work together in a house of ill-repute.
Not long after their sons were born, one of the babies died, and the case ended up in the King’s court for a judgment. The first mother cradled a dead newborn in her arms and declared that he belonged to the second mother. She said the other mother must have accidentally rolled over on him in the night.
She sneaked into the first mother’s bedroom and exchanged her dead child for the living one in her grief. She hoped that she would assume that the dead baby was her own when the first mother awoke. She didn’t figure out that a mother’s heart knows her own child from another one.
The king listened to each woman’s case and heard them argue and accuse back and forth. Finally, he silenced them and asked for a sword. He declared that the only fair thing to do was cut the living baby in half and divide it among the two mothers.
The first mother agreed to the judgment and handed the baby over to the swordsman. However, the second mother begged that the child be given to the first one rather than be killed. With a nod of his wise head, the king ordered that the baby be given to the pleading woman, for she was the true mother.
It took great courage to stand in the king’s court to plead for justice and her baby’s life. No matter how it hurt her, she would have rather made the sacrifice to spare the child. Before your children were conceived in your body, they were created in your heart, and God gave you that instinct to protect them at all costs. Isn’t that how He parents you?
Prepare for Battle
Are you ready to storm the gates of the enemy and battle with Satan himself? Since the Garden of Eden, the devil’s goal has been to destroy innocence, especially children. He tried to eradicate the infant Jesus and failed.
The weapons of your warfare aren’t carnal, explains the Apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 10:4. Instead, they are mighty through God, and they can pull down the enemy’s strongholds. The Lord furnishes Mother Warriors with the weapons they need for total victory.
In Ephesians 6:10-18, Paul encourages everyone to wear the whole armor of God. As a Mother Warrior, you don’t fight people as much as you fight spiritual influence. You battle principalities, forces, and spiritual wickedness in high places.
So, it would help if you had the belt of truth around your waist, the breastplate of righteousness, and the helmet of salvation. Protect your feet with the preparation of the Gospel and use the shield of faith and sword of the Spirit.
You stand in the gap for your family, and you’re a force to be reckoned with in spiritual realms. The more you plead the Blood of Jesus and His Spirit on your children, the faster that Satan and his minions must flee.
Daily Preparation
Let the praise of the Lord be continually on your lips and in your heart. Awaken a few minutes early each morning to pray with your Father. Mention each of your children by name and ask God to protect and bless them that day.
You may even consider keeping a prayer diary with prayer requests and other special needs for your family. As the Lord answers each prayer, place a checkmark of the praise report. Review your diary each day for inspiration and to build your faith.
Let your children see you praying before meals or at their bedside at night. Teaching them how to be prayer warriors is one of the most important goals of a Mother Warrior. It frightens demons and brings hemorrhages into the pits of Hell.
Prayer for Today
Dear Jesus, I am grateful for a praying mother in my life. Please continue to give me the strength and courage to fight the devil for my family’s sake. Help me remember that You are my Savior, and You’ve already won the victory. Amen.