Trusting God and Building Your Faith

Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
    do not depend on your own understanding.

Seek his will in all you do,
    and he will show you which path to take. (Proverbs 3:5-6)

When life is good, trusting God is easy. When life is in turmoil, trusting in God is a battle of faith. I believe without a doubt that God wants to bless us and that the bad things that happen aren’t God’s desire for us at all. I also believe that God can deliver us from the trials that we endure, but sometimes during the difficult times we can learn something more valuable: Faith by Trusting in God. 

When you’re at the end of your rope, that’s when God can work miracles. Last year, I went through what I thought was the most difficult time of my life; my faith grew despite not receiving the miracle we prayed for. I didn’t give up on God, I didn’t blame God, and sometime after, I was able to see how God could still use that event for His good.

As Christians, we understand that life isn’t easy - we are constantly under attack by the enemy. So when my current trial came up on me, it was no suprise. The enemy knows when we’re weak and he knows exactly how to attack us. We have to remain strong, we can’t give him any slack, that means staying in God’s Word, Praying and Serving God. We know about the Armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18) and it’s importance, so if we want to defeat the devil, we have to stay vigilant and prepared. 

This time, I let my guard down, I let the enemy gain a foothold on me when I allowed my feelings of anxiety, fear and depression to take over instead of turning to God's Word. To quote C.S. Lewis, “Faith is the art of holding on to things in spite of your changing moods and circumstances.” It’s so much harder to fight when the tide is already against you, don’t allow the enemy to gain any ground. We must recognize the attack and pick up our armor and continue to fight. Don’t give in, instead dive in - dive into the Word of God. 

The word of God, you see, is alive and moving; sharper than a double-edged sword; piercing the divide between soul and spirit, joints and marrow; able to judge the thoughts and will of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12 VOICE)

When the enemy whispers your worst fears, you have to be able to fight back with God’s promises for you. The Apostle Paul knew this all to well, that’s why he taught us that in the Armor of God, to pick up God’s Word - the sword of the Spirit, to fight against the enemy.

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you." (Deuteronomy 31:6 NIV)

Don’t be afraid, for I am with you.
    Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you.
    I will hold you up with my victorious right hand. (Isaiah 41:10 NLT)

My favorite passage to turn to lately has been Psalm 23, I can read it in any version and feel God’s peace and presence. When you feel overwhelmed or don’t think you can overcome your current situation pick up the sword of the Spirit and fight off the enemy, memorize a scripture that soothes your soul and pray for God’s peace, strength and comfort. I have to remind myself often of this verse and today I discovered this wonderful note in The Voice translation that I wanted to share:

You see, God did not give us a cowardly spirit but a powerful, loving, and disciplined spirit. 
*God’s gift of faith is like a flame, and when the embers of the fire have cooled you must fan them again and keep them ablaze. (2 Timothy 1:7 VOICE)

Just Another Battle

Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times some will turn away from the true faith; they will follow deceptive spirits and teachings that come from demons.  These people are hypocrites and liars, and their consciences are dead. (1 Timothy 4:1-2 NLT)

This election has brought a heartache I didn’t think possible, I honestly did not expect the outcome and have felt a deep sadness for our country because of it. I’ve been praying and talking to God, trying to receive some sort of revelation about the whole thing, and the best thing He could give me has turned out to be His peace. I’m no longer worried or anxious about the future of our country, I’m not tied up in knots over the government and what’s going to happen; instead I’ve found a peaceful calmness, that could only be given by God.

I was reading some statistics¹ on the voters in this election and there are some shocking numbers related to people of faith and how they voted. Basically the consensus was that over 6 million self-described evangelical Christians voted for a President that supports abortion (of any kind) on demand and same-sex marriage (all which are specifically against the Bible’s teachings). This is the sort of thing that truly breaks my heart, the thought that there are so many believers out there, that have missed God. We're not talking about the lost– their eyes are veiled to the truth; this is suppose to be our Brothers and Sisters in Christ! I have written before on believers being forced to make a decision, to choose between God or this world we live in,² but honestly I had no idea that there were so many self-described Christians, who chose the world over God.

