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WAR

Often when I pray I close my eyes and begin to share my heart with God. I seek to find quiet and peace. I seek to calm the raging seas around me and focus on speaking with and hearing from God. 

As I speak to God another voice sneaks in and fills my head with the thoughts of the many items on my to do list or of the mistakes I've made in the past or the many ways I fall short as a father, son, husband, and follower of Christ. 

Sometimes I lose focus and open my eyes to attend to the to do list item or consider my past mistake or to dwell on how I fall short in my many roles. Other times I respond by opening my eyes for a brief moment, then I push the reset button on my prayer, close my eyes, and enter in to prayer again. Finally sometimes, I keep my eyes closed and call the name of Jesus. I ask God to clear my head of the distractions. I ask for Him to be present and fight for me.

My mind is certainly a battleground between good and evil. The enemy's weapons are doubts and lies. The thoughts of what I have left undone, haven't done well, and feelings of insecurities are meant to drive a wedge into my purposeful prayer time with God.

There is indeed a supernatural war being waged in me. Each fighting for influence and ultimately for me. The enemy doesn't like it when we draw a line in the sand to stand for Christ. In fact, I believe it makes him push harder to break this commitment. The enemy will go to great lengths to pull us from the truth and grace of our Lord. 

God stands on the other side of the battlefield. His commitment is to never leave us. His dedication to fight for each and everyone us, His children. His love and grace chase after us with reckless abandon.

Even Jesus faced the enemy. He retreated to the desert and was confronted by a head on attack by the enemy. His weapons were temptations hurled one after the other at Jesus. But Jesus remained strong in the Lord and squashed each temptations. Each time, He defeated Satan with the truth of God.  

God will always be bigger and badder than the enemy. In Exodus, Moses tells the Israelites who are frightened by the Egyptians, "The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent" (Exodus 14:14). We are to be strong and mighty in the Lord (Ephesians 6:10). We are to put on the "full armor of God" and "take our stand against the Devil's schemes" (Ephesians 6:11). The battle is real but with the armor of God we can "stand our ground" (Ephesians 6:13). 

Stand firm in truth, righteousness, peace, faith, salvation and the word of God. Pray on all things and trust that God is bigger than anything the enemy can muster.

Be blessed and be a blessing,
Matt

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