Voice Of Victory

“God put the victory in our voices.” 
For whatever reason, this phrase kept resounding over and over again in my mind as the heaviness of my eyelids began to squint at the morning sun beaming through my bedroom windows. Like many mornings I woke up with something stirring in my spirit, but this one seemed urgent. 

As I began to think about scripture, I was reminded of Joshua’s commissioning to bring down the walls of Jericho with an army of trumpets and voices. Joshua knew the plan for victory was going to be birthed through the power of the obedience of the Israelites and their ability to use their voices. As Joshua was giving the Israelites their battle instructions, he specifically told them not to make a sound until he said to (upon the long blast made on the trumpets - see Joshua 6:5). 

“But Joshua had commanded the army, “Do not give a war cry, do not raise your voices, do not say a word until the day I tell you to shout. Then shout!” Joshua 6:10

“When the trumpets sounded, the army shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the men gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so everyone charged straight in, and they took the city.” Joshua 6:20

The obedience of the Israelites with their voices brought down an entire city and its “impenetrable” walls. These were not just any walls here. The city was surrounded by two walls. The first wall, began with a retaining wall which stood at the base of an embankment, standing 12-15 feet tall. On top of the retaining wall stood a mud brick wall 6 feet thick and between 20-26 feet high. The second wall stood up the embankment and towered an intimidating 46 feet from ground level. (Facts taken from: answersingenesis.org) 

Now, imagine you are an Israelite for just a moment. The city of Jericho stands majestically on a hill high above you, in fact so high you are unable to even evaluate what exactly you are fighting. Just the combined height of the walls alone rises 78-87 feet above your head, this does not include any increase in elevation caused by the embankment in between the two walls. It’s no wonder the Lord told them to be silent for the first six days of marching. This gave them time to pray and meditate upon the magnitude of what God was about to do through their voices. 

Can you even imagine the excitement in the air when they saw the first brick shatter? I can hear the voices increase with the drop of each brick as if they believed that the intensity of their voices was literally what was demolishing these monumental walls brick by brick. The atmosphere must have been sheer electrifying! What do you think the talk was like around the dinner table that night? That next day? That next week?

 “Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents of the righteous: “The Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!” Psalm 118:15

“Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy.  For the Lord Most High is awesome, the great King over all the earth. He subdued nations under us,  peoples under our feet. He chose our inheritance for us, the pride of Jacob, whom he loved. God has ascended amid shouts of joy, the Lord amid the sounding of trumpets.” Psalm 47:1-5

A dear missionary friend of mine once told me to “use my voice” when I was struggling with things. She went on to explain that by doing so it would not only build up my own spirit, but I would cause the devil to flee. The reality is, I am not the only one listening to the sound coming out of my own mouth. Our enemy prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8). And make no mistake, he is listening! Our voices become our weapons in our times of struggle. 

Sometimes we just need to hear ourselves speak victory over our situation. We need to physically say the words out loud so our ears can hear them. Jesus told us over and over again in the gospels to “say” to this mountain go, and it will go! (Matthew 17:20, Matthew 21:21, Mark 11:23) He didn’t say “think” about this mountain going. He specifically used the word “say.” In other words, speak out loud, tell the mountain, yell at it, scream at it, shout at it, use your voice!!!!! We can not fight our battles in silence. God did not give us the sword of the spirit to hold. He gave us the sword of the spirit to swing at the enemy. This only works when the word of God is spoken. 

Call to action
Like the Jericho wall, I have mountains in my walk that at times seem impenetrable. I would like to encourage us do a Jericho walk around our mountains. Let’s pick a specific mountain we are struggling with and spend the next six days praying about that specific thing. Then on day seven, let’s be sure to open up our mouths and speak to that mountain, yell at it, shout at it, scream scriptures at it. Use our voice!  I am not about to make any promises that our mountains are going to crumble right in front of us, but maybe, just maybe we will see God move through the sound of our voices speaking life, truth and the word of God over our situations. God has put victory in our voices. Let’s use them, stand back, and watch what God does.

Father, help us to speak out the word of truth over our mountains. Help us to use the voices you have given us to usher in the victory you so desperately desire us to walk in. Like the Israelites, give us a steadfastness to walk around our Jericho, use our voice and watch what you will do. We pray that you will open the floodgates of heaven over our situations, even if that simply means that you allow us to see our mountain with your eyes. We pray these things in the precious name of Christ Jesus.

Under Attack

We recently sent out a newsletter to our friends and family updating them on everything going on with our family and Liberia. In that newsletter, there was a quote by an unknown author that reads:

“Faith can move mountains, but don’t be surprised when 

God puts a shovel in your hands!”

We all will face mountains in our lives, some small, some big, and some astronomical. Whatever the case, we are never ill-equipped for those mountains, even though, at times, it may feel as if we are. The mountains in our lives are no surprise to the Lord. He knew they were coming. He has the tools we need to conquer those mountains. The Lord equips us with everything we need to face our mountains.  

As you know, my family has been called to the mission field of Liberia, West Africa. We have spent the last year traveling the United States raising funds and I am excited to announce that in one short month from now we will depart for this sweet country. As we have been diligently packing bags and applying for visas, satan has been setting siege to our family. My extended family has undergone a flood of attacks some of which include heart attacks, car accidents, dog bites and our most recent news a diagnosis of muscular sclerosis (MS). Part of me is outraged, the other part of me just has to chuckle because the attacks only mean one thing, we have satan so upset and in such a state of panic that he has no other choice but to throw a temper tantrum. Please don’t get me wrong, I am in no way happy that my family is under heavy attacks from the enemy. But I am reminded of the words of Paul: 

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. And perseverance must  finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” James 1:2-4

I can either choose to ignore this passage and get angry and bitter, or I can stand on the word of God and know that coming out the other side of these things, my family and I will not be lacking anything. I much prefer standing on the fact that we will be made mature and complete and not be lacking a single solitary thing.  

