So today I was reading in Psalms. I read Psalm 140-142, and as I was later reflecting on the passage, God spoke to me about the spiritual battle that we as Christians are in during our journey.
In Psalm 140-142, David speaks about his enemies who persecute him. He asks God to deliver him “from evil men” (140:1), to protect him “from the trap that [his enemies] have laid for [him] and from the snares of evildoers” and just cries out to God as his refuge against these attacks. Usually, when I read these Psalms where David talks about his enemies, I don’t really see it as applying to my life. After all, David is talking about true human enemies who were seriously trying to kill him; as far as I know, that’s not something I can relate to in my life. But today, I realize that I can relate to these Psalms because I do have enemies. We, as Christians, do have enemies who “wage war against your soul” (1 Peter 2:11). Spiritual warfare is real. It is Satan’s desire to steal, kill and destroy the abundant life that Jesus offers us (John 10:10), which Satan does through the temptation of sin. We, as Christians, have to stand against the attacks of Satan. But we don’t stand on our own strength; we stand on the strength of Christ, who defeated Satan and death and sin with His resurrection from the grave. But while Christ did defeat sin and death, and “sin has no dominion over” us (Romans 6:14), we still have to be on guard against temptation and attacks from Satan. This defense comes from pursuing Christ, realizing our own weakness and taking refuge in our Savior. We can find refuge in Christ and be protected from the attacks of Satan because if God is for us, nothing can be against us.
P.S. I’m leaving the country in 2 days. I fly out to Ft. Lauderdale on Saturday evening and then fly to the Dominican Republic early morning on Sunday. This blog will be my main form of communication during my 11-month trip so if you want to stay updated on what’s going on, sign up for email updates by putting your email address in the box to the left that talks about update alerts (or just give me your email address, and I can do it for you). Also, please continue to be praying for my team and me as we prepare to leave and then begin our ministry of sharing Christ and the Gospel around the world. Finally, I’m still $1745 short of being fully funded for the entire trip. If you feel God calling you to support me financially, contact me to find out how you can help.
