The Battles We Face

Today I would like to talk to you about the battles we face, lies we believe and how they affect our walk with Christ. Let’s pretend we are a couple of old friends sitting across the table from each other sipping our coffee because that’s what I wish we could do for a conversation like this. This is a topic that could get pretty deep but I can only cover a part of the layers here on the blog. So let’s dive in shall we? 

Over the last few years, for me, it has felt like I just can’t catch a break. It feels like it’s always winter (spiritually and emotionally) even when it’s (physical) summer. It seems like every time I think I’m turning a new corner, like I will feel the sun again, I’m still face to face with winter. It is a little strange actually. I have felt it in my bones, in my soul that a season of rest is just on the horizon, the cloud will be lifted! I have felt it so strongly I even put it out there on social media. And then it doesn’t come. The winter settles in and I’m fighting against the grain again. And it starts to feel like it will NEVER come! When it gets to that point where I feel like I’ll never see the sun again (figuratively), I get weary and feel like throwing in the towel. 

Through all the battles I’ve had to face, I admit I have swallowed some lies. Somewhere along the way I bought this lie that if I just did all the right things that life would be peachy keen. I bought that lie that Christians aren’t supposed to struggle. And I bought the lie that if I was facing trial after trial that I was somehow being punished, but I couldn’t figure out what I was doing wrong. This is how those lies work, I knew they weren’t true, it wasn’t something I said out loud but I sure was operating out of those lies. So I began feeling defeated ALL THE TIME. 

So the other day I had this realization. It was the kind of realization where you knew it all along but all of the sudden it becomes real to you in a new way and your perspective shifts. I realized I wasn’t facing reality! And the reality is that...

1. In this life we will have trouble. (“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 NIV)
2. We have a real enemy and he’s not just out for blood, he wants our soul (“The enemy pursues me, he crushes me to the ground; he makes me dwell in the darkness like those long dead.” Psalm 143:3 NIV)

So here’s the thing, the enemy (that’s Satan by the way) wants nothing more than for me to keep quiet and pretend like I have got it all together. He wants nothing more than for me to keep my depression buried never talking about it with those closest to me. He wants nothing more than for me to keep trying to manipulate things to seem like “I got this.” Satan skips along happily if I keep all that bottled up inside because then I’m not being effective. If he can keep me distracted by trying to tie up those battles in a neat little package so everything looks fine, then he’s winning and I’m not stepping into what God has for me. 

There are many things I don’t understand about the spiritual realm but if there’s one thing the last few years have taught me it is that the physical realm keeps us distracted from the spiritual. Paul talks about it... a lot! Sometimes the daily battles we face can keep us stifled, paralyzed almost. God’s word tells us that He will fight for us (“The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” Exodus 14:14 NIV) but that doesn’t mean we are passive participants in the battle. If you read the rest of that story, Moses still had to use his staff and stretch out his hand and the Israelites still had to walk across the bottom of the sea. I don’t think crossing the sea between the parted waters was easy. Am I right? 

It’s not easy, facing our struggles and getting real with people. It’s not easy to face the battle every day, year after year. I thought my Christian life was supposed to be all peachy keen and if it wasn’t then I must be doing something wrong. It turns out, that’s just life. A season of rest may not be around the corner but I’m done letting Satan win because I’m waiting for rest. I don’t want to repeat the Israelites mistakes, moaning and groaning because they had to wait. 

Jesus gave us a battle plan. He gave us the armor of God, activated by prayer and I’m ready to suit up! 

“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. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.” Ephesians 6:11-18 NIV

There is a song called Diamonds by the duo JOHNNYSWIM and to me it’s kind of an anthem for victory. Some of the lyrics are: 

“You’ve taken down so many others 

Oh but you’ll know my name when you see

And in these ashes I’m stronger still ...” 

I get all fired up and start pumping my fists because this is how I feel about my victory over Satan! He might keep trying to wear me down so he can take me out but in the ashes I am stronger! Each time I rise again I am stronger and stronger!

“But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 NIV

My God is bigger than any battle I face. It is time for me to stop pretending like everything is fine all the time because sometimes it’s mostly not fine, and that’s okay. 

You don’t have to fight your battles alone either. Let’s boast in our weakness all for God’s Glory! We love you ladies and we are here for you! How can we be praying for you today?

Post by: Jimmie Lee DiIanni

I Should Be...

I should be freaking out right now.  In fact, I should have been freaking out for a month now, at least. 

Deadlines.
Business/work pressures.
Kids.
Responsibilities.
Unexpected bad news.
Holidays.

The month of November has been full of ups and downs. And there’s every indication that December will be more of the same. But this season has been different for me. It would not be unusual for me to have mini meltdowns silently in my head for weeks, fretting over the things on the list above, only to have it all spill out in a major meltdown with tears and snot bubbles.

But this season, I’m finding myself much less stressed.  Things I used to worry about no longer cause my stomach to clench in knots.  In fact, I’m going to be bold and say that this season has been a season of peace. Now don’t get me wrong, I have shed some tears and had a couple moments of silent panic this month but it has not overtaken me.  

So what is different for me this month than in the past? My thoughts.

Philippians 4:6 instructs us not to be anxious about anything.  We are told to bring our prayers and requests to God with a thankful heart.  And then when we do that, the peace of God will guard our hearts and minds.  

But, you might say, “I’ve done that and I am still fearful, worried, stressed, etc....”

Well, let’s keep reading in Philippians, because this is key to moving forward...

“Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.” Philippians 4:8 (NIV)

After you have prayed, after you have cried out to God – where do your thoughts go? Are they heading back into the mire of worry and stress?  Are they diving deep into the dark unknowns? Are you trying to be two steps ahead of whatever is chasing you down?

