I did not know I was in a fight until he punched me

Ephesians 6:10-18

We never stop until we have reached the goal that God has set before us. When we decide in our hearts we are going to do the Lord's Will we will always face opposition. This opposition will try to persuade us to stop doing the Lord's Will. It will cause us to question our faith. purpose, and if we actually heard from God. But despite this we press on and do not shrink back.

So we must truly develop a strong relationship with the Lord and surround ourselves we with Christians that will hold us accountable and encourage us to walk in obedience to God (Ephesians 6:10, Hebrews 10:22-25). We understand that the devil is going to attack in various ways but we stand ready to fight (Ephesians 6:11). No matter how the attack comes, whether it is through our enemies or friends we love them regardless (Luke 6:35, 1 John 4:11). Because the opposition is not coming from the but it is coming from the devil, whom does not want God's Will to accomplished on the Earth (Ephesians 6:12). Now that we know the attack is coming we take our prayer time, time in the Word, and time with other believers seriously. We are not playing church but we are preparing for battle that we can stand firm in our faith and not run in fear (Ephesians 6:13).

But we know that in our own righteousness we cannot defeat the enemy. There is no good deed or special sacrifice that we can do that will win this battle. Instead we rely on the Righteousness of Christ and truth of His Word (Ephesians 6:14). Although we are in the heat of battle we stay ready to share the Gospel with the lost and teach how them live for Jesus (Ephesians 6:15, 2 Timothy 4:2, Matthew 28:19-20). We hide these truths in our hearts so we do not get discouraged from walking forward in God's Will, even though these attacks seem overwhelming (Ephesians 6:16). We remind ourselves that Jesus saved us and it is by God's Grace we have been delivered/forgiven from our past because the enemy would have us to believe we are not (Ephesians 6:17, 2 Corinthians 5:17). And we no longer consider ourselves as the world considers us. We now view ourselves as God views, so we are not what the devil says we are, we are what God's Word says we are. His Word is our tool when we doubt, when we are weak, when face this opposition. His Word is our weapon that brings us light in the dark places of our life (Ephesians 6:17). Finally we survey the battle field and see our brothers and sisters in Christ. We see them winning, struggling, and even losing. For this reason we pray without ceasing and we don't stop praying until the battle is WON (Ephesians 6:18)!

So for all of us in this battle. I know this battle can be discouraging. But I implore to keep fighting. Keep climbing and don't stop until you get to the top (Philippians 3:14). Stay focused you can do this.

In His JOY!