Fight the Enemy

1 Peter 5.9 concludes the third theme of this passage of Scripture, Fight the enemy. The reality of life is that we are being targeted by a real and powerful fallen angel. We have an enemy who wants to steal our joy, keep us from dreaming, and prevent us from living fully for the the glory of God. We are going to be attacked repeatedly, he is going to try and come in to steal things we care deeply about, and he is going to try and intimidate us to paralyze us with fear. We have to decide if we are going to be eaten by the lion, or if we are going to fight back.

Denying that the enemy exists, or refusing to accept the reality that he is seeking to destroy us is wishful thinking that ignores the words of Jesus. Trying to resist the enemy on our own is asking for failure and defeat. Believing we are the only ones who face attacks sets us up for isolation and bitterness.

The enemy is real, and he is sneaky, cunning, and ruthless. The reality is that all of us have to stand firm against him and fight back.

This post is taking on a different feel than the other posts I've written. I feel that this theme as been one of the most central and constant themes of my life for the past few years. Ever since my marriage began to crumble, maybe landslide is a a better word, I began to fight the enemy. I began to see him moving in more direct and personal ways, and I began to stand up and fight against him. I would speak directly at him, commanding him boldly and confidently in the name of Jesus. There have been times where I've stood behind my shield and prayed against him.

The past few days I've felt myself getting caught up in another battle, this one for my girls. They are young, but my oldest daughter is showing signs of anxiety over the divorce. I'm seeing how I need to fight for my girls, ways I need to specifically pray against the enemy, resisting him in the power of the Spirit, and ordering him in the name of Jesus. In the process of writing this post I went to war. I stopped typing to try and process, and began to command Satan to leave my girls alone, reminding him of who God says I am, and telling him that I'm not going to back down from a fight. I will not let him take my girls, and if he refuses to leave them alone, I'm going after him, and I will fight tooth and nail, because he isn't taking my little girls. I will not surrender an inch with them.

I began to pray for my brothers, their wives, their children, going to battle to fight for them, commanding the enemy away from them in the name of Christ, letting him know that I'm not going to let him have them either. I prayed for someone else too, fighting the enemy on their behalf. That is how we must fight, directly, as soon as we sense the attack; the sooner we fight back, the sooner the enemy will flee.

We must fight the enemy. It may be helpful to symbolically arm yourself, you'll see my sword and shield to the left, the sword has my God given initials engraved on it. These weapons will do nothing against a spiritual enemy, but the symbolism for me is significant, it serves as a reminder that I am not alone, a big part of the reason I chose a Spartan shield, and that I am not helpless. I am able to stand firm against the enemy, and because of God, I am able to overcome him.

Stand firm against the enemy, and show no fear. You belong to God, and the enemy is powerless over you because of Christ. Go to war for those you care about. Go after what has been stolen, dream big and pursue it. Don't let the enemy advance unopposed, but drive him back. He has already been defeated that first Easter Sunday, don't let him take any more casualties with him.

Fight the enemy.


Fight the lion, 1 Peter 5.1-11

TO GOD ALONE BE THE GLORY!