“A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm” (Ephesians 6:10-13).
These verses contain a very important word for Christians in today’s world!
As Christians, we’re to be wise as serpents and remain harmless as doves. One of the major keys to being successful in accomplishing this delicate balance in our walk is to sharpen our ability to discern. To discern means to detect with senses other than vision. (We have and should also exercise spiritual discernment.) If you find yourself faced with a challenge on the job or at home and you respond in the natural, flesh nature, without asking the Lord for direction, it could cost you more than the initial attack. Why? Satan will use other people, circumstances, and even storms to ensnare us in his spiritual webs of deceit. His ultimate goal in this web of deceit is to make us become offended at the Lord for allowing the problem to arise.
Anytime you a situation arises with a person, church, official, job, or a friend and it adversely affects your walk with the Lord—which is represented as forward motion in the Bible—then know that you are fighting a spiritual battle. Let’s say you have a problem that has arisen on your job or in your family, and you just assume that it’s a natural issue . . . so you respond according to what your heart is telling you at the time. If this is a spiritual battle that requires prayer and the Word of God, then the problem could escalate from bad to worse.
One night, when Jesus was alone and praying in the mountains, He saw the disciples toiling while rowing against a storm on the water. This storm, by all appearance, was a natural storm, but natural strength didn’t defeat it. The harder the disciples strained to row the boat against the force of the storm, the weaker they became. Jesus came to them in a different form than what they were accustomed to seeing. He was walking on the water . . . defying the natural law of gravity. When they saw Him, they became afraid, because they weren’t discerning this situation with the eyes of the Spirit, but through fear.
Peter asked Jesus: “If that is You, allow me to come out on the water with You.” Jesus then told Peter to come out on the water. But as Peter approached Jesus, the winds became stronger and closer to him. The fear in Peter’s heart caused him to doubt the Lord’s authority over the storm, and it paralyzed him. When we don’t take the time to discern if an issue is natural or spiritual, then we can become paralyzed by it. When Jesus got Peter back on the boat, immediately the storm ceased. This wasn’t a natural storm that man’s power could defeat; this storm required the Word of God getting involved in the situation.
I’m not suggesting that you go to the mountains and pray every time you’re hit with a storm. But just ask the Lord for His wisdom when a problem arises and invite Him to guide you through the winds and waves. All believers have the Holy Spirit dwelling within them, but if we don’t acknowledge His presence—and we run ahead without His input—the results can be detrimental to our walk of faith. Jesus tells us, in Matthew 6, to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. What battles, storms, or perils are you facing today? Are they natural, or are they spiritual? This is something important to discern as you begin a new day. —submitted by Asa Dockery, US
