Job 13:15 KJV
Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him.
Dearest Sisters,
Spiritual warfare is essentially a war between God and Satan. God has already won. God won waaaaaay back when He cast out from Heaven Lucifer and a rebellious third of the Heavenly host. God won when he declared in the Book of Revelation that Satan and his legion of demons would burn in hell for eternity. Satan is existing on borrowed time. He is like a booked criminal that is released on bail until the sentencing trial. Satan has full reign on earth, as prince of the air, until he is finally sentenced and punished on Judgement Day.
In the meantime, Satan and his demons are angrily warring against God. But, they are no match for God. They cannot harm God so they craftily try to hurt God's precious, treasured creation.
Satan used to be a prized angel of the Lord but, he is no more. Thus, he is very, very jealous and envious of the apple of God's eye--humanity....His children.....us. Satan can never, ever be redeemed nor restored to his former glory as an archangel so he angrily wages war on us. He does not want us in relationship with God. He does not want us to follow nor obey God. He doesn't want us to receive God's unfailing love, grace, mercy, and comfort; in fact, he wants to intercept our blessings. He doesn't want us to receive anything from God that he isn't receiving. Moreover, he wants us to receive from God that which he will receive- God's holy wrath. Ultimately, satan does not want us to do what we were created to do- worship God.
Satan stopped worshipping God because he wanted to be like God. And then, he wanted to be God. He coveted the praise and adoration that God received from the Heavenly host. Satan stopped worshipping God and he wants us to stop worshipping God too. Satan is hell bent on getting us to worship him. Satan is after our souls. Sadly, selling one's soul to the devil is a very real ordeal.
Dearest Sisters, it's so true that misery likes company. Satan is not happy that he and his demons will be sentenced to hell, especially not alone. He would like as many other souls as possible to join him in the lake of fire. So, the Bible says that Satan goes about like a roaring lion seeking to steal, kill, and destroy. Satan is angry. He hates mankind because we are made in the image and likeness of God. Satan hates Jesus because he is the propitiation for our sins and now those that live godly in Christ Jesus are reconciled to God for eternity. Satan hates Christians because we are heirs to the throne of Christ.
Satan tried to doom mankind forever when he tricked Adam and Eve into disobeying God. But, God intended for Jesus to live and die in order for Satan's head to be bruised. When Jesus asserted from the cross, "It is finished," Satan took another blow. Satan is powerless to the Believer. He is crushed. But, yet in still, he continues to wrestle with us. He wants our souls. He wants our worship.
The devil uses trauma, hardships, and suffering to gain access to our lives, to our minds, and ultimately, to our hearts. The enemy uses many types of trauma as a vehicle or conduit in which to break our defense, infiltrate our hearts, and stop our affections for God. The devil exploits our pain in an attempt to ensnare us. The devil will use the pain caused by many evils and situations: incest, molestation, rape, abuse, domestic violence, a violent crime, the death of a loved one, personal sickness, the sickness of a loved one, the special needs/ different ability of a loved one, a still birth, a miscarriage, the death of one's young child, company lay offs, job termination, cashlessness, home foreclosure, homelessness, abandonment, loneliness, betrayal, and even divorce to ensnare us. DID YOU CATCH THAT SISTERS?????!!!!! DIVORCE IS A SNARE!!!! If you were sued, divorce is NOT your fault. If you prayed and fasted AND prayed and fasted some more, AND your ex STILL left, quit faulting yourself dearest Sister! You are NOT to blame. It's healthy and helpful to mourn your losses; it's also healthy and helpful to know your enemy, Satan, and give him credit when it's due. Satan is at fault for authoring your divorce. Your ex-husband is at fault for obliging the devil.
Ladies, divorce is a snare; it is a trap. Divorce can claim two victims from one marriage: the first is the hard-hearted spouse that leaves. He is first deceived into believing that divorce is a good decision and then he executes the decision although it has drastic consequences for all parties involved. The other potential victim is the abandoned spouse; for our purposes, the wife. Post-divorce Satan can deceive the wife into believing lies about herself, her divorce, and ultimately, God. The wife can then downspiral into an abyss of depression, despair, and detestable self-hate. Both victims can take two baits that are greatly different in nature but the same in outcome. Satan uses deception to cause folks to stop walking with God.
Divorcement is largely out of our hands!!! It's out of our control!!! We are NOT to blame. Satan instigated divorce in order to ensnare us. Satan wanted to take us out of the game by detonating a bomb in our marriages. Understanding the nature of Satan and the nature of his attacks is important so that you can know how to respond to spiritual warfare.
You would think the devil wants our marriages, our husbands, our homes, our sanity, our peace of mind, our families, our bodies, our self-esteem, and our children BUT no. Well, he definitely wants more souls but not the relationships per se. The devil doesn't care about destroyed people, families, or marriages. The devil doesn't care about destroyed jobs, careers, or homes. He is a spiritual being; he can't use any of our stuff. The devil only hopes to gain a soul in the aftermath of his destruction. He wants to know if you will curse God and swear your allegiance to him when persecution and pain enters your life. Remember Job's wife? Need I say more. "Bless her heart," as Southerners would say. "She told her husband to curse God and die. Shame on her."
Dearest Sisters, stand strong in the Lord. STAND STRONG!!! Praise and worship God through the storms and stress. Jesus is interceding for us DAILY. God and His heavenly army is fighting for us DAILY. DO NOT GIVE UP THE FIGHT! Keep fighting the good fight of faith. You are only fighting now because God choose you, BEFORE you were born, to be His child and to fight with Him. God has won; keep fighting.
As Jesus hung on the cross, he looked defeated. Surely, he was bruised, mutilated, and scorned BUT, he was NOT defeated. As you look at yourself and your surroundings, you may see an appearance or look of defeat. BUT, YOU are NOT defeated. Looks can be deceiving. That's why we are told to walk by faith, NOT sight. No matter what you are fighting or facing, God's Holy Spirit is living in you and battling for you. The Lord's winning spirit is in you. You will win because God wins! Remember, the fight is for your soul, NOT your stuff and NOT your relationships. Protect your soul by DAILY entrusting it to God.
Love and blessings
Hugs
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