I started writing this blog last October because I believed my purpose was to build up and encourage other Christians. I never imagined that God would reveal so much to me or that I would reach people in countries I never heard of, let alone countries where they are predominantly of Muslim faith. So I have been reminded that God can use anyone to share His Word, and I have been blessed to be His vessel here. I don’t claim to be a knowledgeable Christian; I really wish I had more Bible teaching, but I've learned that when we get into the Bible, God will reveal scripture to us. I've heard it said before, that ‘God doesn't call the qualified, He qualifies the called’. When I stepped out in faith to start my Facebook page and this Blog, God gave me what I needed to reach out and teach His Word. I've been blessed with a wonderful church, that has enabled me to exponentially grow spiritually from when I first returned to the Lord in 2004 and there's still a lot more learning to do.

I think the revelation that God is trying to share with me, is that, there is much work to be done. One scripture has stayed with me for over a year now:

He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few.  So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.” (Matthew 9:37-38 NLT)

We each have work to do, each and everyone of us are His workers – whether we feel called or qualified, that’s who we are. There is a war that is waging, a war for the souls of the lost - and every day that we wake up, we are expected to do battle. This election just means that the stakes are higher now, time is running out and we need to step up and take our roles. No soldier goes into battle without being prepared and Believers are warriors of God – maybe that's what went wrong with the 6 million, maybe they weren't prepared.  That’s why Paul told us to pick up the WHOLE armor of God.

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. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out. (Ephesians 6:13-18 MSG)

So there’s no time for mourning, we've got work to do, this battle might have been lost – but the war wages on and we haven't finished until Jesus returns for us!

¹ JoelC. Rosenberg’s Blog: More than 6 million self-described “evangelicals” votedfor Obama. Why & what else do the exit polls tell us about how Christiansvoted? Nov. 8, 2012

² Stir Me Up Lord!: Choose God or the World Sept 5, 2012

Conquering Evil

Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good. (Romans 12:21 NLT)

I love action movies, I enjoy watching the good guy kicking the bad guy’s butt and winning. So maybe that’s part of the reason I joined the Army after college, I wanted to do something really great (this was after Desert Storm and before 9/11).  To this day, I struggle with regret and envy that I never got any combat time in (after my husband and I got out of the Army, he has spent the last 5 years working in war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan).  

I've  recently felt encouraged that my desires to conquer evil (aka the ultimate bad guy) can still be done here, without going into the foreign war zones.  After all, we are each taking part in a continuing spiritual war, so maybe I won’t be able to go into combat in full battle rattle (that means dressed in all your military armor) but I can put on the full Armor of God.

A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.  Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.  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.  Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. (Ephesians 6:10-13 NLT)

The spiritual battles that we go through as Christians might not be as physically dangerous as a military firefight, but they are extremely important and strategic in claiming victory in our lives. We have to decide in advance, will we let the next battle we are in, strengthen us or weaken us. The choice is ours, a person doesn’t go into battle without his armor or weapons, so why would we try to fight a spiritual battle without ours?  

Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness.   For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.  Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. (Ephesians 6:14-18 NLT)

When we remain prepared and vigilant, we will always be victorious in our battles! So keep your guard up and keep your focus on the Lord.

And everyone assembled here will know that the Lord rescues his people, but not with sword and spear. This is the Lord’s battle, and he will give you to us!” (1 Samuel 17:47 NLT)

Warrior of GOD

I was inspired by several of the Psalms and Ephesian's armor of God for this, I think of it as a day in the life of a Believer...

I will praise the Lord at all times; I will sing songs of joy and love to the one who has saved me from myself

I will shout to the earth and tell of the great things HE has done for me; everyone must know of HIS greatness

When I pray to HIM, HE answers my prayers

If GOD is for me, then who can be against me

My GOD is my strong tower, my defender, my strength

My rock and my refuge

Storms may blow and waters may rise but with GOD by my side, I will fear no evil

Even though I walk through the shadow of death

Your righteous right hand preserves me

You prepare a table for me in front of my enemies

I am able to sit in your perfect peace and enjoy the feast

My cup runneth over because of your neverending love, abundant mercy and everlasting grace

I may fall down, but I will not stay down, I will continue the fight of faith

I will run this race with the strength of lions and renewed like eagles in flight

I will live for YOU o’GOD, let me be a living sacrifice

YOU are my purpose for living and my reward in dying

My armor withstands and defeats all evil

My belt of truth, keeps my heart right before you o’ GOD

My plate is of righteousness, as YOU have made me righteous by the blood of YOUR son

My shoes are walking to share the Good News and to stand on the solid rock, that I am fighting on

My shield is my faith, blocking and defending all the fiery attacks of the evil one

My helmet is my hope in salvation, knowing I am forever a child of GOD

My sword is the mighty Word of GOD, piercing and cutting through all enemy attacks

ALWAYS praying without ceasing, this is my constant battle cry!

