My Battle Cry

Men are born with a 'warrior' mindset, we want to do battle with our foes and protect the people we love. This warrior mindset, along with everything else, was given to us by God so it should not be ignored or fought against. Many Christian men take on a pacifist mindset, taking the lesson to "turn the other cheek" too far and becoming a human doormat (in some cases this is necessary, but that's another blog). Christ was a warrior, in fact He was a great example of a ruthless soldier who took no prisoners; but his battlefield was not natural. He mercilessly sought out and destroyed demonic influences on people's minds, bodies, and souls - His weapon was prayer.

You and I can also use this weapon against our foe. Too many of us (me included) view prayer as solely an 'ask and thou shalt receive' tool and overlook its usefulness as a weapon against our enemy(ies). Prayer isn't a weapon like a sword, it's more of a weapon like a battle horn - we're calling for backup!

When Christ was afflicted, saddened or was weary He would go into a private place and pray - not eat, not drink, not play video games, not watch TV, but talk to the Father and release all of His concerns.

I have really felt the pull into intercessory prayer (prayer for others); especially for the people I love that have been pulled into addictions or mindsets that I have seen and/or struggled with. I'll pray almost to the point of tears for those losing the battle with alocholism, pornography, pessimism and sexual sin. Lately I've felt called to pray for marriages, as I said in a previous blog Satan hates marriages and wants them all to come apart (or never start) - so I plead on others' behalf for marriages to be strengthened.

1 John 5:14 - "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us."

I've got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart!

God loves joy! One of the fruits of the Spirit is joy; God is referred to numerous times as 'pleased' and other synonyms for happy, and we are commanded to be joyful. So why are some Christians such a drag, and how do we avoid falling into that trap?

There are people you need to prepare yourself for because they're such joy-zappers - you know the type! When you greet them you're happy and high on life, when you leave you walk away with not even a smile on your face. Usually the joyless attitude is explained away as "realism" or an "analytical" mindset, but the end result is a joy-zapper (and Christian "realists" should be the happiest people because we know the reality of God's love for us and what that means in our day-to-day lives, right?). I love hanging out with my step-brother because we constantly make each other laugh and are continually lifting each other up; but some Christians I know will just wipe that smile off your face!

One of my favorite characteristics I love about my wife is that she makes me laugh; I mean we have so much fun together! It could be a mundane task like doing the dishes, but we make it fun! We've both experienced the joy-zappers, and we're not about to fall into that mindset - our marriage would be a drag on our lives if we did.

Lastly, God invented pleasure. Everything that gives us happiness and a smile on our face was put here by God for our enjoyment: food, sex, love, nature, go on down the list and God put it here for US! We screw up by taking these pleasures and experiencing them at the wrong time or in the wrong degree (gluttony). God wants us to be HAPPY, that's one of the most freeing and satisfying truths in the Bible! Live life, and smile!