As I have navigated this month, I’ve tried to be very careful and purposeful in where my thoughts go.  And I’m not talking about “the power of positive thinking” here.  I’m talking about focusing my thoughts on Christ. After I have prayed and allowed God’s peace to wash over me, I’ve been careful to not let my thoughts wander but to keep them focused on God. My desire is to hold on to the peace He has graciously given me.

“You keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you.” Isaiah 26:3 (NLT)

Where are your thoughts heading today? What’s trying to dominate your mind? May I offer up a bit of direction? Here’s where I have been trying to steer my thoughts to lately... 

Whatever is true – remembering all I know about God from what He has revealed in His Word.
Whatever is noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable – focusing in on Jesus and all He has done for me.
Whatever is excellent or praiseworthy – keeping my eyes open for all God is doing right now in front of me and thanking Him for it!

I hope that helps you, sweet friend, as much as it has been helping me!  May we move forward with our thoughts fixed on Christ and resting in the abundant peace that only He can give!

Post by: Marcy Gates

Overcoming Our Fears

I am not a fan of air travel.  Or waiting in long lines.  Or large crowds of people.  So, of course it would make sense that for our first real family vacation we would travel to... 

DISNEY WORLD. 

At this stage of their lives, two of my three daughters are past the Disney Princess thing.  They are more into Star Wars.  Actually, my husband and I are into Star Wars too.  My youngest, though, she still will dress up in a Belle dress or play with her Minnie Mouse puzzles here and there.  So while none of us are die-hard fans of a certain mouse, Disney World still sounded like a great idea.   With all the new Star Wars attractions and a few princesses thrown in for good measure, we decided we needed to start planning our trip!

The next decision was whether to drive or fly to Florida.  Y’all, I’m not going to sugar coat this at all.  I don’t like to fly.  The thought of being stuck in a big tin can 30,000 feet in the sky, where everything is out of my control, is terrifying to me.  In fact, the last time I flew anywhere was over ten years ago.  And I started to freak out and full on ugly-cry as we took off.  I know, I am a peach to travel with.  Just ask my husband. But I digress...

We estimated that we would lose a day and half of vacation time just driving from Pennsylvania to Florida.  And that was one way.  It almost seemed like we would be driving for the same amount of time we’d actually be at Disney.  So, we opted to fly.

Gulp.

As the morning of our flight to Florida drew near, I felt butterflies of anxiety flare up in my stomach.  I did my best to hide it though.  The last thing I wanted to do was let my kiddos know I was scared to fly.  I didn’t want to transfer that fear on to them nor did I want three terrified kids and one jittery wife for my husband to care for on a two hour flight. 

I prayed an awful lot before our vacation.  I prayed for our safety, good health, and for peace.  I didn’t want my family’s adventure to be clouded over with my fear and worry.  I wanted to have fun and enjoy this precious time when we could all be together.  I kept telling the Lord, “If You can just get me past this whole flying thing...”

And that’s when He whispered to my heart, “I am faithful.”  Then I remembered what I know about God.  He IS faithful.  He can be trusted.  He is for me.  He will protect me.  He loves me! As the day of our departure drew near, God kept leading me to Scriptures during my quiet time that reinforced what He spoke to my heart...

“The LORD will keep you from all harm—he will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.” Psalm 121:7-8 (NIV)

“But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.” 2 Thessalonians 3:3 (NIV)

When we boarded our plane for Orlando, I kept repeating God’s Word over and over in my head: “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7 (NKJV)

I purposefully did not seat myself next to the window, but in between my youngest and a stranger sitting in the aisle seat.  My husband sat across from us with our other daughters.  What I thought I had planned as a strategic parenting move was really God’s Hand at work.  My little one kept me occupied almost the entire flight!  She talked my ear off during take-off so I couldn’t focus on the plane leaving the runway.  She had me play games like “I Spy” and “Rock, Paper, Scissors”. We colored and did word searches.  She kept the shade down on the window because she felt it was too bright so I couldn’t really ever see how high up we truly were.  And when this little one had run out of things to occupy her mother with, that’s precisely when my neighbor to left of me decided it was a great time to chat about Pittsburgh, his trip to Yellow Stone, and his life in Orlando.  And then just like that... We landed.  Two hours blew by and I was fine.

Our vacation? It was wonderful!  We had a great time and left with so many memories!  Our flight back home to Pittsburgh?  Well, I had my special seat mate again and boy, she kept me busy.  Lots of coloring and games to play.  While I was still repeating 2 Timothy over silently in my head, it was less out of trying to squelch fear from trying to take hold and more because I was resting in God’s faithfulness displayed.  A declaration that I did NOT have a spirit of fear but a SOUND MIND.

I love this quote from “Jesus Always” by Sarah Young about when we are afraid, “Cling tightly to My hand and walk resolutely past those dark presences of fearfulness and despair.  Keep looking toward My radiant Presence that beams out rays of unfailing Love and endless encouragement.”

Is there something you really want to do but fear is holding you back?   Have you let anxiety take hold and keep you from trusting God?  I want to encourage you today to take it to the Lord. Lay it all out before Him and ask for His help.  God wants you to have a sound mind.  Fear is not from Him and He doesn’t want it to rule your life.  Worry can keep us from experiencing all that God has in store for us!

Let’s focus on trusting God with our fears.  Keep our eyes fixed on the One who has amazing plans for us.  When fear tries to knock us down, lean into His presence and rest in His unfailing love.  God will melt those fears away in His magnificent light.  And when you find yourself with a sound mind, you will realize just how faithful He is!

Post by: Marcy Gates