Struggle!!
There is one thing that continues to come to light in this spiritual journey, the overwhelming reality of struggle. Struggle can be a harsh word to associate with one’s Christian journey. If you had the opportunity to ask people what word comes to mind when talkin about “good Christians”, they would surely associate “a good and blessed life” to the phrase. Yet, as I said in the beginning of this topic, reality will reveal the “struggle” associated with living and walking in Christ.
There has to be a clear understanding of what the word “Struggle” means in order to identify with its presence. Struggle is forceful or violent effort to get free of restraint or resist attack. Now his alone must cause you, the reader, top pause for a moment just to putt he words into the right perspective.
Our walk, Christian walk, involves the complete interaction with faith. So let’s look at this statement for a moment! Our walk involves a great deal of FAITH! You see, it’s all about how we perceive what we hear from the word of God. In other words, does our perception of what God wants us to do and be match the real truth of what God wants. Many times our perception may be far away from the actual truth of a matter when it comes to understanding our walk of Faith.
2 Corinthians 5:7 states, “for we walk by faith, not by sight.”
It is clear that the Faith factor plays a huge part in what we do as Christians. The difference between perception and Faith can cause one to follow the wrong road in serving Christ and thereby creating the perfect atmosphere for “STRUGGLE”. This is another one of those B.U.G.S. (Being Under The Grip Of Satan).
The atmosphere that STRUGGLE presents gives Satan even more ground to deceive and destroy. If he can get you not to believe and build your faith in God, then he will play on your perception of how you think things should be in your walk. This is the trick of using our own intellect to cause us not to trust God.
Where the struggle comes in is when we find ourselves trying to get free of the attack of Satan. What we perceive to be true may not be what is actually the truth. This is the trick we must be aware of daily!
Struggle is something we all experience in life. It would be naive of us to think that we would not experience struggle in our spiritual walk with Jesus. Yet we do sometimes feel that once we accept Christ, all is well and the presence of struggle doesn’t exist.
Exactly what am I saying!!
Christians, or should I say some Christians, have the belief that living a saved life for Christ is easy once you accept Him as your personal savior. All is well…no struggle, no worries, all things are possible!!! It’s a bold statement to make when you haven’t walked any miles with Jesus as a believer. This is a prime example of how immediately Satan is allowed room to work where he is most comfortable, the mind! He will consistently interfere with any believer sharing their faith. Remember, God’s task for us is to share the Gospel. We mustn’t be hindered by the enemy (B.U.G.S.).
So why is it necessary to make such a bold statement?
You must understand the task Satan has taken on. He fights against God and all that God represents. So that would include you as a believer. Especially when you has just declared your faith in Christ. The attack will be on your mind!! This is Satan’s battlefield! This is another one of those B.U.G.S. (Being Under THe Grip Of Satan). If Satan can get your to focus on the things that appear to be failproof, what happens to your faith when those things involve struggle.
Please understand, this by no means implies that Satan thinks living for God is GREAT!!!! It’s just the opposite. If you think things will always be good in your journey, then there is no need to have any weapons close by to fight with. You get it!!! If you never expect trouble, then you don’t prepare for it. This is the trick or should I say, GRIP, that Satan can use to kill and destroy your faith.
Ephesian 6:11-13 states…“11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 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. 13 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. “
Plainly you can see from this verse of scripture that we will be faced with the calamities of life and in doing so, we must be prepared to fight a spiritual war. We are destined to “Struggle” if we intend to follow Christ. The “Struggle” is with the opposition of the powers of darkness and the enemy (B.U.G.S.) that will keep us from God.
It’s when we consider ourselves a believer but not a soldier. A soldier prepares for battle, whatever may come up in the journey. We must be prepared to stand our ground and know the power of God’s grace.
It was never meant for us, as true believers, never to experience trouble. Yet, if Satan can convince you to believe that, then he is happy. We must constantly be reminded of the “Warfare” before us and not be deterred by Satan’s tricks. The “Struggle” increases when we don’t stay ready for the spiritual warfare that is and will come.
Lack of faith increases the process of “Struggle” in our lives. The Word of God gave us a plan of action for this war and how to be prepared for it in order to be victorious. so let’s kill that lie that Satan continues to plant within our congregations, “Serving God requires no participation from Us” . It’s a LIE my people. We must prepare and participate in our own salvation. The beauty of knowing God should not be determined by how many struggles we have to go through. The beauty of knowing God is how He keeps His promises of VICTORY no matter the situation. God promises a home in Heaven hold on to the faith.
God’s blessings and benefits far outweigh the “STRUGGLE”. We must remember that the sufferings and struggles we encounter are not without purpose (God’s Purpose).
2 Corinthians 4:8 states “We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;”
We must ass true believers know that even the Apostles in bible time suffered for the name of Jesus. We all know that having friends doesn’t always guarantee that they will be there when you experience trouble in your life. Our enemies as well look for the opportunity to persecute you in the midst of trouble ; but our God will never leave nor forsake us. There may be fears of how you will fight this battle; yet you are not destroyed. So you see, the struggle only comes to make you stronger. We can’t allow Satan to take our joy and shake our faith. We have the necessary tools to obtain victory in all that we experience.
Thank you for listening…
Prayerfully Submitted (An Unfinished Story)
Evang. Debbie Watkins
Disclaimer* These posts are no in any way posted based on expert input. My expertise comes from LIVING LIFE in the CHURCH. Please read with an open mind, attitude, and heart. Thank you.
