Facing the Enemy - Full On

"...God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we'll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels." (Ephesians 6:10-12 MSG)    

I had purchased some Gerber Daises for a friend of mine.  I have not made the delivery yet, so we have been caring for them in the mean time.  They usually have their fuzzy middles facing up and their hot pink pedals stretching out like rays of sunshine.  Today, we pulled into the driveway, and each of the blossoms were bowing low to the ground.  They needed water.  My children hurried to water them to bring them back to life.

It has been my life's desire to always be pleasant and sweet.  I cannot say that I have accomplished such a task, but I often strive to do so.  One of my sisters will kid me and tell me NOT to strive to be "Mary Sunshine" all the time.  That comment has not gone over well.

I know that I have been learning what "righteous anger" is all about.  How can you be sweet and be in the enemy's face at the same time?  Politeness must go out the door in battle.  As a friend was praying for me this last week, I saw myself like a flower planted, rising up to show the face of the bloom.  The face of the bloom was my face and it was fierce.  Seeing that visual caused me to 'clue in' to rise up with holy indignation. 

If we are to be on the offensive, we cannot spend all our time in the foxhole or trench.  We must know that we are surrounded by angels and that God has put the sword of the Word in our hand, heart, and mouth to cut off the attack of the enemy.  Just like the flower, we must face forward - being watered by the Word of God - and run, jump, full on to what God has called us to. 

In the words of Paul, "So let's keep focused on that goal, those of us who want everything God has for us. If any of you have something else in mind, something less than total commitment, God will clear your blurred vision—you'll see it yet! Now that we're on the right track, let's stay on it." (Philippians 3:15-16 MSG)

Promises

"But let all those who take refuge and put their trust in You rejoice; let them ever sing and shout for joy, because You make a covering over them and defend them; let those also who love Your name be joyful in You and be in high spirits." (Psalm 5:11 AMP)

 

God has made a covering over us.  Picture a giant, golf-sized umbrella over your head.  He covers us.  It is not always easy to trust Him in every circumstance, but He IS there - over us.  When we submit to Him, we give Him permission to hold His umbrella over our heads, wherever we go.  

 

In the midst of a physical battle, I felt barraged by hell's rocks of fury.  I was exhausted and found myself wondering about the presence of heaven in all of it.  Most of us have been there.  If you have not, maybe you will.  I do not wish it on anyone, but we find ourselves stronger and better rooted on the other side of these struggles.

 

Well, with my heart wavering, the Lord showed me a picture of His covering and the lie that brought about hopelessness.  I saw a huge, rainbow umbrella being held up over my head.  I knew the umbrella was beautiful and had great strength, however, I feared that the storm of rocks and debris, falling from the sky, would punch through and hurt me.  I looked up to check the umbrella, and I saw large holes, bigger than the size of my fist, several places in the umbrella.  My shoulders went up to my ears as I braced myself for impact.  I heard the Lord tell me to look again at the covering over me.  Upon a more careful examination, I realized that a transparent covering was over  the gaping areas that caused me to fear.  My heart understood that the enemy had deceived me into thinking that the umbrella was insufficient to carry me through the storm.  It was an illusion.  The truth was that I was protected. 

 

When I was growing up, my dad insisted that we have "golf-umbrellas" to use in the rain.  At first, I was embarrassed to use them, for they were absolutely huge and were alternating blocks of white and black or green and white.  I felt like a was holding a zebra over my head.  They became the envy of my classmates, for anyone using one never got a drop on them and there was room for three to five students underneath.  I soon realized that I had been given a treasure by my father.

 

We can feel peculiar.  We are God's children.  He long ago made promises to those that are His.  Sin punched holes in the original contract, but Christ was there to spread His body to cover over. 

 

As I was teaching an adult Sunday school class last week, I shared the umbrella picture with them.  I said I hadn't quite figured out the symbolism of the colors, and a wise gentleman reminded us of the rainbow for Noah.  It represented His promise. 

 

God's umbrella over us is beautiful, but it is like a translucent, better than NASA version of material.  We are talking about far beyond Sci-Fi.  He is God!  His love contains His wonderful promises, interwoven in the covenant He made with us.  We have been given a gift beyond comparison.  Remember the rainbow today.

Spinning on Ice

"In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation." (I Peter 5:10 NLT)

Lately when I worship, I see myself spinning on ice with my head held back in abandon.  The Word has many scriptures on dancing before the Lord.  When my heart reaches out to Him or I know He is there, I begin to see a dance of worship in my mind that corresponds to my heart yearning to spin before Him. 

The ice I have seen this week is like a frozen pond out in a forest.  The sun is shining.  It is beautiful.  My mouth is curved up in a smile, and my body is spinning wildly and with graceful movement. 

I do not know how to ice skate.  I have been a few times, and my efforts are less than fluid.  Ballet doesn't exactly transfer to the ice without training.  My home state is Texas (born and raised rural), and there is not much opportunity to ice skate in a sauna.  Needless to say, the ice vision of worship intrigued me.

As I pondered on the symbolism of coolness and water, I realized that what my mind's eye saw was me worshipping while at rest.  Often a cool touch of the Holy Spirit means rest or refreshing.  Water often represents the love of God.  My soul, mind and body were being refreshed while spinning upon the very love of God.  That takes me back to John 15.  So GOOD. 

 ^"As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love. These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full."  (John 9-11 KJV)