Kingdom Fight

Sometimes We Can Lose Our Balance – Frank Work

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The world is turning faster than we can keep up with it. At times, we aren’t even sure if we can keep our balance with all the turmoil that surrounds our lives. The world’s view of relationship, especially marriage, is becoming skewed at best. Divorce rates in the body of Christ are at an all-time high, and we as the church have no one to blame but ourselves. We are allowing the enemy of our souls, to rip the very fabric our vows of matrimony apart at the seams. Marriage is no longer viewed as something sacred, or something to be cherished. It’s a check list of possibilities to that no longer hold any value in the culture of today. We laugh away divorce as though it’s no more of value than a stick of gum, or a penny we find on the street. We aren’t concerned anymore about the likelihood that we will find a lifelong mate, in whom we can place our trust, our devotion, and more importantly, our heart. Why is this? Why aren’t we fighting for our marriages?

Putting things into perspective though, I can say that my wife and I have been close to being casualties of this war against marriages. This battle has been a long and sometimes very brutal conflict, which leads to the death of many marriages and relationships in Christ. The enemy is constantly trying to rip marriages apart, for one of the foundations of our faith is really based on marriage to Jesus, and an understanding of what it means to be a bride as it pertains to the body of Christ, awaiting her bridegroom, who is Jesus.  We watch with jaded eyes’ as our young people are being manipulated by the concepts and precepts of this world, who are embracing a Hellenistic society where everything is permissible, and the idea of “living for the day” is being recited in volume that can’t be hushed by standing by and doing nothing.  We are losing, plain and simple. We are losing a war, which has already been won. We are losing, because we want to lose. We don’t want to fight anymore. We have become so exhausted from the trials of our own lives, that we aren’t willing to fight for the next generation because the scars on our backs are too deep, and too painful.

There is hope though, there is always hope.  J.R.R. Tolkien wrote, “Even Darkness must pass. A new day will come, and when the sun shines, it will shine out the clearer.” Our light into the darkness is the fire of Christ that burns with in each one of us, the light of hope and the light of glory. We aren’t alone by any stretch of the imagination, unless we want to be. Why do we choose to be alone? Because we have allowed ourselves to fall sway under the influence of many possible reasons. Shame, guilt, condemnation, fear and the list are endless as to what may influence our choices to stand and fight as a congregational team, or stand and fall as an army of one. I in the past have often thought, “I don’t need anyone else; I can do this on my own.” That my friend is a lie, plain and simple, a lie we tell ourselves on a daily basis, either we are choosing to make wrong decisions, or we are being influenced by the power of the air, or really both.

We will struggle in this life time; we will struggle as a Christian. For you to believe anything different is to believe in a doctrine of demons. This new wave of prosperity Christianity is robbing God of His glory, and robbing the believer of the true power of Jesus. Why would James write the following scripture?

James 1:2-4 “2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”

Our faith must and will be tested. Our marriages will be tested, our relationships will be tested. Our belief system will be tested. Everything in our lives will be tested, so that through this testing our faith will be established in Jesus, and not in our own strength. We cannot and will not allow this world to catch us off balance! We will stand and fight the accuser of our soul and the enemy of our Lord. We must war for the salvation of our children and our grandchildren. This isn’t a choice; this is a mandate. Do not let the blood be on your hands because you sat and did nothing, when God in His word warns us. Stay with me folks, don’t let me lose you, for scripture will always speak in ways that man cannot.

Ezekiel 33:1-6

33 Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, speak to the children of your people, and say to them: ‘When I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of the land take a man from their territory and make him their watchman, 3 when he sees the sword coming upon the land, if he blows the trumpet and warns the people, 4 then whoever hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be on his own head. 5 He heard the sound of the trumpet, but did not take warning; his blood shall be upon himself. But he who takes warning will save his life. 6 But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand.

Simply put; if we know the truth, and the truth is Jesus, and his scriptures are His words; if we sit and do nothing, then the blood of the lost and the broken will be on our hands. If we do not warn those who have fallen sway under the power of darkness, we will answer for not heeding the trumpet call of the Lord.

Is there someone that you know needs your prayers? Pray for them. Is there a co-worker who you know is distraught and struggling? Ask the Lord to give you the words of comfort to speak. Is there a marriage, or better yet, is your marriage breaking apart before your eyes? Stop fighting one another, swallow your hurt, your pride and your shame, and seek the Lord together. Has your life become cold, and lonely? Do not fret and do not fear, because my friend you are not alone in this fight. The body of Christ will stand will with you. The Lord of Host will stand with you. I will stand with you. Believe in prayer, believe in scripture, most of all, believe in Jesus, the lover of our soul and the Redeemer of our spirits.

The Battle for the Kingdom Will Leave Scars – Frank Work

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We, who have seen war, will never stop seeing it. In the silence of the night, we will always hear the screams. So this is our story, for we were soldiers once, and young.”  Joe Galloway-We Were Soldiers Once and Young

I can’t count how many times I made the comparison between my life in the military and my life in Christ. Many times I even used it as an excuse not to trust my brother or sister in the Lord; for fear that they would not be there when the shells start dropping and the bullets start flying. For Christian it’s sometimes a lot harder to see the enemy that is trying to disrupt the peace in your life, or far worse, trying to destroy your relationship with Jesus.

We can’t always see the adversary that has a desire to destroy our motivation to seek God in the direst of times. His barrage of attacks is constant and never ending. Our Lord in heaven is always there to watch over and keep us, to guide us through the storms of our daily walk. We can’t do it alone; we should never do it alone. In any battle, there are wounds, there are scars, and there are memories, which are left behind. I don’t think I will really come to an understanding of this until I am standing in glory in the presence of my King. One obvious compensation for my carnal wounds (When I say carnal I do mean of the flesh) is that I know how they are inflicted and in most cases, I know how to treat them and better yet, perhaps avoid them. In the spirit though, the wounds can be a little more subtle and hidden.

Many times I have stood in defiance of these wounds and said, “I am NOT affected! It doesn’t hurt.” In the meantime I am wincing; sore and sometimes I don’t have the ability to move in the areas of the spirit that God has ordained for me. Many times I am not willing to see the wounds I have, which if left unchecked will fester and become infected with my own inability to give them over to the healing touch of the Lord. I don’t believe for one moment that the wounds I have incurred over my life time become worse solely because of our dread foe. I will say that like any infection there can be contributors which will inhibit the healing process. Bottom line is this; I am not meant to be a solitary creation of my heavenly Father. We are all on the front lines as it were, in the spirit. We all suffer from war, physically, spiritually and emotionally. The scars are not badges of honor, but reminders that we need our savior Jesus Christ that much more in our daily lives. His scars give us a heavenly reminder that He sacrificed himself for all men and women of this world.

Don’t ever be fooled into thinking that you will come through the battle unscathed. In fact the intensity of this war is going to increase, and we, together, must be ready to face it with the in filling of the Holy Spirit, in power, in truth and most importantly in Love. He is loyal, we must be loyal to Him who saved us. Loyalty goes both ways. I hope this has not been words of discouragement, but encouragement. To let my fellow warriors know, we are all scarred and battle worn, but we will come out of this because Jesus made a promise so long ago. Here are a few scriptures to encourage you with His promise.

“Some had families waiting. For others, their only family would be the men they bled beside. There were no bands, no flags, no Honor Guards to welcome them home. They went to war because their country ordered them to. But in the end, they fought not for their country or their flag, they fought for each other.” Joe Galloway

Deuteronomy 31:6 “Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.”

Deuteronomy 31:8 “And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.” 

Joshua 1:5 “No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you.

Hebrews 13:5 “Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”