Tag: battle

A Spiritual Walk with a New Nature

On By vickleaIn Scripture, YouVersion AppLeave a comment

www.bible.com/reading-plans/1201/day/8

Oh, my! This devotional certainly made me think about how I battle daily and sometimes I don’t win that battle against my flesh. But I keep trying and with the power of the Holy Spirit, I can win each battle, one day at a time. My battle recently has been too much of the worldly things that I enjoy. I started playing games online against family members several years ago. Now it has become almost an obsession, and I need to rein it in so it is fun with my family but not dominating my time. I go online to read my Bible and devotionals, then I listen to my Bible podcast and then I pray and go on with my day. I have found that too much of my time is occupied with entertainment, so I fight that battle daily. I make the excuse that the games are a release from the tension and stress of the news and family issues. But I realize as I write this that I am only fooling myself, and I am not even doing that well. They are also a pleasure, and one that takes away from other things I should and could be doing. So, I am confessing, asking for prayer and also committing to step away from the temptation and move closer to what God wants me to be doing. The war is real…but so is God!

Weary of the Battle

On By vickleaIn Scripture, YouVersion App1 Comment

www.bible.com/reading-plans/1201/day/1

I confess that there are days when I just want to stay in bed, pull the covers up over my head and snuggle down, just ignoring my responsibilities and what is going on in the world. I don’t turn on the news because it’s not new and it’s rarely fair, balanced and accurate. I don’t listen to podcasters spouting their interpretation of the news, for the same reason. However, I live with a man who listens to all news, all the time and who reports to me gleefully and repeatedly throughout the day about what he heard and how he interprets it. The world is broken. The news is mostly a lie. And my husband is annoying, but I am holding on to the hope that one day God will make everything right. Does my breathing quicken and my heart speed up when my husband gives me his latest report? Unfortunately, yes, it does. Even when I tell him honestly that the news he is reporting is stressing me, he continues to report. After all, who else is going to listen to his 16 hour a day broadcast? So, I continue to fight the battle of the war of what is right (patience with my husband’s enthusiasm for the news) and what is wrong (losing my temper and telling him to go away). This is one example of a spiritual battle that I fight daily, but there are many others. Satan would love to destroy our marriage of fifty one years with constant disagreements like this one. But we have made a commitment to love each other, which means putting up with the differences we have and forgiving each other when an offense occurs. It must make Satan cringe when we go to bed together again each evening, not angry and not ready to “throw in the towel” on our relationship. The battle is real…but so is God. And since I know that God wins in the end, I will just keep fighting on His team, with the faith and assurance that this earthly battle will not last forever. (And praying that there are no newscasts in Heaven, of course.)

Red Hot Resistance

On By vickleaIn Scripture2 Comments

www.bible.com/reading-plans/540/day/1

I heard a pastor say once (or probably more than once) that Satan doesn’t bother attacking the non-believers because they are already on his side. On the other hand, those of us who are Christians can sometimes feel as though we are under constant attack. We get through one crisis and the next one is just waiting on the horizon. But there is good news! Have you read the end of the Book? We win! That is why Satan’s desperate ploys to divert our attention from God and get us too discouraged to worship won’t work. God wants us to be prepared for the attacks, so He gave us His Word, but He doesn’t want us to be defeated by them. The trials test our faith but they can’t destroy our firm hold on God unless we let go. Sometimes, I feel as though God is holding me tightly through the circumstances because I get too tired to hold on. Lauren Daigle sings a song called “Hold On To Me” that speaks to my heart when I face that dilemma. I recommend you listen to it with an open heart; at times, all we can do is know that God who began this faith trip with us will see us through to the end. The resistance is real, but so is the victory!

Between the Wilderness and the Promised Land

On By vickleaIn Scripture, YouVersion App2 Comments

www.bible.com/reading-plans/13696/day/24

If you read the devotional, you will know that the obstacle between the Israelites and the promised land was a fortified city named Jericho. We all have obstacles in our lives that we have to overcome. Right now, mine is trusting God in the medical situation with our grandson. Each day, I have to give the anxiety and heartache to God, again and again. I know that God is sovereign and in control and that this tumor did not surprise Him, but it has shocked me. As I read about Jericho and God’s unconventional way of defeating that enemy, I know that the same God can lead our family past this obstacle. There is nothing God cannot do, and I am believing that He will use this for the benefit of those who need to draw closer to Him, including me. The wilderness seemed to be my own health problems and I thought all of that was done…but then, Isaac’s tumor was found. So, standing at the walls of Jericho, I am trying to maintain my trust and I am putting my hope in the Lord who created our grandson and loves him even more than we do. Obedience is the key to winning the victory. What God told the Israelites to do didn’t make a lot of sense in the natural order of winning battles, but they did it anyway. What God is speaking to my heart is to be still and trust…doesn’t make much sense to me when I want to find another answer, an alternative medical solution, something. But God says to be still and trust, so I am fighting myself every day to do just that.

I am sure that you have a Jericho in your life, too. Listen to God’s instructions about how to fight that battle and be an overcomer. As I told Isaac, “Nothing will happen today that you and God cannot handle together.” Reach out to God and ask Him what He wants you to do as you prepare for battle. And when He answers, do it.

Weapons and Our Assurance of Safety

On By vickleaIn Scripture3 Comments

No matter what weapon the evil one and his minions use against us, it will not succeed. We will be able to silence our accusers, and I think that will take much prayer and time with the Lord. These are benefits only enjoyed by the Lord’s servants because He will vindicate us, removing all doubt that we are His and that He is on our side.

This is a beautiful promise from God that is a little hard to grasp unless you have ever been in battle. We do battle daily, but not on a traditional battlefield or in a traditional manner with earthly weapons. Our battles are against the prince of darkness and his weapons are fiery darts that can pierce us if we don’t consistently wear the armor that God had provided for us. With our armor in place, we can go into battle, assured that the weapons of the enemy cannot harm us in any way and that in the end, the battle is totally the Lord’s.

May your day be blessed with the assurance that the battle belongs to the Lord!

Our Battle and Wars

On By vickleaIn Scripture2 Comments

If you watch the nightly news (I don’t) or get news online (sometimes, for me), then you cannot help knowing that the world is in a mess of hurt. There is still a war going on in Europe (remember Ukraine) and there is a lot of unrest in the Middle East, too. Those are the hot spots right now, but there are skirmishes in various locations. But we who know the Lord know that His hand is on the earth and we don’t have to fret about these events. We need to be looking up and waiting for the Savior to appear, knowing that He is indeed coming although we don’t know when.

We fight a daily battle against our enemies, sin and all of the upheaval it creates in the world around us. The Bible gives clean instruction about how we are to go into battle, fully girded and ready. More importantly, He promises to be with us in our battles.

We are not called to shrink back from the enemy but to go boldly into battle. We are at war daily with the enemy of our soul, working at rescuing others from the snare of death and eternity without God.

Our victory is promised if we just hold steadfastly to our faith and keep pressing forward. The enemy thinks that he is pushing us back. After all, the entire world has gone “woke” which basically means that the enemies of God are dismissing the Bible as irrelevant for today. But we who stand on the battle lines for Christ know that the Bible will stand forever and God will never abandon us to fight alone.

May your day be blessed with the knowledge that the war is already won and that our King of Glory is victorious!!