As I have been praying about all these situations, I asked the Lord “why?” (Yes, I know, faith is the crucifixion of the question why, but I believe that sometimes a heart can ask this question in a truly honoring way.) The response I got back was “in order for your faith to grow.” If the Lord simply takes away the attacks before we have to walk through the trial, what have we gained, how has our faith grown? I am a firm believer that the Lord will put a shovel in our hands in order to not only move the mountain but to build our faith in the process. 

Quite a while ago I read a devotional from “Our Daily Bread” that talked about a man who was in desperate need to have access to hospital care for his wife. (Please note that this story was coming from a time before there was access to planes and cars.) The only way to get to the hospital was to go over a mountain that lay between his village and the hospital. As the man frantically attempted to get his wife safely to the other side she passed away before he could get her the help she needed. Upon returning home he had determined that he would make a way to have faster access to the hospital for others. After much deliberation, he began to dig. The townspeople assumed that the death of his wife had caused him to lose his mind. However, despite their best efforts, they could not convince him to stop digging. As the weeks and months went on, people in the town began to understand the need to have access to medical care. Little by little, they began to join in the digging. And after several years of digging day in and day out, a tunnel had been dug through that mountain!

Our faith starts out as a mustard seed, but this does not mean that God wants it to stay that size. He will ask us at times to put in some blood, sweat, and tears in order for our faith to grow. Our faith must be made “mature and complete” in order for us not to lack anything. As my family remains under attack I take comfort in knowing that despite satan’s best efforts to shipwreck our faith, we persevere. Our faith may start out as a mustard seed, but with stubborn perseverance, it will grow! 

Related posts: The School of Trial, Falling Into Place, Touching The Hem Of His Garment, My By Faith Shoes

Heavenly Father, you know the needs of our hearts. You know the trials and mountains that we face. Thank you that your plans are to give us a hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11) in the midst of our mountains. Things might not go according to our plans, but our trials and struggles never surprise you. You saw them coming long before we did. Give us this day the things we need to accomplish today’s mountains or even today’s section of the mountain. Help us to remember that just because our mountains get bigger, does not mean you love us less. Your love is not a yo-yo, up one day and down the next. Please solidify in our spirits that our mountains are not an instrument to measure your love for us. Lord, seal all these things upon our hearts in Jesus precious name.

Christian Bondage?

We should not be fooled; Christians can be as much in bondage as those who do not know Christ and in some cases even more so. The devil is out to rob kill and destroy (John 10:10).  The very second we say yes to Christ we inherit a target on our backs. We become marked. When we accept Christ as our personal Lord and Savior, we gain all power and authority leaving the devil no choice but to attack. If we are not ready and aware of his schemes we can find ourselves more bound than free. So, yes, there are times when even Christians need freedom from the chains that the enemy is trying to desperately entangle us in. Satan does not desire to watch us thrive in the kingdom. He desires to watch us fail and with flying colors, might I add, so that we can become a walking advertisement for why Christianity might not be such a great idea. Satan is not out solely to rob kill and destroy us as individuals, but he is hoping that by our bondage we will bring others down with us. What a tangled web Satan desires to weave. 

How do we know that we are being held in bondage? How would we even begin to recognize the schemes of the enemy?
I am currently working through a book, for the second time, that brings some clarity to these questions. The book is entitled “Breaking Free” by Beth Moore. I will be the first to admit that sometimes we need to review things several times before freedom can come, and other times we are simply facing new battles. Between these two reasons, I decided to read through this book again.

Beth Moore states... 
“A Christian is held captive by anything that hinders the abundant and effective Spirit-filled life God has planned for him or her.”
Anything that holds us back from fulfilling God’s plans and purposes for our lives is bondage. I believe God has a good, pleasing and perfect will for our lives (Romans 12:2). But in our times of unyielding to that still small voice, we sacrifice that good, pleasing and perfect will. We can find ourselves listening to the voice of reason instead of the voice of the Shepherd. There will always be two voices, which one are we listening to?

As I continue to read through “Breaking Free” I am sure the Lord will pursue my heart and reveal areas of bondage, areas that need to be surrendered. I know that only by God’s revealing and my yielding will I be able to become more like Christ with each drop of the chain. 

Related posts on this subject: Time To Wage War, A Clean Cup

Father, thank you for showing me that there are areas in my life that I have held me back from the abundant and effective Spirit-filled life you desire for me. Help me to recognize those bondages clearly and surrender those areas to you so that I can live in freedom. Give each of us the spiritual eyes and discernment we need to recognize satan's schemes and to deal with them quickly so we do not find ourselves in chains. We ask these things in the precious name of Jesus Christ. 

What's Your Thorn?

Over a year ago I wrote a blog post entitled “Worthy To Be Praised.” In that post, I shared briefly on the topic of Paul’s thorn in his side. I had mentioned that perhaps Paul’s thorn was some form of physical pain (although, this is not clearly stated in scripture). Whatever the thorn was, be it physical pain or not, it was something Paul was continually dealing with, something he had to keep in a crucified state and laid down at the feet of Jesus. Today I would like us to take a look at this thorn, this continual struggle that needs to be crucified on a daily, hourly or even a minute by minute bases.    

