You Are Beloved

Today we’re taking a little side trip away from John to talk about another subject: prayer and hearing from God.  Ever noticed how hard it is to do those two things?  Here are some observations concerning spiritual warfare.

One of my favorite scriptures that discuss spiritual warfare is found in Ephesians 6, beginning in verse 10. 

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.  Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.  For our struggle is not 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.  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.

The devil wants to muck up the issue by making it between me and those I love.  It might seem like a flesh-and-blood wrestling match, but it is not against the people you love—it’s really spiritual forces of darkness working.

God wants us to be prepared for a fight, so that when the tough times come, we can stand our ground.  John said “Greater is He that is in you (Jesus) than he that is in the world.”  God will fight the battle and win it!  One old “Jesus People” chorus goes like this:




Glory, Jesus, glory, You do the fighting for me,
Praise You, Jesus, praise You, in You there’s always victory.

Many are the afflictions of the righteous, we read in Psalm 34, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.

That’s the good news!  The bad news is that we are in a battle, and the devil has an advantage—he knows us very well.  He’s had about 6,000 years to study us.

The devil uses our weakness (flesh) in another way.  Obviously, the enemy doesn’t want us to pray, because he knows there are too many benefits for us in prayer.  One of the first things an enemy does during wartime is to attempt to cut off the communication between the soldiers and their command.

In fact, he’ll do everything he can to keep you distracted—frustrated or tired, upset, emotionally drained, etc. so that you’ll skip it—to prevent you from finding time and opportunity to pray. 

Last night I deliberately went to bed early so that I could get up early for “Dawn Patrol,” which meets at 6:30 (that’s a.m.!) for prayer time at my church. 

An hour after I went to bed my dog wanted out.  (I don’t put off that sort of thing…you understand.)

I let her out, I went to the bathroom and let her back in.  At 1:30 this happened again.  Then about every hour on the hour, we repeated the process, to my exhaustion and chagrin. 

Finally, the alarm went off at 5 a.m. and I pushed the snooze button.  I got up at about ten till six, with enough time to get my clothes on and make a cup of coffee before it was time to head downtown, a ten-minute drive. 

A quick trip to the bathroom and I figured I was golden, when I reached for and knocked my coffee cup off of the counter.  My heart sank—there was but a sip of coffee left, and no time to make any more if I was going to be reasonably on time to prayer.  Not to mention the mess.

The whole time this was going on, there was a dialogue in my head:

            About the time the alarm clock went off for the final time, “It would be alright not to go to prayer today.  God wouldn't be angry at you.”

    At which I balked, “I want to go to prayer.  I need to go to prayer!”  And hit the snooze for ten more minutes.

           When the coffee spilled, “You might as well stay home now.  You don’t like the coffee at church.”  (This is true.  It’s bitter and I don’t care for it.  I’ll admit to being something of a coffee snob.)  But I responded, “Oh, well.  I can get some coffee later, or make myself a cup when I get home today.”

   
On the way to church, I was stuck behind two or three little old people and had to hit the brakes for some drivers who were less than courteous, while doing my best to maintain a reasonable speed on the 500.  It was wet outside, and I've spent the last 12 years living in Arizona, where there is very little wet weather.  I was feeling drained, tired, and almost defeated by the time I got off the freeway.

The voice in my ear was complaining “see?  God doesn’t want you to get there on time.  He’s not making this easy, is He? 

“It’ll be embarrassing to be late.”

Me: “It’s only ten minutes.”

“They’ll think you’re not committed.  You don’t belong there anyway.”

“Yes. I do.”

“You’re not as sssspiritual as the othersssss” (Hear the hiss?)

About that time, I recognized the whining tone of the voice in my head.  I’d heard it before, anytime I tried to make a commitment to God in any area.

I started to understand what was really happening—it was a spiritual attack.  I had left the house early, and had not given myself and my day to God, which was my usual habit.

Jesus told His disciples “apart from me, you can do nothing.”  I can’t accomplish anything in my flesh, and if I try to, it only ends up worth nothing.  I tried to just move forward and found myself besieged.  I need to make sure I’m wearing the spiritual armor found in Ephesians 6.

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 6:14-18

So how did I do in that battle this morning?  I turned up the radio to drown out the enemy’s voice, and as I pulled into the church parking lot, I heard, “You are beloved,” right before I cut the car engine.  It really resonated with me, because I could feel the pleasure of God.  He is pleased with us when we push through in our spiritual battles to allow Him the victory in our lives. 

During prayer I clearly heard the Lord.  “Do you believe my word?  Your faith will move you forward with your arms open (toward those for whom we had been praying.)”  How encouraging!  And had I stayed home and slept, I would have missed it! 

          Dear Abba,

You are always working in my life, doing good, encouraging me, building me up and making me more like Jesus.  We need the contact of prayer and time together so that I can hear from You.  Please help me to listen, to take the time to pray and wait on You.

Thank you for the victory in Christ, and that You are always with me.  Please help me to keep my armor on and trust You.




Your daughter,

            Donna