Fight the Good Fight of Faith

Lord Jesus,
You are here, moving in our midst, I worship you, I worship you. 
You are here, working in this place, I worship you, I worship you.  

The words of the song Waymaker are a great reminder that God is always here and working for our good.  The challenge is to keep this truth central in our heart and thinking.  Paul encourages us to fight the good fight of faith, because without faith it is impossible to please God.  As Hebrews 11:6 states, "for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him."  

Clearly a lot of things are being shaken right now.  Panic, fear, uncertainty, insecurity, worry and even doubt are influences of the enemy that can easily attack our thinking.  My prayer is, "Holy Spirit, help me take every thought captive to obey the knowledge of Christ." according to the instruction in 2 Corinthians 10:4-5.  So when I am challenged with a fear or doubt, I deliberately declare a Bible verse such as "By His stripes I am healed" or "No weapon formed against me will prosper."  or "Thanks be to God who always leads me in triumph."  Jesus quoted the Word when the enemy challenged Him.

Sometimes the Holy Spirit reminds me that all authority in heaven and earth are in the name of Jesus, and He has given me authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy.  So then I declare, "In the name of Jesus, fear be gone."  and often I just simply say, "Jesus, Jesus, Jesus" until the negative thoughts lose their power and leave.  

Jesus reminded us that after the demon is cast out, it is necessary to fill the "house" with new furniture.  So I begin filling my mind and heart with thanksgiving, with reminding myself of all God has done for me.  Or I begin thanking Jesus for taking those stripes for me and I try to picture Him being beaten.  It is also helpful to just declare God's truth from the Word about the situation.  Maybe you should write a list of verses that God quickens to you in your quiet time each day, so you have a fresh anointed Word to stand on.  

"Thou does keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee," (Isaiah 26:3)  Why does Philippians 4:7-8 encourage us to think about what is true, noble, just, pure, lovely, of good report, virtue, and praiseworthy?  The reason is simply because our fallen human nature gravitates toward the negative.  You recall that the Israelites in the wilderness were always complaining.  Therefore, since God's ways are always the opposite of man's ways, this means we have to choose God's way, choose life, rather than the ways of death that our flesh produces.  

The best way to fight the good fight of faith is to let praise and the Word of God fill our mind.  When the battle of our thoughts gets tough, it is time to declare God's Word out loud and praise Him for all He has done.  Sing songs of worship, especially those that are Bible verses, to help us keep the Word of God in our heart and on our lips.  Several Scriptures such as Psalm 1:2, Joshua 1:8, and Proverbs 4:20-23 all declare the necessity and blessing of letting the Word abide in you and continuing to speak it into life.  It is as simple as saying, "No, devil, you are a liar, I choose to declare God's truth."  Don't give up.  All those who use their faith overcome the evil one.  We will be eternally grateful that we chose to "Fight the good fight of faith."