Struggling with doubts, fears, mental conversations that leave me warn out from more doubt, unbelief and struggles…the old man versus the new man..how do I stop this cycle? Have you ever been there? On the merry go round of “ought to’s, should’s, cant’s and whys“? I have been a Christian since I was 9 years old—–I should know better, I should be aware of his devising and yet Satan can sneak in and work his wiles of deceit on my soul. Why should I be surprised? As leaders, we must expect these attacks and be on the look out for them. I trust the following article will remind you and encourage you to be on the alert to defeat him!
Wrestling with thoughts, fears and condemnation can wear us out, thus preventing us from accomplishing what God desires for us.
Looking at Ephesians 6:12 we discover that we are not wrestling against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Let us consider wrestling. One definition of “wrestle” is a contest between two in which each endeavors to throw the other and which is decided when the victor is able to hold his opponent down with his hand upon his neck. It also means to contend by grappling with and striving to trip or throw an opponent down or off balance. Finally it can mean to struggle with an opponent at close quarters.
So wrestling is a contest between two contenders. In this context, our adversary (who can consist of the rulers, authorities, the powers of this dark world and the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms) and ourselves.
The chosen arena is our soul, with the “mat area” located in our mind (quite close quarters!) Our foe begins to assault our emotions, our will and our intellect. He begins to taunt us with unscriptural imaginations and guilt darts assail our hearts.
But sisters, we have been given tools to defeat the enemy of our soul. Remember the ultimate victory was won for us at Calvary. Our main goal is to maintain for ourselves and those we influence the victory that Jesus won for us on the cross.
For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 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. 2 Corinthians 10:3-5.
We need to strengthen the areas of our soul through reading the Word, prayer and fellowship with other Christians. By learning to apply the truth we discover in our fellowship with Christ, we will be able to fight off thoughts of insecurity, and doubts of our acceptance or our capabilities. These are part of his weaponry to keep us small and focused on ourselves. Many of you walk in victory in these areas—so I would encourage you to be on the watch for His attack against others in these areas. Share your skill with them, help them win their battles also!
Many of these issues are determined when we choose to believe what Jesus has already told us in His Word. I must settle this in my own heart. There is no one else who can do it for me. I must determine if I will either believe what He said, or what my emotions and experiences have told me. We must be determined not to let the deceiver cheat us out of our inheritance that Jesus so wonderfully and expensively won for us.
As leaders in the body of Christ we need to realize that others are watching and waiting to partake of the spoils of our victories. Remember your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. (I Peter 5:8) As we win victories we are walking as examples of the believer—which is part of our calling as leaders.
Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Ephesians 6:13-18.
We must make sure we are well-armored each day. We are in this battle, not just for our personal victory, but on the behalf of our family and the body of Christ. Let us stand strong in the power of His might and cast down every imagination that would exalt itself against what our Savior has accomplished in our life and walk on in victory. Remember—it doesn’t have to take a long time to Pin* the Enemy and fruits of victory are sweet!
*A Pin is a wrestling move that causes the victor to win the match immediately and with the most points
- Martha Rodman