Be Prepared

Today’s devotional is about being prepared for spiritual battles. While many of them involve outside forces that test my faith or try to ruin my testimony, I am experiencing one that is about my trust in God no matter what happens to me personally.

Yesterday was my son’s wedding. The reception was at one of the best restaurants in Canada. Hubby dropped me at the door and went to park our vehicle. It was dark in the foyer. The hostess led me toward the stairs down to the special room for wedding guests. I could not see well and stepped into air, thankfully turned sideways and rolled halfway down the curve staircase. My first thought was that nothing was broken, but intense pain kept me motionless for several minutes. Staff were there to help, bring ice, and their worries. I spent the rest of the evening watching the bruises appear and assuring family and friends that I was going to survive.

This morning, it still hurts to breathe or blow my nose, and the toes on my left foot are very colorful. A few other places hurt to touch, but the amazing part is that this seems as a normal part of life as making the bed or looking for my car keys. Challenging, inconvenient, but I’m not mad at myself or complaining.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. (Ephesians 6:10–11)

The Lord has been at work. A month of thinking about His love and caring more about others than myself showed up in this event. Would I be worried about me and agonize over the way my body feels? It may come later, but my mind is on the delights of this wedding, the fun everyone had, and the deeply touching words of love and respect for each other expressed by the bride and groom have completely over-shadowed my situation. All I can say is, “Thank You, Jesus.”

MacArthur says adequate preparation is the key to spiritual victory. He illustrates with a recent physical war, yet points to spiritual warfare as needing the same preparation. This passage in Ephesians begins with, “Be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of His might” and a description of putting on the armor that God gives us to win those battles, many times against doubt and fear. A few days ago, I used a quote: “Let the promises of God shine on your problems.” That is impossible if I don’t know what those promises are!

This preparation for battle means never neglecting prayer, worship, Bible study, accountability, and the other disciplines of faith. I know Jesus can deliver me even if I’m totally helpless, but He tells me to not be content with ignorant helplessness. I’m to know who He is and how He works so when the devil throws doubts, fears, and threats my way, it is easy to rely on the Lord rather than get in a panic when the challenges come.

As today’s devotional says, Christ guarantees ultimate victory, but I can lose individual battles if I neglect being prepared. It’s even possible to lapse into periods of spiritual lethargy, indifference, impotency, and ineffectiveness, but that’s utterly inconsistent with what the NT says to those who serve the Lord:

This charge I entrust to you . . .  my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith. (1 Timothy 1:18-19)

PRAY: Lord Jesus, keep me alert to what is going on when I begin to focus on anything else but You and Your great power. Thank You for protecting me in those times when I didn’t have my armor on and showing me what was missing to better prepare me for battle. I am especially thankful for a month of focusing on Your love and how I can show it to others, and staying filled with those thoughts last evening even when my body is screaming at me to feel sorry for myself. You are utterly amazing.

PONDER: No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits (or worldly motivations or selfish thinking), since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. (2 Timothy 2:4)