Roses and thorns
In the plant world, roses were created with thorns. God made them that way on purpose, not to harm the rose, but to protect it. I want us to think about this concept just for a moment...the very thing that brings pain to a predator (the thorn) is the very thing that brings life and protection to the rose. I find it ironic that our hardest struggles can sometimes turn out to be our saving grace, and our Heavenly Father ingeniously designed it that way. The very sin that trips us up time and time again can sometimes be the very thing God uses to bring about the growth and protection of a beautiful rose. Please don’t misunderstand me here, I’m not saying God created sin in our lives for our protection. But I am saying that sometimes I think God allows us to have our own way and walk in our own struggles long enough for us to blossom from them. Sometimes God will use our struggles to bring about something so exquisite that we never could have predicted the full extent of its beauty. This is why we can claim “all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28

I was out walking with my husband the other day and as he was talking about the topic of pride, the Lord began to drop in my spirit… “that is your thorn.” I had to do a double take for just a quick second, and then I began to realize that all of my issues with self-esteem boils down to this five letter word. PRIDE. God had placed a finger on it. Now, the question remained what was I going to do with it? I believe we all have to deal with some level of pride, and keeping it in a dead state. However, I am learning that, for me personally, it is requiring way more work on my part. God is not going to take away this battle of pride in my life. He has allowed it to stick around as a continual reminder to me to stay focused on him. The extent to which I can lay down my pride (aka: my self-esteem issues) is the extent to which I will blossom. In other words, the thorn is there so my rose can come forth. Without the sweat equity required by the thorn, the blossom will not be protected. If I continue to be lead by my self-conscience nature, I will never see my rose.

So, I find myself brought back around the mountain, yet again, to wage war. But this time, I understand a little better why my battle seems to keep cropping up. When I wrote my post entitled “Time To Wage War” I wrote from the standpoint that this thing was going to flee and never return. In some cases that is exactly the standpoint we must take in order to see change. However, I feel as if the Lord has changed my thinking a bit on this particular area of my life. When the Lord said “that is your thorn.” I believe He was showing me that I will always face this battle. In knowing that piece of information, I can now fight just a little different. I do not believe this information was shown to me so I can throw up my arms and give up. However, I think the Lord chose to share this so my fighting could be adjusted for a marathon rather than a sprint, for a lifetime rather than a moment in time. It has made a difference knowing the duration of time I have been called to fight this battle. It has put my mind to rest just knowing that it’s okay for me to struggle with this issue because it is my protection for the rose God has in my life. Believe me, coming from someone whose sin of self-consciousness has deeply entangled her at times, my mind has been truly calmed by knowing that my continual battle with this will bring about my own protection in the end. The Lord never ceases to amaze me in the intriguing ways he weaves our deepest hurts, struggles and hardships to bring about the highest honor and glory for His name.  In our weakness, He is strong! (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Call to action
What is your thorn? What is the thing in your life that Christ is continually putting His finger on that will bring about your very protection in the end if you willingly and faithfully lay it at His feet? May I be so bold as to encourage you to seek out your thorn. Ask the Lord what it is that you will be expected to battle with for the rest of your life, not as a form of discouragement, but as a source of relief in knowing where your protection is coming from. May we all have the courage to ask the Lord to reveal our thorn.

Heavenly Father, I thank you for thorns. I thank you that our very struggles are the things you use to display your strength. May you reveal to our hearts the specific struggle that we will face for a lifetime so that your honor and glory can come forth like a rose! Thank you that your ways are higher than our ways. We ask all this in Jesus name.

A Quarrelsome Wife

I came across these two verses in Proverbs about a quarrelsome wife and it got me thinking. I wanted to share with you my thoughts and a little bit about some things I have discovered along the way.

 “A foolish child is a father’s ruin, and a quarrelsome wife is like the constant dripping of a leaky roof.” Proverbs 19:13

“ A quarrelsome wife is like the dripping of a leaky roof in a rainstorm; restraining her is like restraining the wind or grasping oil with the hand. ” Proverbs 27:15-16

Quarrelsome means to be argumentative, contentious,the tendency to cause disagreement or strife. Someone who is quarrelsome likes to be right, and feels the need to get the last word in or come out with the upper hand in a situation of tension. At first glance of this definition, I would be pretty quick to say I am nowhere near a quarrelsome wife. However, as I look at these phrases like… “likes to be right”, “come out with the upper hand.” Yeah, I can see that there is a tendency for me to be quarrelsome, especially in the moments when I’m feeling weak and vulnerable already.

Have you ever seen the reaction of a hurt wild animal when someone tries to help them? Their natural tendency is to fight. Why? Because in their minds they don’t want to get hurt worse than they already are. It’s their defense mechanism kicking in. They are trying to protect themselves, but what they fail to understand is that in reality, they are pushing away the very hand that is trying to help them heal. I am wired much like that wild animal, especially in those moments when I am already hurting from something else. My defense mechanism kicks in and I become the quarrelsome wife that scripture talks about. My insecurities get the upper hand and I fight back. Can anyone relate, or is it just me? I’m guessing there are probably a few of you who become quarrelsome when your husband puts a finger on your already hurting wound. Here is what I fail to remember in those moments. My husband is not my enemy. He is the hand that is trying to help bring healing and I am pushing him away by being quarrelsome. 

If we take a look at Proverbs 19:13 and Proverbs 27:15 closer, they both say that a quarrelsome wife becomes like a constant dripping. Have you ever had a dripping sink? How about the sound of a toilet that just keeps running and does not shut off? Does it irritate you? It drives my husband insane! He absolutely hates those continuous sounds that don’t let up. And yet the word of God says I am that type of irritant to my husband when I am quarrelsome. Proverbs 27:16 says restraining a quarrelsome wife is as difficult as catching the wind or holding oil in the hands. Both of these things are about impossible to contain. Thank goodness we serve a God of the impossible!   

