The Battle

Waking up she sat forward, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes; with a yawn she stretched her arms over her head and then ran a hand threw her wayward sleep tussled curls and turned her eyes towards the stunning view outside as a new day began to gloriously dawn…

The field was perfect for battle, both sides positioned at opposite ends, ready to die for their cause – they stood upon the territory for which they battled, lines drawn.  Just waiting for the signal to charge…

“Which side will you choose today?” The raspy voice spat out. “Make up your mind!” He tapped a toe in impatient exasperation waiting for the response.

The beautiful view quickly turned grey as the worries began to infiltrate her mind, like a rain cloud coming in to overshadow the sun.

She frowned.  The worries were ugly black creatures known to wait until the wee hours of morning to harass and wake one up from their sleep, while whispering taunts in one’s ear.

“How are you going to resolve this problem or this one…. or this one… or this one…” 

They were notorious for stealing a person’s peace and filling them with fear and worry. The more of an ear you give them, the louder and more aggressive they became. Their biggest trick, to taunt and repeat the same thing over and over again…

“You have to take care of A,B,C – but you can’t… Because all you have is this… How are you going to do it? You can’t.. There will be ramifications… You are in trouble…” 

Louder and louder they became because they are “faith drowners.” If she listened to the worries, the voice of her faith would become a whisper, and eventually it would blow out like a fire that becomes nothing more than an ember and she knew that if she were not careful and let them multiply and over throw her thoughts, they could totally blow the fire of her faith, leaving a residue of smoke.

“NO!” She shouted covering her head with her hands. “Go AWAY in Jesus’ name!”  She slammed her hand down on the covers of her bed.

One side of the army cringed and shrank back a step.  The other side took up the step lost by the other side. Ready to move forward.

The worries scattered like roaches running from a turned on light.

She threw the covers off her legs and touched a toe down on the ground.  It was time to get up.  The armies waited in expectation – waiting to charge forward at the command.

She was opening her mouth, she knew what she had to do to eradicate the thoughts… Both sides stood poised like runners waiting for a gun to give off a shot to start a race.

“This is the day the Lord has made… I will rejoice and be glad in it!”  She said it with confidence and determination and with authority. Both feet on the floor, hands on her hips.

The side that had lost a step, grimaced again and stepped further back.  The side that had gained a step’s armor began to glow with a light. They moved forward raising their swords high and confidently positioning their gigantic shields in front of their chests.  They moved foward in unison, line by line as the other side shrank back, also in unison another step with fear on their faces.

“Father God I give YOU this day. I thank you for it! I come before you and I give YOU all my worries! I place them each at the foot of your cross!  I may not be able to do anything about them but I have a Father who can!  Greater is He that is in me than he that is within the world!” (1 John 4:4)

Clank came the sound of sword against sword as the two sides began to battle. The radiating side growing more and more radiant with each prayer and scripture she quoted as she continued to pray.

“No!” Rasped the voice of the captain from the other side.  “Stop her from praying!”  He sent troops over to a side of the field which was not infiltrated by the other army.

“What are you talking about?” They taunted her back, sneering. “You are sinful and willfull and disobedient.  God is not going to help you.  Look at you, you keep struggling with the same issues over and over again like a dog chasing her tail.  And it will be that way all your life!  You will never have enough to do anything else but struggle, no matter what you do.  You call your life victorious? Ha!”  They shot off their fiery arrows into the sky trying to gain back the territory they had lost.

“NO!” She shouted.  The battle was on full forced now.  Army against army a full fledged battle. Metal clashing against metal.

“It is true, my righteousness is as filthy rags!” (Isaiah 64:6)  “And I could never defeat you on my own accord.  But I don’t come before you in my own righteousness.  But in the righteousness of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Who made a way for me when there was no way!  I am fully clothed in the righteousness He has provided for me by the power of His shed blood! He came so that I could have life and have it more abundantly! (John 10:10), and I know that it is not by power, not by might but by His Spirit (Zechariah 4:6) that I am able to do ALL things. He is my provider, He is my rock – He is my Lord!  And I choose to believe His promises to me this day!  Because I know that He is the same, yesterday, today as He will be tomorrow! (Hebrews 13:8). My confidence and faith is not in myself – but in HIM!”

Screams of pain came from the losing side as the radiating army’s swords met their mark, causing many members of the other side to fall and as they fell they to disappear in clouds of dark black smoke.  As quickly as they fell the line behind them would take up position and rise to the front as the battle roared on.

“I dress myself in the helmet of Salvation!” She stated boldly, using a hand motion as if to dress and put an invisible yet powerful helmut upon her head.  “I put on the breast plate of righteousness!  Around my waist I put the belt of truth!  I shod my feet with the preparation of the gospel, pick up my shield of faith and my sword of the spirit!” (taken from Ephesians 6:14)  Although in the earthly realm these garments could not be seen, in the spiritual realm her armor dressed her body as fine as any soldier ever had.  Glowing with the same intense glow of the radiating army that was currently defeating the other side.  The fiery darts being aimed at her bounced off the shield that she had raised real high.  “Lord, I choose YOU today in whatever I do and wherever I go!  I give this day to YOU.  I ask that You would be glorified this day.  If there be any evil within me I pray that you would remove it.  I ask that you transform and renew my mind and I thank you for the victory over every area of my life that needs Your touch. Forgive me for my sins, wash me with the precious blood of my Savior, Jesus Christ.  Be glorified this day in Jesus name I pray! AMEN”

The radiating army shimmered with a glorious bright light, growing brighter with each word she prayed and crashed down upon the losing side with a holy fierceness.  As members of the opposite side fell in defeat, they screamed in pain and disappeared in puffs of black smoke.

“She has chosen! Be gone! You are defeated with the blood of Jesus!” Shouted the radiating captain to the opposing captain as he pierced his chest with the sword of truth.

“Ahhhhhhh!!!” Screamed the defeated Captain in excruciating pain, clutching his chest with a black claw., spittle forming at his mouth, “You may have won this day! But we will return!  of that you can be sure!”  And he disappeared in a puff of black smoke along with each member of his line and the line behind him, and the line behind them, until none remained.

The battlefield was clear.  The radiating army stood upon its ground. A joyous shout of victory went out.  The captain raised his hands to simmer them down.  “We may have won this battle, but the war is far from over.  Take cover and be prepared, for the enemy will surely return and try to regain what ground they have lost.  We need to take cover, wait and be prepared for they will return.”

One sneaky little enemy unseen by the radiating, rejoicing army peaked out from his hidden spot a short distance away. Clutching the inner part of the girl’s ear with a claw and whispering into it, “they may have won on the battlefield of your mind today, but tomorrow is another day and rest assured we’ll be baaaaacccck…”