We are at war, or at least, we should be!

Concerning the battle for our souls, we must join it.  It is folly to attempt to be a double agent, or mercenary since the price of the spoils is eternity.  Who can pay it?  Make a declaration as to whom you serve and put all cowardice aside.  You cannot serve God and Satan, and you must serve one or the other--a third option does not exist.  If you do not know you are God's, then you belong the enemy (luckily, God's army accepts defectors).  So be a man, or woman and choose a side. 

If you choose correctly (and I pray you do) take care brethren and be thou not deceived by the preachers of prosperity, for Jesus never promised that walking in his footsteps would be easy.  The hope that dwells in the believer is not for this world, but for the next.  Therefore, do not become discouraged by the attacks of the enemy.  We know that he is defeated in the last battle.  But he will try to bring all types of hell into your life until then. His goal is to make you go back to the world system, his system.



Brothers and sisters, rejoice while the enemy sends a volley of fiery arrows at your home and your family.  Rejoice, I say!  Trust in Him that is in you which is greater than the arrow shooter.  Pick up His armor, and His shield of Faith, and you will deflect all of the fiery darts of the enemy. 

Trust me when I tell you that the devil knows your weakness, and that is precisely where he will attack you.  Fortify that area with prayer when you have given yourself fully to the battle.  For the enemy will come not when you are weak in the Lord, but when you are strong.  Those that are weak in their faith, or lack faith altogether pose no threat to the enemy.  They are their own destruction and require no assistance from the enemy. 

It is us, the faithful that must press against our enemy.  It is us that are constantly under his attack.  we should rejoice when he has us in his cross hairs.  Those arrows he shoots confirm our beliefs and will strengthen our faith if we allow it to be so strengthened.

Don't allow the lies to seep in.  He will convince you that you are not worthy to be saved.  You are not worthy to be saved, that is why the gift of salvation is so precious, we didn't earn it.  When the enemy makes you feel unworthy, ask yourself, is there anything too hard for God?  Remember, the more you walk in faith, the more frequent and intense his attacks will become.  It is when those intense trials come that you need to remember that we don't war against flesh and blood, but against the spirit world.  Our battle is not ours, but the Lord's, and He is already victorious. 

Old Deluder Satan

When I was in college I had to take a class called Foundations of Education.  It was one of the most interesting classes I ever had because of the historical aspect.  In that class we learned about a 1647 Massachusetts Law called the 'Old Deluder Satan Act'.  In short, this act required every township of 50 or more people to have a public school so the students could learn to read the Bible.  This act is interesting for many reasons, but I especially like the title. 
http://www.americareclaimed.org/elements/docs/documents/Old%20Deluder%20Satan%20Law(1647)p.pdf

Friends, Satan, is a deluder.  He is a deceiver, a liar, a thief, and a murderer.  What is more friends, he is very good at it.  He is so good that when he does it, we scarcely recognize it.  He works through people, books, music, TV, and any other way he can wiggle his way into our thoughts and our hearts.  All he needs is to cast some doubt on God's word--once he does that our minds will do the rest.  It's not hard to plant weeds.  He will most likely come in a way that seems harmless to us, and speak things that seem right to our carnal minds.   I had the unfortunate experience of encountering him recently as I was reading something, and it hit me like a ton of Bibles.

Brothers and Sisters he is strong, and when he gets hold of us, or our family, his grip is tight.  Too tight for us to break with our own strength. .  I wanted to physically fight him.  I wanted to jump on him and literally rip his head off.  Instead, I prayed, because we war not against flesh, but against spiritual wickedness. (I'm paraphrasing Ephesians 6:12 here).  If  I had been being half the Christian I thought I was, I would have been truly praying, truly engaging in spiritual warfare all along.  However, the truth is that my prayers were frequent, but not fervent.  They were constant, but I was not praying in the spirit.  I may have started out that way, but over time it became routine.  I was reminded last night that warfare is anything but routine and how we do it makes all the difference. 

Where did I go wrong?  I think that I was so caught up in the storm and how huge it was that I forgot that I serve a God that can quiet the storm with a word, with a mere thought.  I was telling God how big the storm was, and I should have been telling the storm how big God is.  Friends there is nothing Satan can do that God cannot undo.  There is no situation that is hopeless.  Remember, Jesus defeated death itself, and greater is He that is in us (Christians), than he that is in the world.  The old deluder is already defeated, he is just too arrogant to believe it.

Friends, if the devil is attacking you or your family, be encouraged.  If he is fighting you everywhere in your life, count it all joy.  That devil will work very hard against Christians.  We are his targets.  The harder he fights against you, the more joy you should have.  Remember, he attacks his enemies, not his friends.  If you are under attack then it is likely that you are a friend of the most high God and an enemy of the devil.  Continue to resist him in the name of Jesus Christ and he will flee from you.