These Trying Days
Mary E Adams
The Spirit of the Lord impresses me that we must come to grips with some spiritual facts, especially during these trying days. That more than ever before, we must realize the attack of the enemy has its agenda, and the only enemy the devil has is Christ and His church. He is attacking from every front...but unless we understand the nature of that attack and guard ourselves from the possibility of our helping rather than hindering him, we can find ourselves assisting this attack and becoming actual allies with him.
It is not enough for each of us to assume we have immunity--pastors, evangelists, every ministry for Jesus Christ is going through the fire. We find it comes in various ways; hitting us in our finances, in our homes, in our friendships, our health, in every effort we make to do God's will. Every discouraging thought that comes to us is a missile from the devil's arsenal. All negativism, all slanderous lies, all gossip is but his battering ram to tear down the church and hinder the work of God.
We are all aware that the warfare of today comes in roadside bombings and surprise terrorism. Such it is in the spiritual realm as well...we are often caught off-guard, when we least expect it and coming from places where we do not think it will happen. That is why it is so critical that each of us have the upper-hand on these matters, and that, of course, means you and I must stay in the spiritual realm more than ever before--where we can hear the voice of the Lord and have His wisdom to reveal to us the land-mines being laid for our destruction and how we can defend against them.
Have you wondered why there are such hindrances in your pathway? Why the battle seems impossible at times? Why the more you strive to do right, the more attacks come to your front door? It is because of the Day in which we live. The devil knows he has but a short time---great upheavals are not always in tsunamis and hurricanes; they also come as giant storms upon our spiritual and physical man as well. And yet we must be aware that not every problem we face is a direct attack from the enemy...for he is a cunning serpent hiding behind a tree. Gossip, slander, and criticism of one another is the devil's prime tool to destroy. To use us to destroy ourselves is how he does it. He knows how to work through our minds and thoughts by luring us to compete, to selfishly covet, to destroy or hinder someone in their quest to serve God. EACH OF US MUST UNDERSTAND, THAT FOR EVERYTHING WE DO FOR CHRIST, THERE IS A FURIOUS BATTLE BEING WAGED TO HINDER IT IN ANY AND ALL WAYS. That is why we must pray for one another---and not only support, but to defend our brothers and sisters by refusing to accept gossip, slander, lies, and criticism that is directed at them. Indeed, we are commanded to rebuke it. We must "esteem one another better than ourselves" and become "workers together" in one accord. None of us is without faults...but if we have failed to use prayer for our brothers and sisters instead of criticism, we show that we truly do not have the right heart.
There is a very real penalty which we must become acutely aware of: To touch God's anointed incurs His wrath. He will judge it and punish it severely. Had it not been for Moses' prayer for his sister Miriam, she would have died a leper. The Bible acquaints such behavior as nothing less than that of murder....for it too has the same motive: the destruction of someone else.
Many people are seeking a prophetic Word for the coming year. Yet many times a prophetic word is not always a revelation of future events--admonitions are also prophetic, but are most often disregarded. But if there is a message for us this coming year, this is surely one of them: Let us repent of the sins of our lips and put a guard at our mouths. Seek to encourage one another and become ambassadors for the good and prosperity of every work of the Lord, through ministers, through lay workers, through evangelists and missionaries, even though they might not belong to our particular church or denomination. Let the precious Holy Spirit rain upon our thoughts with pureness, love, and genuine care for one another's welfare and good...especially for those in leadership positions whom God has placed over us as shepherds.
If we do so, strength of unity will rejuvenate us like a blood transfusion and this next year will show us overcoming victories as never before!
Love in Christ,
Mary E. Adams