Promise for Today - Finish This

"God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we'll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels. Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it's all over but the shouting you'll still be on your feet."

Ephesians 6:10-13 The Message

I've lost count of the times I have heard this question - "Why can't we all just get along?" And while the truth would be, "Light can't abide with darkness", I also have to remember that we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Although my flesh wants to rip and tear, I am bound by the Word in Romans 12:17-18, "Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone."

John 3:17 declares that God sent His Son to save the world, not to condemn it. We must remember that we are not to fight people; we're fighting spiritual wickedness. Christ died for all mankind, no matter their political beliefs; no matter their spiritual beliefs or lack thereof. Christ died so ALL would have the opportunity to receive the salvation He so freely offered us. God doesn't love me more than the unsaved heathen who uses His Name in vain.

None of us would go to battle and die for something or someone we don't love or believe in. Jesus said in Luke 9, "If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me." Paul wrote, "I die daily..." Where did we ever get the idea that living a Christian life would be a walk in the park?

So, how do we fight enemies we do not see? Can we go charging after and be effective in routing an unseen adversary? No! We cannot go charging off on our own, under our own power, our own steam. If we're going to fight - and finish - the fight of good faith, we must follow the Leader. We have to follow the Lord. Just as our Promise for Today reads, "This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels. Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it's all over but the shouting, you'll still be on your feet."

What are the weapons? Continue on in Ephesians 6, "Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You'll need them throughout your life. God's Word is an indispensable weapon."

In other words, don't show up to a sword fight without The Sword of the Lord.

"In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters in the Lord. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other's spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out."

Let's finish this thing. It's time to go Home.

Prayer:

Father,
           Thank You for providing everything we need to do everything You have called us to do. You are the ultimate Leader. Father, we want to finish this fight with You. Continue to lead us and instruct us. Ramp up our training so we can be effective in winning souls and winning the battles. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Weapon Check

 All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.

2nd Timothy 3:16-17 NLT

These two verses give us direction for our lives. With accepting Christ as our given, what more would we need than to know what is true in order to realize what is wrong, and then to provide the answer for correction? Aren't we here to do the work of the Father? 

Where's your Bible? What does it look like? Is it pristine and in good condition? Are all the pages perfect and unmarred? Or perish the thought, is it dust-covered? A coffee table adornment? Or has it been in the battles of life with you? Is it the sword you fight with? Is it tear-stained? Perhaps a few coffee stains, too? Some pictures, maybe, and some notes - both in the margins and on separate note pages. 

Tried. Tested. True.

Just because we'd rather not fight doesn't mean the enemy of our souls will lay down his weapons against us. We're in a battle every day. Remember that the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to pull down strongholds (2 Corinthians 10:4). Weapon check. Are we properly equipped? 

Prayer:

Father,
          Anoint us afresh with renewed hunger for Your Word. Teach us how to wield it as a master swordsman. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Keeping Track

You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.

Psalm 56:8 NLT

Sometimes, it seems like the hard seasons of life are so much longer than the good times. It is in times like these I am SO glad we have the Word of God to stand on, to lean on, to wield as a weapon to ward off the onslaught of the enemy of our souls. Even though it may feel like all of hell has waged war against us, the battle is the Lord's! God has a weapon prepared to answer every attack. It's in the manual (the Bible). 2nd Corinthians 10:4 tells us, We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. 

Sometimes our battles are fought through tear stains. I've said it before - tears are a gift from God. They are a language that God understands. I've lost track of the number of times I have stood with tears streaming down my face, declaring the Truth of God's Word over the facts I faced, wielding the sword of the Lord to knock down the lies of satan. I may have lost track, but God has never lost track. His Word tells us so. 

It's why we can stand and declare the victory that we may only see with our spiritual eye, and then pray it till it comes alive in us. If we continue reading from our Promise for Today, Psalm 56, verses 9b-11, we find the courage to fight through our tears. This I know: God is on my side! I praise God for what he has promised; yes, I praise the Lord for what he has promised. I trust in God, so why should I be afraid? What can mere mortals do to me? 

Prayer:

Father,

          You keep track of all our sorrows. You have collected all our tears in Your bottle. You have recorded each one in Your book. Help us to see them as a vital part of our arsenal in the battle of life. Thank You for weaponry that will take down strongholds and destroy lies. Birth in us a fresh desire to read and embrace Your Word. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Building Your Weapons

Indeed, we all make many mistakes. For if we could control our tongues, we would be perfect and could also control ourselves in every other way.

James 3:2-10 NLT

Think about your words of today. Were they blessing or cursing? Edifying or executing? Grateful or grousing? Did you only see what was wrong, or did you actively search for what was meant for your good? 

Lisa Bevere says, "What you don't understand is that the enemy is trying to form a weapon against you. And the equipment and the tools he needs to actually put that weapon together, you give him with every single, negative word that comes out of your mouth. Before those words come out of your mouth, the enemy doesn't have the tools he needs to build that weapon against you. We hand them [to him] every single time we speak cursing instead of blessing out of our mouth. On the flip side, Scripture tells us the Lord watches over His word to perform it. So, you've got to make a decision. Do you want to give the enemy something to work with, or do you want to give the Lord something to work with?" 

What's coming out of your mouth? 

Who do you want building YOUR weapons?

Prayer:

Father,

          According to Psalm 141, Post a guard at my mouth, God, set a watch at the door of my lips. Don’t let me so much as dream of evil or thoughtlessly fall into bad company. And these people who only do wrong— don’t let them lure me with their sweet talk! May the Just One set me straight, may the Kind One correct me, Don’t let sin anoint my head. I’m praying hard against their evil ways! In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Becoming a Weapons' Expert

For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.
Ephesians 6:12 NIV

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.
2nd Corinthians 10:4-5 NIV

Everyone faces battles of some kind at one point or another. Some battles seem to wage on forever and we can become seriously discouraged- especially when nothing changes. We're doing everything we know to do, but nothing's happening that we can tell. So, we may have to ask ourselves a few questions.

