Joy is Free

Sometimes I feel like a punching bag with a prize fighter striking fist and after fist in to me.  I’m tough and I know I can withstand a lot of blows, but just how much can I really stand. First I am hit in the area of my finances.  Then I am hit in the area of a problem with a kid.  Then I am hit in the area of strife at church.  Then I am hit in the area of an issue at work.  Then I am hit, then I am hit, then I am hit…The blows just keep coming before I have even had a chance to recover from the first one.  Will my bag rip the seams or the leather wear out?  Will the chain that holds me up break and I fall to the ground? 

The stresses and trials in life seem to be letting all the air out of my joy and peace.  My bag is deflating.  The devil has accomplished his goal.  He wants us to feel beat up.  He wants us to feel defeated.  He wants us to give up and fall to the ground.  Then we are ineffective as God’s soldiers.  We do not have the strength to go out and fight in the spiritual battles for lost souls.  We are sad and it shows.  Those who are lost that are watching us can’t see the difference between us and them.  They do not see the benefit of living for Christ.  The truth is we are deflated and defeated, because of how we view the trials.  We lose our joy and strength, because we were depending on ourselves and not God.  We were not refilling our spirit with Him.  We were busy draining ourselves to get through the trials.  We need to focus on what the trials bring to our lives for God’s good.  Read James 1:2-4.

² Consider it a great joy, my brothers, whenever you experience various trials, ³ knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. ⁴ But endurance must do its complete work, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing.  

James gives us some great instructions  for life in these words. The trials we are going through can hurt and are not easy, but in the end if we let God take care of us through them we will make progress in becoming Christ-like and gaining those godly character traits.  Best of all, we will lack nothing.  We view trials as taking away things from us.  They take away a friend, a loved one, some money, some time, etc.  What we don’t seem to see is what wonderful things they will bring us.  This thought should make us see trials as a joy.  God is about to work out something in us or through us, because of the trial.  What an opportunity for God to use us.  What a joy!  That joy is a free gift from God.  We just have to accept it.  We need to start really trusting in the God we believe in.  We need to remember He is all-powerful and all-knowing and loves us.  These facts alone should bring us joy as we go through the trials of our lives. 

Weapons of Warfare

God gives us every thing  we need to be the strongest and best we can be in Him.  He provides all the instructions we need in His Word.   One great set of instructions is found in Ephesians Chapter 6 verses 10-18.  In the Message version we find it paraphrased this way,

 ”^10-12And that about wraps it up. 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. ^13-18Be 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.”

We are being instructed by our all-knowing God, who provides us with what we need for an abundant life, out of his great abundance and great love, to use the weapons He has provided to help us stay strong in our faith, because He knows we are in middle of a great spiritual war.  We are not God and we are not all-knowing and all-powerful, we can not stand against the devil on our own.  We know God can win this war, when we can not.  Therefore we need to do  as we are instructed and use the weapons of warfare that God has provided in our best interest.  We are not to be casual in this battle or we will go down.  We will not be found standing.  How sad that would be if we were not be found standing strong for our Lord, when He provided us with weapons and instructions.

Debating the Devil

Wisdom is not to debate with the devil, when he is tempting you to do wrong.  The devil has been around for a long time.  Longer than you.  He has a lot of tricks up his sleeves.  He studies you, so he knows what will work on you.  Once he hits us with a temptation, we need to not stick around.  We need to not think about the temptation, as if we can rationalize it in to not being a sin.  We need to come back at the devil with the Word of God.  The only we can do that is if we spend time in the Word.  We have the nasty habit of spending time dwelling on the thought, instead of finding a way to change the subject, or flee from it.  Jesus is our best example in Luke chapter 4 verses 1 through 13.  Jesus just tells the devil like it is from the Word of God, which is the truth.  You don’t see Jesus standing there discussing the options or looking at the temptation in some context that it is only a one time thing and it isn’t as bad as murder.  He simply goes back to what is right and wrong and tells the devil why it is wrong.  The devil knows he can’t win in that situation and will leave.  Read this passage and watch the expert at work and take it to heart.  Start learning the Bible and learning how to dismiss those temptations. 

 ¹ Then Jesus returned from the Jordan, full of the Holy Spirit, and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness ² for 40 days to be tempted by the Devil. He ate nothing during those days, and when they were over, He was hungry. ³ The Devil said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.”

    ⁴ But Jesus answered him, “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone. “

    ⁵ So he took Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. ⁶ The Devil said to Him, “I will give You their splendor and all this authority, because it has been given over to me, and I can give it to anyone I want. ⁷ If You, then, will worship me, all will be Yours.”

    ⁸ And Jesus answered him, “It is written:  Worship the Lord your God,  and serve Him only. “

    ⁹ So he took Him to Jerusalem, had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here. ¹⁰ For it is written:  He will give His angels orders concerning you, to protect you, ¹¹ and they will support you with their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. “

    ¹² And Jesus answered him, “It is said: Do not test the Lord your God. “

    ¹³ After the Devil had finished every temptation, he departed from Him for a time.