Mission Faithwalk

             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.   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. (Ephesians 6:12) He says, “Be still, and know that I

              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. (Ephesians 6:12)           The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.   We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.   And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete. (II Corinthians 10:4-6)          Today begins a study for which I feel a distinct need: spiritual warfare. I’m concerned about doing such a study because I don’t want to sensationalize it. Let’s begin with what I’m not going to discuss. I’m not talking about a fantasy novel with a larger-than-life chosen one who goes out to slay a dragon. It’s not about you being

Don’t grumble against  one   another , brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door! (James 5:9)            Here’s our second “don’t.” Don’t grumble against one another. To grumble is to “ complain or protest about something in a bad-tempered but typically muted way. ” This means that grumbling does not involve going to the person one grumbles about. It may not involve your saying anything to any specific person. Grumbling is quiet. No one else may hear it. It might be entirely in your head. Grumbling doesn’t even require a growling tone in our voices, though we tend to think of grumbling as quiet, deep rumbling.               If grumbling is not those things, what is it? Let’s consider some parallels. Meditation is quietly going over things or over nothing, over and over. To worry is to meditate with fear. Dogs worry a bone. To hope is to meditate with anticipation and joy. Grumbling is meditating with anger. The problem with most of these f

          Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it . (James 4:11)           We’ve thought about a lot of things we are to do, and if we were doing those, we probably wouldn’t have to worry about not doing the negatives. Unfortunately, the negatives are so natural to our lives, we can do them while doing the positives. They need more than simple replacement – they need conscious effort. Since slander is a national pastime. Just so we’re clear…           Slander is the action or crime of making a false spoken statement damaging to a person's reputation. (Libel is written/published slander.)           Gossip: casual or unconstrained conversation or reports about other people, typically involving details that are not confirmed as being true.           Technically, slander and gossip aren’t

          Bear with each other  and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. (Colossians 3:13)           According to the Mayo Clinic, the benefits of forgiveness include: ·                      Healthier relationships. ·                      Improved mental health. ·                      Less anxiety, stress, and hostility. ·                      Lower blood pressure. ·                      Fewer symptoms of depression. ·                      A stronger immune system. ·                      Improved heart health. ·                      Improved self-esteem. [1]           On the other hand, they describe the benefits of holding a grudge as: ·                      Bringing anger and bitterness into every relationship and new experience ·                         Becoming so wrapped up in the wrong that you can't enjoy the present ·                         Becoming depressed or anxious ·       

          And let us consider how we may spur  one   another  on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one   another —and all the more as you see the Day approaching . (Hebrews 10:24-25)           We’ve leaped over a bunch of verses that all say “love one another” and “encourage one another” to reach this pair of verses that also say “encourage one another.” We’ve already talked about loving and encouraging, but the author of Hebrews adds a term that is worth considering: “spurring.” When I think of a spur, one notion is a bone spur. They hurt! The other is the blunted star-shaped piece of metal that the cowboy put on his boots to use to get their horse to move.           Some folks will insist that the spurs were terrible things the inflict on an animal and possible that we shouldn’t have ridden them in the first place. There might be something to that argument, but that doesn’t change our understandin

Submit to  one   another  out of reverence for Christ. (Ephesians 5:21)            There’s that S-word again. Somehow, they should find a way to remove two letters, then it would be a perfect bit of foul language. In this case, there’s the slight amelioration that it’s not one group of people specifically being told to submit to another group of people. This isn’t wives, children, or slaves submitting, but everyone within the Christian community submitting to others of the same kind. In this time of crisis, the government has called on us to submit by isolating ourselves. Effectively, we’re supposed to care for others by caring for ourselves – by staying home. I don’t know about you but I have things to do, places to go, people to see, and a book to promote (soon)! I don’t have time for this isolation stuff. I’ve heard and read of young folks particularly, who refuse to give up their “spring break” in Florida because of this disease. Submit? No way! Life is too short, and the

          In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God,      did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing      by taking the very nature of a servant,      being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man,      he humbled himself      by becoming obedient to death—          even death on a cross! (Ephesians 2:5-8)           I can’t comprehend this passage. I know that Jesus was in the very nature God and all the rest. But, not being in the very nature God, I can’t fathom what being in the very nature God is like. The rest of it is just as beyond me. That doesn’t mean I think it’s not true, just that I can’t grasp it any more than I can truly get what it means to be a fish, a viral particle, or you.           But Paul tells us that we should have the same mindset. Fortunately, he gives us a few clues about how to do th

            Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit,   speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord,   always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 5:18-20)           Let’s start with terminology. The NIV uses the term debauchery , which means excessive indulgence in sensual pleasures. The New American Standard edition uses the term dissipation , which means the squandering of money, energy, or resources. I don’t have my Greek resources available, so I can’t go farther than that at the moment. But suffice to say that if you are doing something in excess, you are likely squandering money, energy, or resources that could have been better used to care for (love) others. In fact, if you are deliberately squandering the money as an alternative to caring for others, you are hating them. About 40% of crimi