The weapons that Win!

We are in the middle of the battle of our lives for our lives. 2Cor.10:3-5 tells us our weapons are not physical but mighty for the overthrow and destruction of strongholds. What strongholds? The strongholds found in our lives. God has given us weapons to use that will guarantee our victory in every battle of our lives if we will just use them. Just what are these weapons? Humility, love, forgiveness, purity, peace, mercy, grace, patience, kindness, self-control, truth, unity, gentleness, joy, goodness, faith -----everything God is. So often we come up against pride in people and we try to fight it with control, or judgment---which are the weapons of our enemy. Even more often we have opportunity to become offended and instead of using our weapons of forgiveness, love, and unity, we wield the enemy's weapons of offense, fault finding and division. Whenever we pick up the enemy's weapons, they will always be turned back against us to tear us to shreds. It is not safe to use his weapons---it may feel good because it appeases our sin nature, but it will come back one way or another to hurt us. Satan's job is to try and take out as many Christians as he can with the weapons of his warfare. Every time we give into reactions of the flesh, we grab onto one of the devils weapons and use it for the furtherance of satan's kingdom. The devil actually has us fighting along side his army---and we don't even see it! Any unpurified heart response acted upon will cause us to pick up the enemy's weapons and help him win the battle. This is why it is so important to have a pure heart---because the weapons of our warfare that will actually tear down strongholds in our lives are found in the allowing of God to purify us. Each stony part of our heart that we give to God to be transformed allows more of God's weapons to be used to tear down these strongholds in our lives. We cannot fight fire with fire---all that does is make the fire bigger and stronger. No, we fight fire with water---it's opposite. We cannot fight pride with pride, anger with anger, frustration with frustration, meanness with meanness---all it does is further the devils kingdom. Yet far too often, that is what seems to happen---we use the enemy's weapons, and fight from a losing position. All this does is reinforce the strongholds living out their existence through our lives. These strongholds were meant to be destroyed, yet with every choice to wield the enemy's weaponry we strengthen their grip on our hearts and breathe life into them. The moment we pick up the enemy's weapons of annoyance, anger, disrespect, dishonor, irritation, sharp responses, impatience, wanting our own way---and the list goes on----we automatically put ourselves in a losing position. Only the weapons of God's warfare can win. God gives the victory to us and all we have to do is use His weapons! In order to use them He must increase and we must decrease. We must empty ourselves so God has room to fill up the empty places with Himself. You see, a heart contaminated with fear cannot pick up the weapon of faith---a heart contaminated with lies cannot pick up the weapon of truth, and here lies the problem with many believers. We become discouraged and defeated simply because we do not allow the process of purification to put us in a position to take up our weapons that will win the battles of our lives. The pure heart, the uncontaminated heart is the heart that can see the weapons God has placed before us so we can win every fight and say with the apostle Paul---Thanks be to God who always leads us in victory. More later……....