Many people are defeated in their Christian lives because they are not seriously engaged in, or may even understand the warfare to which they are called. The enemy we face is real, fierce, and a liar, and he will stop at nothing to try to bring destruction and death into the lives of the followers of the Lord Jesus. As warriors for the kingdom we are fighting a battle over life and death, and the stakes in all reality is eternity itself. I have witnessed that people who have been deceived, beguiled, brainwashed, and more importantly enslaved by Satan, will treat everyone who is a child of God as if they are the enemy. For any who have taken the name of “Christian” you have enlisted in the Lord’s army and must recognize that as soldiers, we are all on a rescue mission, to seek and to save the lost from the hand of the enemy. I often remind myself of what is written in *Ephesians 6:10 In conclusion, be strong in the Lord [draw your strength from Him and be empowered through your union with Him] and in the power of His [boundless] might. 13 Therefore, put on the complete armor of God, so that you will be able to [successfully] resist and stand your ground in the evil day [of danger], and having done everything [that the crisis demands], to stand firm [in your place, fully prepared, immovable, victorious].* God’s words are true, this battle is real and intense. It is vital to our survival as Christian’s that we realize daily that we are engaged in a battle with an unseen spiritual enemy that seeks to steal, kill, and destroy all those who oppose him. We cannot just stand by and wait for individual attacks, but rather we must look for how Satan commonly is going to attack us and live in such a way that stops his attack from making an impact. If you’re facing a spiritual battle today, please know that you are not alone, many of us are in the battle with you. God is the One who fights on behalf of His own, constantly shielding, protecting, strengthening His children, even when we’re unaware. J. C. Ryle wrote something that has caused me to be a little more introspective, “The saddest symptom about many so-called Christians is the utter absence of anything like conflict and fight in their Christianity.” “But of the great spiritual warfare,–its watchings and strugglings, its agonies and anxieties, its battles and contests,–of all this they appear to know nothing at all.” To all those who hear these words and do not feel the effects of the spiritual warfare going on all around you, you must evaluate if you are in the battle or just a conscientious objector. Please take to heart the words of the Lord Jesus written in *Matthew 12:30 He who is not with Me [definitely on My side] is against Me, and he who does not [definitely] gather with Me and for My side scatters.* Closing thought, if you resemble more of the character and attributes of the world more than that of Christendom, consider this day whether Jesus is worth living for, because He thought you were worth dying for. In Christ Love, douglas. HE>i. pastord.blog

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