Spiritual Warfare: Win The Battles

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Hey, welcome to Renewed Mindsets, where we study the basics of the faith through the lens of our middle-aged experiences. I'm Rick. Welcome to the show where I help you Gen Xers and millennials navigate spiritually through a world that looks nothing like we expected back, when cars were square and mullets were totally awesome. I am so glad you're here. So I want to dig deep into something that's really important today. Have you ever stopped to think that the fear and the anxiety and the trials you're facing might be more significant than just regular ordinary life obstacles? Do you think it could be possible that these challenges that you're facing are part of a stronghold in your life, something that's orchestrated by the enemy? Last week, we talked about spiritual warfare, what it was and how to recognize it. I told you about my struggle as six months in warring with thoughts over my breakup with my fiancee. Please don't do this, you don't mean it, except I'm the one that was crying Now. Over the course of those months, I was winning that battle with God at my side, and I was feeling pretty good. Well, in the week between me recording that episode and recording this one, I was informed that she was now dating someone else, and the war escalated immediately. But guess what? We serve a mighty God. Praise God, who wants to walk alongside us and help us in our battles. To do this, like in a physical war, you need a battle plan Now. God equips us with the sword which is the word of God, to stronghold against the lies of the enemy. He provides us strength and wisdom and discernment by His own spirit so that we can remain steadfast in the actual battle of spiritual warfare. And he has given us an invitation for us to spend quality time in His presence, in prayer and in worship, so that we can deepen our understanding of Him. As our understanding of God's truth deepens, we become more aware of what's not true. We develop the ability to discern when something's just not right. With the powerful name of Jesus, we are strengthened to resist the falsehood. He never abandons us to navigate in that darkness by ourselves, but he consistently reminds us that he is always by our side, even on our behalf, even when we're not able to perceive it. Now do you need a battle plan? Do you need something to equip you when you're facing difficult times? Well, you're listening to the right show. I've got a spiritual battle plan outlined just for you, straight from God's word. I've got seven steps to help you defeat the enemy. So that you can stand firm against a spiritual warfare attack, we require His constant replenishment and the empowerment that only he can provide through His Holy Spirit. Every believer can possess the gift of the Holy Spirit. Did you know that you can have God's Spirit residing inside you? It is such a powerful spirit. It raised Lazarus from the dead, it parted the sea, it broke open prison doors, it enabled lame people to walk and it continues to this day to be actively present. I've seen healings, I've seen miracles. It grants us the ability to stand resolute in the face of spiritual warfare. Now I have scripture that goes along with each of these gifts, all seven of them. I want you to hear them, but you don't have to write them down. I'll put them in the show description and you can look at them later and you can get those at renewedmindsetscom. Forward slash twenty two. So the first is from Acts, chapter one, verse eight. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you and you will be my witnesses telling people about me everywhere, in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria and to the ends of the earth. And the next comes from Romans eight, verse twenty six, and the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness, for example. We don't know what God wants us to pray for, but the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. So the next gift is the armor of God. You've all heard about it, right, put on the full armor of God. Well, god reminds us that we should not go into the day without being prepared and equipped for battle. Every day we should prepare ourselves to go out into the world and expect a battle. He tells us to put on his complete armor so we can effectively confront the enemy's strategies. Each piece of the armor serves a distinct purpose providing us with protection and coverage. Just as a soldier wouldn't enter into battle without proper preparation, we also have to be fully equipped with the armor of God to face the spiritual battles ahead of us. So the Scripture for this is Ephesians, chapter 6, verses 11 through 17. Put on all of God's armor so that you'll 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 to be unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world and against evil spirits in heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of God's armor so you'll be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then, after the battle, you'll still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God's righteousness For shoes, put on the piece that comes from the good news so that you'll be fully prepared. In addition to all these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet and take the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God. So the next gift is prayer. God extended us an invitation for us to develop a close relationship with Him. It's His desire for us to allocate time to be in His presence, a time to seek a deeper understanding of Him. The significance of prayer and its inherent power are consistently emphasized in His word. He instructs us to pray without ceasing, even when we're unable to find the right words, just like me just then. He assures us that the Spirit will intercede on our behalf In a world filled with darkness. He never abandons us, but he serves as our constant companion and he fights for us, even when we cannot perceive His presence, whether we find ourselves in a period of tranquility or engaged in a spiritual battle, prayer serves as one of the most influential weapons. So our first verse here is Ephesians 6, verse 18. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. And the next is from the book of James, 5, verse 16. Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you might be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. Now, when you pray to God about spiritual attacks, remember these points. I've got some here, just stuff for you to remember, to add into your prayer so that you ask God and cover all your bases. You need to tell Him that you know the enemy wouldn't be fighting so hard against you if you weren't making a difference for His kingdom. Tell Him you know the devil wouldn't be trying so hard to stop you if he didn't think you, the Lord, had so much good still in store. Ask Him to remind you that the battle belongs to you and whatever you're up against and it can be taken down in one failed swoop of His mighty hand. Ask him to please help you to trust him more To stop wasting time just spinning your wheels or fighting in your own strength. Ask for forgiveness in the times that you neglected to set your eyes and your heart on him, for the days that you forgot to come to him first. Ask him to fill you with the power of the Holy Spirit, to fill you with his wisdom and his discernment, to make you aware of the enemy's traps, so that you can stand strong against his schemes. And thank him for his constant reminders that his presence will go on with you In whatever you face, and the promise that he will give you rest. Now. The fourth gift is his word. God equips us with the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, so that we can combat the lies of the enemy. Praying God's words back to him is a potent weapon against the evil forces, the evil forces that we deal with in spiritual warfare. It signifies the truth into the enemy's domain. It passes truth from our plane to that plane. Disseminates that's the word I'm looking for. It disseminates the truth into the enemy's domain. This practice serves as a reminder that God is familiar with our path and he comprehends the challenges that we encounter. Additionally, it strengthens our faith and our trust in God, and it protects our hearts while redirecting our thoughts towards him. Now for scripture. Here we have Hebrews, chapter 4, verse 12. For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. And also from 2 Timothy 3, 16. All scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we're wrong and teaches us to do what is right. The next gift this is a good one, it's a good habit to get into all day long it's the power of praise. Praising God invites his presence because he's near us when we praise him. I do it all day long. I'll be driving down the road and just praise you, lord. Bless you, father, in the name of Jesus. I want God with me, I want him right by my side. So praise acts like a powerful weapon, causing the enemy to flee from the battleground, because if you're in a fight with the enemy and you praise God and he's standing right by your side, the enemy knows he can't win. It's one of the most powerful things we have and the easiest one to use. And it also has the ability to get rid of the darkness that lingers and repel attacks and deceitful whispers aimed at us. So, even if the attack is coming from far off, praise and God can stop it. If we continuously praise our God who fights our battles, evil's not going to hang around us. A prime example of that can be seen in the story of Jehoshaphat, where God miraculously defeated his enemy due to the people's obedience in praising him. The scripture we have here is 2 Chronicles 20-22. At the very moment they begin to sing and give praise, the Lord calls the armies of Ammon, moab and Mount Seer to start fighting among themselves. And the next scripture is Psalm 22, verse 3. Yet you are holy and thrown on the praises of Israel. That's just a praise. You could just say you are holy. It's so easy to praise God. Praise Him. Praise Him like you would praise the most important person in your life. We praise your children all the time. Praise God, at least that much. So the next gift Obedience to Christ. You know the grand enormity of our willingness to obey the words and commands of Christ in a world that encourages us to follow our own path cannot be understated. It serves as an example that reflects our readiness to sacrifice our own desires in order to live for the glory of God. Now, this willingness does not come naturally. Our own flesh, our desires, our sinful nature will constantly oppose it. It's a daily decision that requires us to be mindful of every thought, embracing our own struggles and following Christ's teaching instead of our own desires. We must surrender to God's authority and be unyielding in confronting sin, because that's a gateway for the enemy to cause chaos in our lives through spiritual warfare. And when we resist Him, he's forced to retreat. So the scripture we have for this one is James 4-7,. So humble yourselves before God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you. And the next is 2 Corinthians 10-5. We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey. So the next gift in fighting a spiritual battle the blood of Christ and the word of our testimony. People, we you and I are overcomers. We're overcomers in this life because he has overcome. Our lives are hidden in Christ, with God. So no enemy or obstacle can touch our souls when we're set free by the blood of Christ and His sacrifice on the cross. We receive a new identity in Him. We are not our own, but we've been bought with a price and we're covered by the grace and forgiveness of Jesus. We live victoriously against spiritual warfare and no demon or darkness can ever separate us from the love of God. In Christ, our Lord, the name of Jesus holds power. Scripture from Revelation 12-11. And they have defeated Him by the blood of the Lamb and by their testimony, and they did not love their lives so much that they were afraid to die. And then 1 Corinthians 1-18. The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction, but we who are being saved know it is the very power of God. When we belong to Christ, the enemy never has the final word over our lives. We are secure in God's hands, but remember, you have to want to be there. Scripture says that no one can pluck us from his hand, but nowhere in the Bible does it say that we can't jump out of it. Press on, courageous and free, never held back by fear or defeat the battle, the spiritual battles that we go through belong to the Lord and he has the final victory. And now Deep Thoughts by Jack Handy from Rick Uhaas. During the Middle Ages, probably one of the biggest mistakes you could make was not putting on your armor because you were just going down to the corner. Introduce a new daily podcast, written and produced to jumpstart your day with Wisdom from God. Wisdom for the Day, this daily meetup, is a way you can learn everything about wisdom from a biblical perspective. The Book of Proverbs is all about wisdom from the wisest man in the Bible, king Solomon, covering one to a few verses a day. Each episode is around three to five minutes. A quick fill-up of your wisdom to start your day or end it, and by the end of the year you will have heard and understand the entire book of Proverbs. Visit WisdomForTheDayorg and listen there, or hit follow for your favorite podcast app. Well, that's all for this week's show. You know the name of this show speaks my hope for you. It's taken from the words of Romans, chapter 12, verse 2. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind that by testing, you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. If you enjoyed what you heard, do me a favor, please, and tell someone you know about it. Send them a link and a text. You know you may even need to download it to their phone and show them what a podcast is. If it was valuable to you, it will be to them. Visit renewedmindsetscom to hear past episodes, read the blog and check out the new merch. And, as always while you're there, send me a voicemail by clicking the button at the bottom right corner of the main page. Tell me what you think about this show. I just might play it on a future episode. Until next week, I'm Rick. 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