Our Heavenly Father is so gracious with us. Not only has He sent us husbands to help us learn, but He is so patient with us in this process of learning. Even though our husbands may grow impatient with us, we serve a God who has a detailed roadmap for us to follow and is patiently helping us navigate our way through the wounds and scars of life. How do we combat the mindset of a quarrelsome wife, especially in those moments we think we are right and our husbands are in the wrong?

Admit and Lay it down
We must be willing to admit when we are being quarrelsome before we can ever hope to overcome the constant dripping in our husband’s ears. The very moment we notice this creeping in we need to run to the feet of Jesus and ask for His help and wisdom. We can not cut the bonds of being quarrelsome without Him!

Be quick to listen and slow to speak
James 1:19-12 says... “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.” We are never going to solve our problems by arguing them away, all this will bring is destruction. If we truly desire to see our situations transformed, then that transformation must happen in us first. From the overflow of a changed heart, will flow a desire in others to change will inevitably become contagious.

Select our words carefully
Part of being slow to speak means that we take the time to think about how our words will affect the heart and mind of the one we are speaking them to. Will our words bring life or destruction, joy or pain, peace or turmoil? Scripture tells us to... “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11. If it is not encouraging, it should probably not be said.

Choose the appropriate tone of voice
It’s not just the words we say that speak volumes, it is the tone in which we say them, our body language as they roll off our lips and our and our overall demeanor as we speak that will penetrate the heart. We can say all the right words and still come across as a quarrelsome wife with our tone, body language, and demeanor. Yep, I can definitely relate to this one! There have been many moments I have shared things with my husband and they were not received well, all because I shared them in the wrong tone and demeanor. Scripture tells us that… “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” Proverbs 15:1 

Pick the ideal time
Not every moment is the right moment to discuss challenging situations with our husbands. When he walks in the door from a long day at work, it is not the right time! We as wives need to be sensitive to his needs as well. “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” Philippians 2:3-4. When we are able to decipher when it is a good time and when it is not a good time to discuss challenges we will be able to keep ourselves from becoming a quarrelsome wife. 

“The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down.” Proverbs 14:1. I believe we become a wise woman when we communicate with the proper tone, body language, and demeanor. I also think that a wise woman is able to discern the proper timing to discuss difficult situations. By doing these things we build our house and in turn it keeps us from being a quarrelsome woman who tears down their house.

Approach with a heart of love, compassion, and humility 
“Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” Ephesians 4:2
 “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8
In order for us to even begin to communicate with the proper tone, body language and demeanor, and to discern the best time to share, we must first operate from a place of love, compassion, and humility. That’s the bottom line here, when we keep ourselves humble, compassionate and overflowing with love, then it will be much easier to guard ourselves against being a quarrelsome wife. I don’t know about you, but this is challenging at times. My selfish nature wants its way something fierce at times and I’m ashamed to admit it, but my husband ends up with the quarrelsome wife when he should be getting the one filled with love, compassion, and humility.

Heavenly Father, you know the struggles we face at times. Our selfish nature crops in on us and our poor husbands get the complete opposite of what they should be getting. I pray that you help us to recognize when we are being quarrelsome and run to your feet immediately. Help us to hold our tongues, to be quick to listen and slow to speak. Guide our tongues to the right words to say, the proper tone, body language and demeanor in which we convey them. Give us wisdom in when to share and above all else fill us with your love, compassion, and humility. We ask all these things in the precious name of Jesus Christ. 

References used: Crosswalk.com, gotquestions.org 

Weapons Of Warfare (Part 3)

We continue today in with our examination of our weapons of warfare. We have already looked at the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness and feet fitted with readiness. To read about those please visit Weapons of Warfare (Part 2). If you have not read Weapons of Warfare (Part 1) please feel free to read that as well.

“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 6:11-18

4. The shield of faith

In Biblical times the Roman shield was a pretty large piece of equipment. It stood about 3.5 feet tall, 16 inches across and weighted about 22 pounds. The purpose of the shield was to protect any area that was exposed after all the other armor was strapped into placed as well as pushing back the enemy in face to face combat. 

The physical purpose of the shield has direct application to our spiritual lives today. Not only can our faith “extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one,” (Ephesians 6:16) but our faith can literally push our enemy out of the way. The beauty of taking up the shield of faith is just what Jesus tells us about faith… “if you have faith as small as a mustard seed you can say to this mountain, Move from here to there, and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." (Matthew 17:20) We do not need to have piles of faith to see satan running for his life. All we need to do is put on just the tiniest bit of faith and watch satan flee! How awesome is that!

The issue lies in this, we choose not to pick up faith, rather we choose to pick up doubt, fear and unbelief when faith should have been our shield all along! (Related post: Time to Wage War.) Trust God at His word! When He says He will do something He will do it! That’s faith. Believing that God is going to do what He said He would do. Faith is summed up by simply believing that God is going to stay true to His character not matter how bad our circumstances appear. ( Related posts: Facing Our Giants, Faith That Impresses Christ, Believe And Not Doubt). So, pick up the shield of faith and watch satan flee. James 4:7 tells us to resist the devil and he will flee, not he might flee, not maybe he will flee. No! He WILL flee! Resist with the shield of faith. 

5. The helmet of salvation
The helmet is protective armor for our heads, more importantly our minds. In warfare the enemy will try to attack the opponent's head, because if they can damaged the mind they take the soldier out of the fight. Satan is no different with us. How many thoughts a day do we have that are not godly? I know for me personally, it’s more than I can count. I would say it’s because most of the time I walk around without my helmet, which gets me into trouble. (Related posts: Time to Wage War, Being on Guard Duty, 5 Words that Hijack Our Faith, Unchecked Emotions And God's Faithfulness) Do you ever walk around with your mind as an open target for the enemy?

