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Where The Spiritual Battle Really Is

           Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground. (Psalm 143:10)

          Today’s passage is a good description of what a god is. It might not quite be a comprehensive definition of god but it is a good start. That to which we submit our wills is our god. That which has the right, authority, and permission to teach or lead us is our god, even if we know perfectly well that there’s nothing supernatural about it. That to which we look for guidance to walk on level ground or in times of trouble, that’s our god. It may change from one breath to the next.

          Some people say that Christians are often functional atheists, living as if there were no god. I disagree. We have too many gods, most of whom we don’t even realize we’re serving. On the other hand, atheists and agnostics only have the benefit of having one fewer gods. They only ones they lack are the ones they deem “supernatural.”

          This is why the prayer of the passage above is neither a casual, off-handed prayer nor something reserved for those nasty backsliders and heathens. We would do well to make it our heart-felt every 30-seconds prayer because that’s where the spiritual battle really is.

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