Living a Warfare Lifestyle

I've heard for countless years, through sermons, sunday school lessons, bible school and the like that, as Christians,

"...our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." Ephesians 6:12 (NIV)

I've even been with friends and or acquaintances in situations where they are clearly being attacked by Satan and believe I myself have been under attack.

BUT, I don't believe this concept really penetrated my thought process until last week.

I'm finally at a point in my life where I'm reading the Word on a regular basis and constantly reflecting on what God has to say about my life as His follower. It's not like I wasn't doing this when I was at bible school but I kind of felt like someone was holding my hand the whole time I was in Cannon Beach. It's so easy to think about God, to seek His will, when you're in a Christian environment. Well, maybe not that easy a lot of last year was about struggling to figure out if this was really my faith or if it was just something I did because of my parents or because it was comfortable.

Getting back to the point...

Now that I'm here, actually seeking God's will in my life - ready to let Him change me. I realize how truly difficult it is to be a Bond servant of the one true God yet this is what I desire to become.

-Everything in my sinful nature twists inside me and wants to fight off the changes God is making in my life.

-Every time I'm getting somewhere with God - when I can see His character come out in me, Satan reaches up to squelch it. This fallen angel hits me where I'm weakest he brings my insecurities to the forefront of my mind in attempts to drown out the voice of truth.

And I can finally see it, I can see what Satan's doing and it's disheartening and thrilling at the same time.

Disheartening because that is simply what Satan wants it to be; multiple times in a day I succumb to my sinful nature. Yet, I know that God is there as the everlasting Father - to take my confession, throw my sin out the window, pick me up and comfort me in His arms.

Thrilling because I know that Satan is aware of me. I am worth spending time distracting because I have real power in Christ. I want God to work in me and that scares the enemy so much because if I have Christ within me, there's nothing he can do to stop me.

Prayer is what I need more of in my life right now because that is the only way to combat spiritually. So, as I seek to fully protect myself with the armor of God be patient 'cause I think it will take a while.