How do we begin to take authority over our thought life? I believe the first step is recognizing weather or not a particular thought is of God or not. The best way to do this is to measure it against scripture. Do the Philippians 4:8 test. I shared this in test in a post entitled “Being On Guard Duty.” So, if you are unfrmilulare with this test, go back and read that post. Once you have established the source of the thought, then it is a matter of lining that thought up with God’s word if it’s not already. Quoting scripture and rehearsing thankfulness are great ways to redirect ungodly thoughts.

6. Sword of the spirit
Thus far, all our discussion has been on items of armor, items in which we put on for our protection. We have yet to discuss any items in which we can use to do actual damage to the enemy. The sword is a weapon that was designed to destroy and kill. Our sword of the spirit is the word of God, and Hebrews tells us just how destructive the word of God can be. 

“For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12 

When we battle with the word we send satan away wounded. (Related post: My Battle Verses) The best part of battling with the word is not just the effects it has on the enemy, but it is the effect is has on our own hearts and minds. When we make a practice of hiding God’s word in our hearts it begins to change our thought life, our actions and our words. This is yet another reason why Hebrews 4:12 tells us that the word can penetrate soul, spirit, joint and marrow. It gets inside of us and transforms us. I can think of no better weapon to fight with. Not only does it send satan away like a dog with his tail between his legs, but it strengthens our souls. There is your double edge! (One that wounds, one that builds up and strengthens).

7. Prayer
The last thing that Paul presents us with in this list of spiritual armor In Ephesians 6 is prayer. Prayer is the yet another weapon God has placed in our hands to do some serious damage in the heavenly realms. 

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:6

“Pray continually.” 1 Thessalonians 5:17

“Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.” Luke 18:1

We are called to be consistent in prayer. How often do we get about ten minutes into our prayer and either get distracted or frustrated that we haven’t seen God do anything amazing and earth shattering? So often we get impatient with God. We are called to pray continually, pray without ceasing, and pray and not give up. God is not raising up a bunch of spiritual sissies here. He wants people who are going to fight for the kingdom! Prayer is one of the most powerful weapons we have in spiritual warfare, and when we pray the scriptures, satan doesn’t even have a chance. 

Prayer is a conversation we have with the Lord. If we keep that conversation ongoing throughout the day then satan has less of a chance to interject his two cents. Because prayer is a conversation we must give the Lord time to speak. How many of us want to be in a conversation with a friend that we never are given the chance to talk because all they want to do is tell you everything that is going on in their life and the lives of those around them? Prayer really is designed to be a two way relationship and an ongoing conversation. There is no magic words we have to say, or special way in which we should say them. God knows our hearts, but bear in mind He desires for us to know His heart as well, and the only way that is going to happen is if we give Him time to speak.   

For more on prayer visit: Prayer, Challenge # 10 - Pursuing Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank you for giving us the armor to use in warfare. Give us the strength we need to take up the shield of faith to protect us against the fiery darts of the enemy. Help us to remember to always wear our helmet of salvation so our minds can be protected against the schemes of the enemy. Grant us the the desire to take up the sword of the spirit and do some damage in the heavenly realms. We know that prayer is how we build our relationship with you. Help us to remember that it is not just a one way conversation, but that you desire to share your heart with us as well. Help us to make the time to stop talking and just listen. Thank you for placing weapons in our hands and not just leaving us unarmed. Give us the strength we need to actually use these weapons each and every day. We ask these things in the precious name of Jesus Christ. 

Weapons of Warfare (Part 2)

If you have not read Weapons of Warfare (Part 1) please fee free to read that first. It lays the foundation to this post.

What are these weapons?
God’s word gives us so many weapons we should wage war with. Please bear with me because I am going to cover many of these weapons, but note that by no means is this an all inclusive list. Please search the scriptures for yourselves to find out exactly what weapons God is calling you to fight with in your particular battle. Not all battles will require the same weapons, nor are those weapons going to be used in the same manner in every battle we face. Spend some time seeking God’s direction on what weapons you need to be fighting with and how you are to fight with them. 

“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 6:11-18

The most logical place to start examining our weapons is in Ephesians 6. This section of scripture introduces us to the armor of God. We will be looking at each individual piece of armor and the significance behind wearing it. Please note that some of the pieces we will discuss are for our protection while other pieces are for us to physically battle with. Each piece is important in our battle against the evil forces in the heavenly realms.

I want to mention quickly that verse 11 tells us to put on the full armor of God so that we can stand against the devil’s schemes. I don’t know any soldier who would go into battle and not wear ALL of their protective gear. I guess if you wanted to lose, become injured or die, you might consider going to war with parts of your armor missing, but in reality, who really wants any of those things to happen? Yet, this is what we do on a daily basis as Christians. We leave our homes for work, school, play dates, errands, and even church without getting dressed in our full armor. By not getting battle ready we are basically inviting satan to wreak havoc in our lives.

1. Belt of truth
In thinking about the belt of truth my mind immediately takes me to one place, the next generation. The belt is a garment worn around the waist. The body parts in and around that area deal with the reproductive organs. I truly think there is a reason why scripture talks about covering our waists with truth. My understanding of this is that we should be covering our children, both physical children and spiritual children with the knowledge of God’s truth. 

“I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” 3 John 1:4

Our children can never walk in a truth they have never heard. It is our responsibility to put on truth and in turn pass that along to the next generation as well. In doing so we will reap a beautiful harvest. One major aspect of waging war means sharing the knowledge of God’s truth to anyone who will listen.

2. Breastplate of rightness
The breastplate is used to protect vital organs such as our lungs and heart. I truly believe the key protection area is our heart. It is crucial that we protect our heart with righteousness. Please bear in mind that we can not produce the type of righteousness that has the capability of protecting our heart from the evil schemes that satan is skillfully planning. Isaiah 64:6 tells us that “all our righteous acts are like filthy rags.” So in other words,the righteousness we need only comes from the Heavenly Father Himself.
“...For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” Luke 6:45 When we allow the Lord to fill our heart with His righteousness, our mouths then become a vehicle for God’s righteousness to be spread to those around us. Protecting our hearts begins with allowing God’s righteousness to fill us and then allowing His righteousness to flow from us.

3. Your feet fitted with readiness
What good is it to get dressed for work in the morning if you never actually go to work? God not only desires us to put on the full armor, but to actually go and use it. Ephesians says that our feet should be fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. We can never be fitted for readiness if we don’t daily delve into God’s word. We should be so involved with the word of God that it affects the way we walk, the manner in which we carry ourselves, our demeanor, our mindset, our speech and our interactions with others. Our Heavenly Father desires for us to come to such an intimate place in our walk with Him that every aspect of our being reflects the character of Christ. We can not arrive at such a place without putting on the gospel of peace each and every day. I truly believe that the reason God desires us to ready our feet is so that we don’t keep Christ for ourselves. When our feet our equipped for readiness, we have a burning and urgent passion inside to share the things of God with others. It’s time to put on our running shoes saints. We are facing a lost and dying generation that needs to hear the gospel more than ever before.

To continue this series please read: Weapons of Warfare (Part 3).

Heavenly Father, please help us to put on the belt of truth so we can share your truth with the next generation with a sense of urgency. May we faithfully put on the breastplate of righteousness so that our hearts can be protected because we know that when our heart is guarded our mouths will speak forth the godliness that we have stored up inside. Fill us with diligence to lace up our shoes of readiness so that we may go wherever you are sending us and share with whomever you place in our path. Overwhelm us with an urgency to do battle in the heavenly realms.

Weapons Of Warfare (Part 1)

 In my last post, I challenged us with the thought of waging war with our sin nature. This truly is a big responsibility and one that should not be taken lightly. But, what exactly are we fighting against? How do we wage war? What weapons has God already placed in our hands to wage war with?  And, where do we even begin?

What are we fighting against?
“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.” 
Ephesians 6:12

So many of the challenges we face in this life are not just because we are merely human and make mistakes, or because things “just happen.” There is a much greater force at work than simply the little lives we live. Our Heavenly Father has plans and purposes for each and every life on this earth (Jeremiah 29:11). However, satan has plans too! The heavenlies are waging war against us, our families and our friends. Satan wants to annihilate all traces of God’s plans and purposes for us, and if he can’t completely knock God out of the picture he at least wants to keep us distracted enough so that God’s plans are no longer our priority. And satan will stop at nothing to see God’s plans derailed in our lives. We get ourselves into trouble when we don’t acknowledge the fact that there is a war raging in the heavenly realms. I have heard well-meaning Christians say “I don’t want to make this out to be a spiritual battle.” What is it inside of us that makes us think that the struggles we find ourselves in are not spiritual attacks? I can only assume that this concept of the heavenlies waging war for our souls is a topic that makes people extremely uncomfortable. It is an area we as humans do not understand nor are we able to have complete control over. And quite frankly it’s a scary concept to think about. It is this very entrapment of discomfort that satan is so eager to keep us entangled in, because living in fear of the unknown will, in fact, paralyze us from ever waging war. All the while, the situations we are facing are continuing to wage war with us. Can you see the dangers of not acknowledging the spiritual forces of evil working in the heavenly realms? They will wage war whether or not we acknowledge their existence. We might as well trust God when He tells us that there are spiritual forces of evil at work in the heavenly realms.

How do we wage war? 
“For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete.” 2 Corinthians 10:3-6

Since God’s word tells us there are spiritual forces of evil that we must wage war against, the question remains of how do we wage war? According to 2 Corinthians 10:3-6 God has given us weapons with divine power. These weapons are used to demolish strongholds, arguments (speculations), and pretension (a lofty thing) that sets itself up against the knowledge of God. In other words, anything contrary to the word of God or the character of Christ we are to wage war against using the divine weapons that God has given us.

To continue this series please read: Weapons Of Warfare (Part 2), Weapons Of Warfare (Part 3)

Father, help us to believe you at your word when you tell us there is a spiritual battle going on in the heavenly realms for our souls. Give us the courage we need to wage war, to not back down, and to fight the good fight of faith. Heap upon us the fortitude that we need to use the weapons you have already placed in our hands to demolish strongholds, arguments and any lofty thing that sets itself up against the knowledge of you. Fill us with the tenacity we need to wage war in the heavenlies! We ask these things in the precious name of Jesus Christ. 

Time To Wage War

One downfall I often see in the world of blogging is this illusion that the person writing has a life with few struggles and blissfully shares their advice with us. I have shared my frustration about this misconception with you before, but bear with me as I share it once again. The truth of the matter is that “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) So, when this common misconception arises, let me be the first to remind you that here on this blog, all you will find is a woman who has dreadfully and woefully fallen short of God’s perfect glory time and time again. And to be perfectly frank, I will continue to do so, not because I am willfully sinning, but because I have a sin nature that I am in a raging war with on a daily basis and it is inevitable that I will lose a battle from time to time. 

One of the biggest battles I continually find myself in is one that leaves me feeling smothered under the suffocating grasp of my own insecurities. I am haunted by my shortcomings so much so that I lay in bed at night, my pillow soaked from tears of inadequacy because I was reminded yet again that I have indeed fallen short of the glory of God. I can usually shake off the insecurities long enough to keep them from affecting my daily living. However, there have been times I have found myself to be so paralyzed by them that my family has suffered because of it. The difficulty with this is how to handle it. I have always had a hard time sharing what is going on inside and when I finally get brave enough to try I have already burned the bridges of people’s patience. So, since the patience is gone, I just hold it in and keep silent longer. This inevitably propels the situation into a full-blown nightmare! Oh, how I wish that I was blessed with the ability to sort through my emotions quickly and speak openly and freely about them! It is an incredible inconvenience!