1. Is this our battle? Seriously. Is it ours or did we pick up someone else's offense?

2. Are we using physical measures to fight a spiritual battle?

3. Did you bring the proverbial knife to a gunfight? In other words, do you have the proper weapons for the warfare that you find yourself in?


In order to fight and win against the strategies of the devil, we must become a weapons expert. We must know what weapons are at our disposal, and know how to use them, honing and refining our skills with them. We must know our Source of strength and wisdom. And we must always fly the right banner. God's banner over us is love, according to His Word.

Prayer:

Father,
          Lead and guide us into all Truth. May we always be at Your service and fight according to Your standards. Help us to become experts in wielding our God-given weapons. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Finish It

God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we'll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels. Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it's all over but the shouting you'll still be on your feet.
Ephesians 6:10-13 The Message

I've lost count of the times I have heard this question - "Why can't we all just get along?" And while the truth would be, "Light can't abide with darkness", I also have to remember that we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Although my flesh wants to rip and tear, I am bound by the Word in Romans 12:17-18, Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.

John 3:17 declares that God sent His Son to save the world, not to condemn it. We must remember that we are not to fight people; we're fighting spiritual wickedness. Christ died for all mankind, no matter their political beliefs; no matter their spiritual beliefs or lack thereof. Christ died so ALL would have the opportunity to receive the salvation He so freely offered us. God doesn't love me more than the unsaved heathen who uses His Name in vain.

You won't go to battle and die for something or someone you don't love or believe in. Jesus said in Luke 9, If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me. Paul wrote, I die daily... Where did we ever get the idea that living a Christian life would be a walk in the park?

So, how do we fight enemies we do not see? Can we go charging after and be effective in routing an unseen adversary? No! We cannot go charging off on our own, under our own power, our own steam. If we're going to fight - and finish - the fight of good faith, we must follow the Leader. We have to follow the Lord. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we'll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels. Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it's all over but the shouting you'll still be on your feet.

What are the weapons? Continue on in Ephesians 6, Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You'll need them throughout your life. God's Word is an indispensable weapon. In other words, don't show up to a sword fight without The Sword.

In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters in the Lord. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other's spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.

Let's finish this thing. It's time to go Home.

Prayer:

Father,
            Thank You for providing everything we need to do in order to do everything You have called us to do. You are the ultimate Leader. Father, we want to finish this fight with You. Continue to lead us and instruct us. Ramp up our training so we can be effective in winning souls and winning the battles. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

No Weapon

Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon.
Ephesians 6:13-17 The Message

We might not always be aware of it, but we're in a battle of some kind every day. The enemy of our souls is a relentless foe. He doesn't care if you're tired or busy or sick. He doesn't even care if you don't want to fight; that's not going to stop him from fighting you. That just makes his life easier.

The most important thing we have to realize is we cannot fight a war with no weapon. And according to 2nd Corinthians 10, the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but are mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. We must take up the sword which is the word of God! 

It also frees us from the wage of sin in our lives. For by the Word, the Holy Spirit will guide us into all Truth. And we need the Holy Spirit to do exactly that. If someone says "God said..." then it had better line up with Scripture. if it does not. Recognize it for what it is and move on. 

Just like we will never find a soldier going into battle without his weapon, we cannot do life without the Word of God. 

Know your weapon!!

Prayer:

Father,
          Open Your Word to us for understanding. Let us discern Your Truth and Your Word. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Who's Building Your Weapons?

Indeed, we all make many mistakes. For if we could control our tongues, we would be perfect and could also control ourselves in every other way.

We can make a large horse go wherever we want by means of a small bit in its mouth. And a small rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot chooses to go, even though the winds are strong. In the same way, the tongue is a small thing that makes grand speeches.

But a tiny spark can set a great forest on fire. And among all the parts of the body, the tongue is a flame of fire. It is a whole world of wickedness, corrupting your entire body. It can set your whole life on fire, for it is set on fire by hell itself.

People can tame all kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, and fish, but no one can tame the tongue. It is restless and evil, full of deadly poison. Sometimes it praises our Lord and Father, and sometimes it curses those who have been made in the image of God. And so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not right! 

James 3:2-10 NLT

Think about your words of today. Were they blessing or cursing? Edifying or executing? Grateful or grousing? Did you only see what was wrong or did you actively search for what was meant for your good? 

Lisa Bevere says, "What you don't understand is that the enemy is trying to form a weapon against you. And the equipment and the tools he needs to actually put that weapon together, you give him with every single, negative word that comes out of your mouth. Before those words come out of your mouth, the enemy doesn't have the tools he needs to build that weapon against you. We hand them [to him] every single time we speak cursing instead of blessing out of our mouth. On the flip side, Scripture tells us the Lord watches over His word to perform it. So, you've got to make a decision. Do you want to give the enemy something to work with, or do you want to give the Lord something to work with?" What's coming out of your mouth? 

Who do you want building YOUR weapons?

Prayer:

Father,

          According to Psalm 141, Post a guard at my mouth, God, set a watch at the door of my lips.
Don’t let me so much as dream of evil or thoughtlessly fall into bad company. And these people who only do wrong— don’t let them lure me with their sweet talk! May the Just One set me straight, may the Kind One correct me, Don’t let sin anoint my head. I’m praying hard against their evil ways! In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen