What battle are you fighting?
There always is one
right?
A battle in your mind for purity
A battle in your home for peace
A battle at work for your witness
A battle in your heart for trust
A battle in your family for unity
And on and on…
And we often forget,
that at the root,
the battle is not with the people
The real battle is fought in the spiritual realm
The weapons we fight with
look like
Vigilance of mind
Prayer
Truth-seeking
Readiness
Faith
Steadiness
and
Standing firm
And too often
Jesus Followers surrender
We give in
when we need to fight!
There is an unseen world
swirling all around us
The battle is fierce!
And we approach it with
niceness
excuses
depression
cowering
apathy
fear
anxiety
defeat
The stance is casual and weak
in this intense battle
There is a clash of swords unseen
Light and darkness having it out
A struggle
between good and evil
And in the physical world
it feels like silence,
Deafening silence
But KNOW that all is not silent
It is unearthly LOUD
Our apathy
our surrender to evil
our cowardice
cause us to walk in limbo
or defeat
instead of victory
Let us stand up and fight, Warriors!
Better yet, let us get down on our knees
and fight
Fight for our purity!
Fight for our families!
Fight for our friendships!
Fight for our peace of mind!
Fight for our trust in God!
And may we not stand down
in our witness
For the battle belongs to the Lord
– Susie Stewart
He said, “Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid! Don’t be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s.
– 2 Chronicles 20:15 (NLT)
This is not a wrestling match against a human opponent. We are wrestling with rulers, authorities, the powers who govern this world of darkness, and spiritual forces that control evil in the heavenly world.
– Ephesians 6:12 (GW)
David answered, “You come at me with sword and spear and battle-ax. I come at you in the name of God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel’s troops, whom you curse and mock. This very day God is handing you over to me. I’m about to kill you, cut off your head, and serve up your body and the bodies of your Philistine buddies to the crows and coyotes. The whole earth will know that there’s an extraordinary God in Israel. And everyone gathered here will learn that God doesn’t save by means of sword or spear. The battle belongs to God—He’s handing you to us on a platter!”
– 1 Samuel 17:46-48 (MSG)
It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
– Zechariah 4:6 (NLT)
Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”
– Exodus 14:13,14 (NIV)
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
– Ephesians 6:10-18 (NIV)
Photo by Susie Stewart
Susie Stewart 