Midgett Adventures~ #12 Battle

January 30, 2010

The casualties of the faith do not come from a lack of weapons and ammunition to combat the powers of darkness and our flesh, but from lazy-ignorance in not knowing how to use the weapons God has provided us with.

When I am out doing flight ops as a tie down crewman, some of the personal protective equipment we wear is a life jacket. Inside the life jacket is everything you would need to survive if something went amiss in a helo operation and somehow you found yourself overboard. The jacket contains things like a flashing strobe light, flares, a knife, a whistle, and a reflector mirror. The jacket has everything I would need to survive if something bad happened but it would prove to be of no use if I do not know what it contains and how the equipment works.

The same is true in a Believers life. God has given us His Word---the Sword of the Spirit---so that we can fight the good fight and combat the powers of darkness and our sinful flesh. However if we do not know God’s Word and how to use it than it will prove to be useless to us when we are faced with trials and temptations; not because God’s Word is useless, but because we do not know how to use it.

Now is the time to learn how to wield God’s Word---not when the heat of battle is upon us, but before we enter the fight. We need to be in God’s Word, know it, hide it in our hearts, and make it our priority to study it. If we leave our Bibles on the shelf to collect dust when we are enjoying the days God’s gives before battle then that is all they will do when we are in the midst of battle. But if we use them now and hold them dear to our hearts, then God will use His Word, which is hidden in our hearts to cut as a double-edged sword at the fears, doubts, temptations, and enemies we will face as we press on heavenward.

The time to be in God’s Word is now---the time to prepare for battle is before it ever begins.