Thoughts of a Mrs. Modern-Day Mountain Woman Chapter 41

Chapter 41: On the Warpath

“For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:4-5

I don’t like to fight. I don’t really even enjoy confrontation. Disagreeing in an argumentative manner makes me uncomfortable, mad, and frustrated. I do like to be loud sometimes, but I don’t enjoy yelling. Just because I don’t like to do these things doesn’t mean I can’t. I’ve been known to argue, disagree, and even yell from time to time. I’m not sure that these methods work to show people that you disagree with them; usually yelling or arguing just makes the other person mad and defensive. There are times to be upset loudly and there are times for being upset quietly. Jesus in the temple turning over tables and throwing out the vendors was loud. Jesus teaching on a mountain and giving food to those who needed it was quiet. In both instances, He was fighting for us and teaching us what is wrong and what is right.

I’ve known people who go out looking for a fight. There’s nothing they love more than to be loud and have their opinions heard. There are other people who fight loudly by saying very little, but lead kindly and wisely. 2 Timothy 1:7 states, “For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.” God didn’t make us to be passive about the injustice in the world. Because of God there have been wars since the start of the world. He did not create us to sit back and take whatever comes to us without standing up for ourselves. He did create some people, however, to be the loud fighters, and some to fight quietly behind the scenes. Some people were created to lead by force and action, and some to lead by quiet example. At times we need to be both.

When we fight this world, we need to know that our weapons are Godly weapons of war. We need to fight within ourselves and “take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” If we can personally think through every thought we have and ensure that it is inline with what Christ would have us think or do, things may be different. How many of us though, are able to hold every thought captive? I know I struggle with this! There are so many instances in a day when I spout off the first thing that comes into my head without thinking about the consequences of those words. Luckily, we aren’t alone in this battle, either within ourselves or within the world. God gave us so many weapons to fight the good fight. He gave us Jesus, who alone conquered the devil and beat sin for us. He gave us the armor of God to protect us in the fight- the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, sandals of readiness, shield of faith, helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit. God didn’t send us out into this world alone to fight off the devil’s advances, He prepared us by fitting us for battle and giving us His word and the power of prayer to win over sin.

A Walk With Our Creator.

We are called to fight the good fight, to stand up for those who can’t stand for themselves, and to prepare ourselves for battle. The only way we can do this is by knowing the truth and knowing the Word of God. When we are not prepared to fight, or when we don’t know the whole truth, the devil will worm his way in and try to tell us his truths. Many people in this world are fighting a fight that they deem is worthy, all without doing their research. People going along with a leader who is strong and commanding, without knowing the thoughts and motives of the leader, is an act that repeats history in the worst ways. Hitler was viewed by his people as a great leader. He was commanding, strong, and full of “truths”. He destroyed lives and set the world on fire with war. People marching in protest without knowing what they’re protesting, or adding a hashtag that aligns them with an organization of which they don’t know the truths behind is equally dangerous. Standing up for truth by speaking the truth, by living the truth, and by knowing the truth is what God is calling us to do.

“He has shown you, oh man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8