Taking Spiritual Ground
"Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses." -1 Timothy 6:12
One morning in Sunday service I heard our pastor talk about covering and protection. He requested that we cover them in prayer and defend them, and also that we defend and protect each other. But then he challenged us. He said, "Sometimes you gotta fight — because that's how you take ground."
I thought about how much this can be applied to so many different areas of our lives. For instance, in the workplace: We want to be promoted or we want to excel in what it is we're doing. In order to do this, it requires we give more attention and focus that the average person. We learn new things. We develop a "fighter" spirit within us, doing the best we can with passion, excellence, and a dedicated will. Sometimes it's not enough to do our work well. Sometimes the battle requires that we do all that is necessary to excel — come in early, stay late, and finish the project before it's due.
Maybe it's a dream that needs fighting for. Perhaps there is something on the inside of our heart that needs to be birthed into reality. In order for this to happen, it calls for prayer, support, encouragement, and the dedication needed to bring the dream to pass. Each and every time something great is born there will be resistance, such as those who doubt us or our dream, or our own uncertainty and fear. But we must overcome this resistance if we want to see our dreams come to fruition.
Relationships also need to be fought for, and this might be one of the most important battlegrounds, aside from our faith. If someone offends us, the Bible says we are to go to that person and talk with them about it. If the person listens to you, you have gained a brother (or sister!) (Matthew 18:15) Maybe we need to call someone we haven't seen in awhile to check in on them. Perhaps we need to set healthy boundaries with those who tend to take advantage. Or maybe we need to defend AND fight for someone who we know is doing the right thing in the midst of difficulty.
There is a right way to fight and a wrong way to fight. We shouldn't fight with manipulation or underhandedly using procrastination or deceit (our flesh). We have to keep in mind that we're not fighting against people — we're fighting against the principalities of darkness in ourselves and in others. The person isn't the issue; it's the issue that's the issue. "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)
Are there things you need to fight for? Make it a priority to fight for those things that are really important in your life today.
Related resource: Winning Your Spiritual Battles by Tony Evans
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