The faithfulness of God 
I thank God that His word tells us He will never leave us nor forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:6), especially in those moments of struggles. God is not an “Indian giver.” In other words, He does not give us something only to take it away. God gave us His word. His word never changes. He never relinquishes on His promises. What a treasure! As I ponder God’s faithfulness I am reminded of a dream that I heard many years ago and it was eventually turned into a song, entitled “Footprints in the Sand.”  If you have never heard that song please click the link to view the song. It truly is a precious reminder that the Lord is always with us even when we feel like we have been left to fend for ourselves.

Not only is the very character of God faithful, but He also sends people our way to speak words of life when we need it most. Sometimes it takes an outside perspective to give us a clear understanding of what is really going on. I recently had a phone conversation with a dear friend who understands what it is like to be in the trenches of motherhood, homeschooling, and ministry simultaneously. Through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, she was able to speak such soothing words to my raging heart and mind. I can honestly say I walked away from that conversation with clearer vision. Not that my circumstance had changed one bit, but what had changed was my perspective. How many of us know that a right perspective on a situation can be the paradigm shift in a problem being resolved?   

I thank God for giving me moments of clarity in the midst of the fog. If it weren't for those little clearings I would find myself continually lost in a sea of emotions unable to distinguish left from right and up from down. 

Freedom
“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.” Romans 5:6 (Emphasis mine)

This verse is such a beautiful reminder that in the very depths of our need, in the face of our weakness, and in the trenches of our inadequacies Christ died for us. He was and still continues to come and meet us where we are for the sake of saving us and making us whole. We truly serve a remarkable God. I don’t know of any other kind of love, but the love of Christ, that would come into to a life riddled with sin all because He wants to have a personal relationship with that life. This verse says we were powerless. Are there days when you find yourself powerless? I sure do! Christ died for you. Christ died for that sin in which you find yourself ensnared and engulfed with. He died for me in the throngs of my insecurities, in the depths of my self-doubt and in the pile of perceived shortcomings! Christ has given us freedom! He has placed freedom in the palm of our hands. The question remains are we going to carry that freedom and walk in it, or are we going to lay it aside and walk in our bondages? That is a choice I find myself struggling with on a daily basis. There are days I choose to walk in the freedom of the cross. Then there are days I choose to walk in my bondages. I am finding that when I walk in freedom I feel refreshed and light as if the chains have been lifted. There is a true liberty in my spirit. On the reverse side of that, when I have chosen to walk in the bondage of my insecurities, my soul feels entangled in an eternal war, my spirit is restless and my emotions run unchecked. The crazy thing about this is I find it more comfortable to lay aside the freedom of the cross and cling to my insecurities. Are any of you that way with their repetitive sins, or is it just me? Here is the kicker of that, it is a false sense of comfort in every way conceivable! By clinging to the sin of my insecurities, I am really clinging to self rather than to the Lord. I will never find freedom in myself. I must cast the cares of my insecurities upon the Lord, pick up the freedom of the cross and walk in it! This is a conscious, deliberate, and minute by minute task. We must be willing to wage war with the old nature before we can ever expect to gain victory over it. 

The Lord will bring us to a place where we are so sick and tired of the sin that we find ourselves drowning in that we are ready to wage a very harsh and furious war with it. Are you ready to wage war with your repetitive sins? You may not be, and that’s ok, but may I encourage you to go before the Lord and ask Him to well up inside of you the will to fight. Ask Him to give you a desire to slaughter the enemy. Yes, I’m sounding morbid here because the enemy is not playing peaceable in our lives, so why should we? We have been given mighty weapons to defeat the enemy and we (myself included) have laid them aside too long and watched the enemy annihilate us without ever lifting a finger in retaliation. NO MORE!!! It’s time to wage war!!!!!!!!!

To read about waging war please read: Weapons of Warfare (Part 1), Weapons of Warfare (Part 2), Weapons of Warfare (Part 3)

Father God, I thank you for the place you have brought me. It has not been a fun road, but I thank you that I am finally ready to fight. Give me the of faith Abraham, the drive of David and the wisdom of Solomon to fight the good fight of faith. Lord, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ that this spirit of insecurity that I have allowed to inhabit my heart will flee! It has no authority in my life. I am casting off the burden of insecurity and choosing to walk in the freedom of the cross today! I thank you for the blood that was shed for my sins. I thank you that it has the power to cleanse, purify, and set me free! Lord, I realize that this is going to be a long and furious battle, but it is one I have put off long enough and I am now willing to go after it with all that I am. Father, may those who read this today be stirred to wage war against the sin that so easily entangles them. Give them the will to fight and to fight with grit and zealousness. We ask all these things in the precious name of Jesus Christ.

Being Effective And Productive In The Kingdom

“For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

2 Peter 1:5-8 (emphasis mine)

Two phrases literally leaped right off the page as I read this scripture. “if you possess these qualities… they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive…” There are certain things that we must have  in our spiritual walks in order to remain effective and productive in the kingdom. The opposite can be said that if we do not possess these qualities then we inevitably will be ineffective and unproductive in the kingdom. This is exactly the very card satan is trying to play on Christians. He wants to deem us ineffective and unproductive. Keeping the devil in a place of fear is our playing card. When we are aware and continuously working on the qualities needed to be effective and productive in the kingdom of God we keep satan in a constant state of fear.

Let’s take a look at the characteristics that have been listed in this verse: faith, goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, kindness, and love. That is a pretty powerful list. I don’t know about you, but I know there are a few on that list I need some help to possess in increasing measure for sure! I want to take some time to look these characteristics, learn what they are and what scripture teaches about each one.

