As a Christian it should always be our aim to yield ourselves to God.  But if we don’t yield ourselves to God then we will yield ourselves to Satan, the devil (Rom. 6:13, 16, 19).  There are no other options.  I have been showing you some of the ways we yield—either to God or Satan.

We Yield to either Prayer or Slumber

Option #1, we will say, is to God; and Option #2 is to Satan.  Notice that the second option is an opposite or a rebellion against the first option.  And that’s how it is in life; Satan will always show us another way to keep us from God’s way.

Option #1 – We yield ourselves to the call of prayer.  When we yield to God, prayer is the most natural thing to do.  According to Romans 12:1 (RSV), yielding ourselves to God as a living sacrifice is our spiritual worship.  As part of our worship, it is most appropriate to pray—praising Him, thanking Him, and petitioning Him.  We will pray for ourselves and for all others, especially for those whom God has placed in our care, and for those leaders God has put in authority over us.

Option #2 – We yield to sleep and slumber and lust.  Prayer requires vigilance—to be watchful and alert.  If we don’t discipline ourselves for the practice of prayer, then we give Satan and the flesh an opportunity; we yield to prayer’s opposite, which is to sleep and slumber and lust.  Yes, if we are not being alert and prayerful, we are in sleep and slumber; and if we are not seeking God out of a pure heart we lust.  There is no in-between, no middle ground.