Leah and I were talking late last week about our first week together in Michigan. I said that it did not feel like an ease back into it week. Leah called it a cold shower week. So many things that happened really felt like a splash in the face, waking up me up to remember the nature of ministry.
It is a fight.
I remember thinking on our flight home from Hawaii about having to catch up on three week's worth of email. But email turned out to be secondary once I got home and experienced a coordinated spiritual attack against so many people in our church and community.
Because spiritual forces are unseen, they are too often ignored. But it shouldn't be surprising when a thief tries to steal, a murderer tries to kill, or a liar tells a lie. When your commitment to follow Jesus feels like it's being opposed, that's probably because it is.
One of the things that surprised me when I first read the New Testament seriously was that it talked so much about a Dark Power in the universe--a mighty evil spirit who was held to be the Power behind death and disease, and sin. The difference is that Christianity thinks this Dark Power was created by God, and was good when he was created, and went wrong. Christianity agrees...this universe is at war (CS Lewis).
Fortunately we don't have to shrink back or cower in fear. Like Jesus, we can line up daily to fight while continuing to live with joy, peace, love, and the rest of the Spirit's fruit.
This morning I woke up, kissed my bride, and spent some time with the Father arming myself for battle. And I can't wait to attack the week!
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