Beating The Air

As I sat on the sofa that is placed beside the big clear window of our house, I sighed with frustration. "Lord, what am I doing wrong?" I asked. I felt like I was hitting a wall over and over again. I couldn't seem to find the solution to getting the victory that I wanted in a battle that I have been going through. "What am I missing?" I prayed. I sat in quietness for a little bit longer and picked up a book that I have been reading lately-  Get Out of Your Head by Jennie Allen. In her book, she writes. 

"Refusing to be a slave to our circumstances doesn't mean we do not fight for what's right. Scripture commands us to fight, in fact, by acting justly, crying out for justice, and defending the cause of the oppressed. But in Christ, we can fight not from a place of insecurity and outrage but from a place of reconciliation. Of calm confidence. Of peace. Of love. Why? Because our victory is sure. We've already won."

Friend, have you fought out of fear before? Or insecurity? I know I have. And the Lord showed me why I was constantly hitting a wall of something and not getting the victory I wanted. Why? Because I wasn't fighting effectively. I wasn't fighting the right way against satan. When satan came to me with his lies and accusations, I crawled into a ball of fears and insecurities. A little later on, I learned that I needed to stand up against the devil and fight back. And I would try and try. In one of my past posts, I had said that I needed to be confident in God before I could resist the devil well. The Lord has guided me through each step but I am still learning effective ways to fight him off. And I hope God never stops teaching me. Now to how I felt a couple days ago, I felt stumped again. I didn't understand why I wasn't getting the victory that my soul has longed for. That morning the Lord showed me where there could be improvement. Like the quote said, I was trying to fight with fear and insecurity still living in my life. I wasn't coming from a place of quiet confidence (I still am learning) or peace. 

God revealed to me that a soldier does not go out to battle without the proper knowledge he needs. A soldier when fighting needs to know the best strategies to overcome the enemy. He also needs to be aware of the enemy's weakest links and what moves to use against him. Oh, I was fighting. But not effectively. 1 Corinthians 9:25-26 says, 

"And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown, but we an incorruptible.

I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air:" 

I felt that way. Like I was beating the air. And what does "beating the air mean?" Paul basically means that he is not running aimlessly. I realized I was fighting but was I fighting ineffectively and aimlessly? Am I fighting for a purpose? Or am I so afraid that I am running around like a chicken with its head cut of trying to kill someone that is after my soul? I am not very political at all. But I have looked around more lately and our world and our country are scared. We are all scared and fearful sometimes, and that's normal. But Brothers and Sisters in Christ, are we beating the air? Are we fighting with each other and with the spirits of this world out of fear of our futures? As the quote above says, we can fight the evil in this world with peace, confidence, and love. Not out of outrage, anger, fear, and pride. Let us fight effectively in ways that are pleasing to God by praying and leading others around us to Christ. By loving the hurt and giving your hands to serving others. The times Jesus lived in were not peaceful, to say the least. The Romans ruled everything and there was just a lot of hypocrisy with church leaders, anger, and division.  But Jesus came to show them another way. A way of peace, love, and kindness toward others. And why can we fight the sin and evilness of this world with peace? Because we win in the end. Jesus has already defeated satan. Will there be hard times in our lives? Yes! But keep pressing on to being like Jesus. 

So I ask myself and anyone who is reading. Are we fighting effectively? Are we fighting the way that we are called to fight? 

I hope and pray that God gives us the wisdom and help to guide us! 

Natalie