From “Discipleship and Discipline” by William H. Hicks, copyright March, 2005:

“Disciplers and disciples should be forewarned that Satan will invade your prayer time, your time of intimacy with God.  Scripture clearly reveals that Satan attacked Jesus at the beginning of His ministry, when He was in the wilderness alone, having been led there by the Holy Spirit.  Satan also attacked Jesus near the end of His earthly ministry.  Jesus had to wrestle in prayer in thegardenofGethsemanewith the temptation to abandon His task, even as He saw the end in sight.  Satan’s attack seeks to draw your attention away from God to your circumstances, and ultimately to worship of him.

Disciples should recognize that nothing is sacred to Satan.  Satan does not respect the Holy; he does not respect our relationship to God.  Many disciples think that Satan will “declare a truce” when you pray and cease to attack you out of respect for you and God.  We are often deceived or taught falsely to believe that Satan fights fair or observes a certain “gentleman’s agreement” about our prayer life.  This is not true!

In the same manner that a robber has no respect for the integrity of a man’s house, Satan will seek to attack your mind while you pray, casting doubt that God is listening, showing illusions to get you to think your sins have not been forgiven, trying to intimidate you with lies.  The good soldier/disciple must always keep the over-all battle objectives in clear focus: the spreading of the gospel.  The disciple must also know and do the task assigned, do his/her part in the battle: stand and pray, pray without ceasing.”