How Can I Take Ground in Prayer? (Part 2)

In our last article, How Can I Take Ground in Prayer (Part 1), we looked at the first step of ground-taking prayer:

Secure.

In this article, we’ll complete looking at steps two and three.

Step Two: Enforce
Step Three: Advance

After securing ground in prayer, what do we do next? Do we kick back and relax?

No! We need to enforce the ground that has already been secured with ongoing prayer, because if we fail to enforce it, we will find ourselves needing to re-contend for it again.

When we think about it, that makes sense, doesn’t it?

Think of a military force moving through a town and securing it from the enemy. Once the ground has been gained, is their work done? Certainly not.

If they move on, and leave no one behind to enforce the ground gained, what is going to happen? The enemy is just going to sweep right back in and occupy it.

Secure and enforce is a lot like the Marines and the Army in WWII. Generally speaking (although not always), the Marines took new ground and then the army moved in to hold it. Together, they secured and enforced, and that led to a holding of the ground gained.

Prayer is the same: there is securing and there is enforcing.

Yet, as critical as enforcing is, there are few who give themselves to it. Why?

For one, many make the false assumption that the work is done. But also, there is often low interest in enforcing, because those who did not participate in securing feel no ownership, and therefore, no responsibility for enforcing.

That is part of why, I believe, God is continuing to invite more and more across our nation and world to run the race for revival – as when more are involved in securing, more will be faithful to enforcing.

Remember, revival is for the masses, but it is never on account of the masses. Those who have revival credited to their account are those who participated in securing and those who are also faithful at enforcing the ground that was gained.

As we talk about enforcing, let's return to 2 Chronicles 20. As a reminder, at the start of this chapter, Jehoshaphat has two foreign countries assembling against him.

As we saw in the last article, securing happened after Jehoshaphat’s prayer, when God brought a prophetic word in response in verse 17: You need not fight in this battle; station yourselves, stand and see the salvation of the Lord on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out to face them, for the Lord is with you.” (New American Standard Bible, 1995, 2 Chron. 20:17)

Now let’s look at the role of enforcing.

2 Chronicles 20: 20-23: They rose early in the morning and went out to the wilderness of Tekoa; and when they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me, O Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, put your trust in the Lord your God and you will be established. Put your trust in His prophets and succeed.” 21 When he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who sang to the Lord and those who praised Him in holy attire, as they went out before the army and said, “Give thanks to the Lord, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.” 22 When they began singing and praising, the Lord set ambushes against the sons of Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; so they were routed. 23 For the sons of Ammon and Moab rose up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir destroying them completely; and when they had finished with the inhabitants of Seir, they helped to destroy one another.

Altogether, there are three steps of enforcing that we see in this passage.

The first step of enforcing is to believe.

Verse 20: …put your trust in the Lord your God and you will be established. (New American Standard Bible, 1995, 2 Chron. 20:20)

As a person starts to enforce, he or she must return to the promise again and again, so that he or she can pray from the promise again and again.

Remember the difference between Jehoshaphat’s first prayer (which lacked confidence) and the confidence that came after securing?

When we are enforcing, we believe and pray from the place of victory, from the promise.

Now, it needs to be said that a lot of people try to pray from the promise without ever having secured it. There is a lot of talk of claiming the promises, but you cannot claim what you have not secured.

And how do you secure a promise? By just merely saying, “I’ll take that?” No, a promise is secured by hearing God make that promise.

Faith does not come by wishing.
Faith does not come by hoping.
Faith comes by hearing.

Picture someone standing, knees shaking, saying over and over and over again, “He is with me. He is with me. He is with me. I’m claiming that promise. He is with me. He is with me.” In their heart, they are actually saying, “I hope He is with me. I hope He is with me. I hope He is with me.”

One can claim to claim a promise but if you do not yet have that promise by faith, you are merely hoping for it to be true.

Faith and hope are not synonyms.
Before the prayer becomes the promise, you are securing.
When you are praying from the promise, you are enforcing.

If you are still in the place of securing, don’t pretend to skip ahead to the place of enforcing. Instead, acknowledge reality and say, “God would you speak to me and settle this in my soul?

Once secured (by God saying it), prayer becomes a promise, hope becomes faith, and one can now stand on steady legs just like they did here.

In 2 Chronicles 20, they worshiped as they went into battle, because they were so assured of the victory. That kind of faith only comes by hearing.

So the first step of enforcing is to believe.

The second step of enforcing is to act in agreement with the promise.

“Tomorrow go down against them. Behold, they will come up by the ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the valley in front of the wilderness of Jeruel.”
— (New American Standard Bible, 1995, 2 Chron. 20:16)

In addition, 2 Chronicles 20:17:…station yourselves, stand and see the salvation of the Lord on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem…(New American Standard Bible, 1995, 2 Chron. 20:17)

These guys had to show up at the battle field. Even though the battle had been won (because God said it had been), they still actually had to go. We need to act in agreement with the promise.

What has been promised must still be pursued, that is part of enforcing.

Then the third step, when enforcing, is that we must protect the promise.

Again, this is done in prayer. When you are protecting the promise, you are praying from a place of assurance. Your prayers are placing posts of assurance around what has already been granted and gained.

Picture arrows now as posts going in the ground, with razor sharp tops on them. Each one placed increases the enforcements of the fence. Yes, you’re placing a border of protection, but it’s on new ground, and it’s not a permanent fence. These posts are to be picked up and placed again when we move into the third stage of praying to take new ground, advance.

So in summary, so far we have secured, and we have enforced.

Now, we advance.

What do we do as we advance in prayer?
Advance is about flanking the ranks.

An advance is a momentum of attack and acceleration.

When you have momentum what should you do?
Keep it. Keep advancing.

Momentum can only be maintained by continual forward movement. If you stop, momentum is lost.

In battle, when the enemy is on its heels, that is the best time to strike.

That is what advance is about – sending a flank to the enemy from the side, from behind, while they are already devastated from the front.

The flank in the place of prayer is about not being content to settle. It’s about not allowing additional enemy territory to be unchecked and unchallenged.

Picture the houses in our city and the faces of kids living in each of them. Which would we ever be content to leave uncontended?

We must press on.

How? Prayer, of course.

Ephesians 6:18: With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints (New American Standard Bible, 1995, Eph. 6:18)

Notice the words “alert” and “always” and “all.” This life is not the meadow without a battle. It is a battle ground and the battle is always, ever, engaged.

We are citizens, but we are not civilians. We are soldiers. Every citizen of this Kingdom is also a soldier, and we battle, first, with prayer.

Do you want to be someone who God uses in the place of prayer to take much ground for His praise and for His name? Then secure, enforce and advance…again and again and again.

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