The battle is raging on, whether seen or not seen, I will be prepared.

Lest I be caught off guard, without ALL of my armor, for the enemy wants all to be his prisoners while seeking to destroy!

I am a warrior of GOD!

Stay Alert!

1 Peter 5:8

Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.

Stay alert, or be vigilant, don’t let your guard down, when you hear those words you know you need to be on the lookout for something and be prepared. The next part of the verse tells you the reason you need to be cautious, you have an enemy and he is a liar, a thief, and a killer. When you think of all the bad things in the world, it begins with the enemy. He is roaming around and looking for someone to attack with a fierce hunger that can never be satisfied, so my question is, when you know you have a lion waiting for you, do you go out without your weapons or armor?

"A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God's armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. 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 6:10-12 

The first rule of battle is to know your enemy. You must know who you are fighting against and you must know how they attack so you can be prepared. You have to know what is of GOD and what isn’t, even the devil and his demons can quote scripture, just used out of context. The best defense is a good offense, so read your Bible, read it daily, memorize scriptures that you can hold to when you are attacked.  And when someone gives you scripture, look up that scripture and read the chapter, read the footnotes and references, know the scripture and know the truth.

When the devil attacks, hold fast to your shield of faith so you can block those arrows (thoughts of defeat, self-doubt,  fear, reasoning and practicality) and cling to your sword the word of GOD. (see the whole armor of GOD in Ephesians 6:10-18) When Jesus was being tempted by the devil for those 40 days, everytime the devil would tempt Jesus, Jesus would use the sword of the Spirit, the word of GOD. (see Luke 4:1-13).

Discern what is from GOD (joy and peace can only come from GOD).And know that the devil will rob you of your joy, load you down with depression, he will steal your peace and try to kill something in you. If GOD gives you a promise, hold to that promise with faith. When we start to doubt those promises, we are stopping the will of GOD and helping the devil. You need to be able to stir yourself up for the Lord. You need to know you cannot go by your ability, but by GOD’s ability and by HIS ability, there is no stopping you! I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13  We can do ALL things, but we do have our part to do; we must stay strong in our faith, with perseverance and patience.

  

The lion watches for the wounded, lone, helpless, (those that aren’t prepared, don’t know what they are up against, don’t know they are in a battle, and/or don’t use their armor of GOD), those are the perfect prey for the devil. I remember a story once of pastor who came to visit one of his church members, who had stopped going to church. On that cold wintery day, the two didn’t have much to say to one another, the pastor removed a coal from the collection of coals in the fire, the lone coal went from red to black as the coldness of its surroundings became more than the heat of the group of coals it was with, until it finally had just burnt out; the illustration that the church member who left the congregation, his fire within would grow cold and die without the rest of the church to strengthen and encourage his fire for GOD.

You have to know what to resist and what to yield to, they are not interchangeable. You don’t want to resist GOD and yield to the devil, so use your armor so you are resisting the devil and yielding to GOD. The devil is a reasoner, always questioning what GOD is telling us, he defeats us with practicality. The devil uses our human doubt to reason away GOD’s ability, we convince ourselves that we couldn’t possibly accomplish what GOD told us we could, when it was never our ability, if GOD gave us a job to do, it’s going to be based on HIS ability not ours. GOD created the heaven and the earth, he knows our thoughts before we think them, so how are we to tell GOD that HE overlooked this one part of HIS plan?

When GOD gives you a word, do you get excited, do you get pumped, do you feel like you can anything? Then when you’re at that mountain peak, the devil shows up and starts telling you all the reasons why you can’t do what GOD told you, you could. Your joy is lost, your excitement is gone and you start to fear, and then all the reasons why something isn’t possible, or say it’s just not practical, that’s when you’re listening to the enemy. GOD doesn’t need something practical or complex reasoning, he created you from dust, he doesn't need anything from you, except your faith. 

Don’t let fear govern you, the enemy is trying to make you settle, when GOD doesn’t want us to settle. “Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.”  Ephesians 3:20 Did you catch that, HE is able to accomplish infinitely more than we can even imagine!! HE is a GOD of abundance, when you give GOD your faith, your faith is rewarded: “Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full – pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.” Luke 6:38 Amen, that’s the kind of GOD we serve, we never deserve HIS grace, but HE is always faithful in his loving-kindness to HIS children with HIS endless mercy and everlasting love.