Faith

Scripture tells us that “...if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move...”  Matthew 17:20 We do not need an abundance of faith in order to thrive in the kingdom of God. We just need the tiniest amount of unwavering faith in the Lord to see the impossible take place. The beautiful thing about faith is that it can start out as small as a mustard seed and as we see mountains move in our lives and the lives of those around us we can watch it grow. Our faith grows with each answer to pray, with each God sized portion of provision, with every occasion of supernatural protection and in  each and every heartfelt moment of peace in the midst of the cayos. Scripture tells us that when we seek Him we will find Him. (Matthew 7:7) Our faith grows when we look for God in every situation.

Goodness

Goodness is moral excellence and virtue. This is a quality we have seen drastic declines in our culture over the last several decades. Our culture likes to tell us that humans are inherently good. However, scripture is clear that we were born with a sin nature and are sinners from birth.

“Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.” Psalm 51:5 The sin nature we are born with wages furiously against any type of goodness unless we are willing to purposely take a stand and fight back. Our flesh will always win the war that we are not willing to fight.   

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Psalm 23:6 (ESV) I’d like to reword this verse to say…”Surly moral excellence and virtue will follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” (My rendition of Psalm 23:6) The old saying that states “What goes around comes around” applies quite literally in this verse. When we operate with moral excellence and virtue, then they will surely follow us. People are drawn to those with a large moral base and function with virtue. I have never met a person who displayed excellent moral character that I haven’t enjoyed being around. These people become magnets for the kingdom. It’s no wonder God wants the characteristic of goodness to grow in increasing measure in our lives.

Knowledge

Knowledge is acquiring facts, truths, or principles, as from study or investigation (adapted from dictionary.com). God intends for us to grow in our knowledge of Him, His word, His truths, and His principles as we mature in our faith. We are not called to stay spiritual babies forever. “The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge, for the ears of the wise seek it out.” Proverbs 18:15. We are called to actively search and seek out knowledge, understanding, truth, God’s principles and investigate the scriptures. If we are not diligently doing this we can not possibly be growing in knowledge in increasing measure. This takes time and effort on our part. We must be willing to put forth the effort needed to acquire knowledge. I sometimes wish that by some form of osmosis it would just come to me. But it doesn't. That would be a surefire way to create a lazy Christian. And if I know anything about our Heavenly Father, He is not in the business of creating lazy Christians.

Self-control

Self control is our ability to restrain our actions, feelings and words when we find ourselves under pressure, stress, or criticism. This is an area that needs so much of God’s grace in my personal walk. I tend to wear my emotions on my sleeve. People know when I am annoyed, frustrated or bothered. I wish I had a shut off switch in this department because my lack of restraint has gotten me in more trouble than I care to admit. Proverbs 14:17 tells us that “a quick tempered person does foolish things…” Yep, that’s me alright, a short fuse that turns into foolishness. How about you? Are you one who is quick to anger and frustration, or are you one who exhibits self control in difficult situations? Lord, help us to have self control in increasing measure!    

Perseverance

The meaning of perseverance is having a steady persistence in a course of action, or a purpose, especially in spite of difficulties, obstacles, or discouragement (dictionary.com) Some translations of scripture also use long suffering. We are going to be faced with all kinds of obstacles in our walk with Christ. Will we have the stubbornness that it takes to stick it out no matter what the obstacles? Are we truly willing to suffer long and hard for the sake of the kingdom or will we crumble under the pressure? I believe we must exhibit a certain degree of obstinence in the kingdom. We must not be willing to compromise our faith for shortcuts, narrow roads or smoother paths. I truly believe that in order to have perseverance we must be bullheaded for Godly principles. Afterall, satan is certainly persistent in his fight for our souls. Why shouldn’t we be just as insistent upon righteousness prevailing in our lives and the lives of our family? ”Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.” James 1:12 We will receive a crown of life when we persevere under trials! What sobering thought. We are storing up treasures in heaven when we are stubborn for kingdom principles. Lord, give us a tenacity for long suffering.

Godliness

“For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.” (1 Timothy 4:8) Becoming more Christ like is the very essence of being a Christian. Having godliness is valuable to everything we do in this life. We must desire to become increasingly Christ like each and every day.

Kindness

I have shared in a previous post about kindness. When people operate with kindness, it flows from their very character in such a way that they will elevate the good in others. They consciously look towards the interests of those around them. (Philippians 2:3-4) It is their desire to see others grow and flourish. The very nature of our Heavenly Father is kindness. He desires for us to grow in kindness with increasing measure each and every day.

Love

I recently completed an entire series on love. Please feel free to go and view that series if you need a refresher on God’s love. Love encomposes all of these characteristics that we just listed out. If we truly love the Lord with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength (Luke 10:27), then we will possess faith, goodness, a thirst for knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness and kindness. That does not mean that we possess each of them with increasing measure. That takes work on our part to make that happen. I truly believe that if we put the majority of our efforts into loving God, and loving our neighbor as ourselves (Mark 12:30-31), then the rest will fall into place. That is why scripture tells us that “...the greatest of these is love.” 1 Corinthians 3:13.

Heavenly Father, thank you for giving us the keys to being effective and productive in your kingdom. Help us to grow with increasing measure each and every day in faith, goodness, a thirst for knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, kindness and most importantly love. Thank you for not giving us a spirit of fear, but for allowing us to use fear as a weapon against the enemy. As we increase in these qualities may it build fear in satan. We pray that no weapon that he tries to bring against us is going to prosper because we are keeping busy working the word in our lives with increasing measure. We ask all these things in the precious name of Jesus Christ.