Pope Shenouda III
Prayer is the horror of the devils and the strongest weapon against them.
The devil fears the person who prays, for he will escape his grasp. He fears that through his prayer, this person may gain strength by which he could fight and defeat him. The devil would also envy him for having such a relationship with God, which he has been deprived of... Therefore, the devil fights prayer by all means. He tries to stop it by insinuating to the person that he is too busy and has no time, or he would make him feel tired and his body becomes heavy. If the person insisted on praying, the devil would try to distract his thoughts so that his mind would stray...
As for you, man of God, be firm in your prayer, no matter what the combats. Concentrate on it with all your thoughts and all your feelings...
And as the Apostle said, “Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (Jas 4:7). Do not give way to his thoughts. Be aware that his effort to stop your prayer is an implied confession from him about the power of this prayer as a weapon against him. So do not throw away your weapon but fight with it. Continue praying no matter how much your thoughts may stray. The enemy is bound to give up when he sees your spiritual struggle and leave you. Besides, God’s grace will never leave you but will be with you.
