Spiritual Attack and Fretting (Part 1): Timely Tips on Tuesday

Read "Spiritual Attack and Fretting (Part 2)".
We have had company staying with us for 10 days: my brother and nephew came a week ago Saturday, and then friends (a young couple with their 3-month-old baby) arrived last Wednesday and left this morning. My brother and nephew went to my sister's for the weekend, but came back yesterday and will be with us until Saturday. It's a little busy around here!


So, I decided this week I would re-post some articles which I have written in the past, which you may not have read, or if you have, contain messages which we need to be reminded of (me included!) and I think you will enjoy! I'll also try to post some photos throughout the week, as time permits. Please continue to comment, as I am checking my blog daily, and love the encouragement of your prayers and comments! I'm thinking about all of you and praying for you!

The following is an article I wrote last September, at a very, very busy time and one in which I was fighting spiritual attack and the temptation to fret and worry! Here is what God taught me during that time! (Thank You so much, Lord!)

"I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills,
from whence cometh my help.

My help cometh from the Lord,
which made heaven and earth."

Psalm 121:1

Sometimes I forget about spiritual attack.  I mean, I know it's there in a general sense.  But, sometimes I don't recognize it in my own life.  I don't see that that's what I'm experiencing.  ("For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." Ephesians 6:12)

We should not be surprised when we experience an attack, especially after winning a spiritual victory or bearing much fruit. But we must remember that God is our helper and protector. And sometimes we're attacked just before God's going to use us in some important way.
 

Help in a Spiritual Attack

Our family can always expect attack when my husband is scheduled to preach. This week is no exception. (It's a reminder to me to pray for the families of our elders, who preach every week! My husband, not a full-time preacher, is filling in for Mr. T., whose son is getting married on Saturday.) I have also noticed that we can expect to be attacked in the very area about which my husband is preaching! Guess what subject he is preaching on?  Love. Yes, he is scheduled to preach on 1 Corinthians 13:  "the love chapter" of the Bible. The form that the attack has taken in my life is in discouragement, making me feel unloved by those closest to me, and feeling a failure in loving them. But, praise be to God, I have found great help in two ways:

• First, by going off to my bedroom (my "prayer closet"), shutting the door behind me, getting down on my knees next to my bed, and crying out to the Lord. This is a very important counter-attack. 

"What a Friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear,

what a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer.

Have we trials and temptations, is there trouble anywhere?

We must never be discouraged, Take it to the Lord in prayer."  

• Second, during a spiritual attack, I've found it is crucial to bathe myself in the Word of God.

It's very encouraging. Here are some passages that have helped me lately:

"As for me, I will call upon God; and the Lord shall save me. Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud; and he shall hear my voice. He hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me..."

Psalm 55:16-18

"Trust in him at all times; ye people,

pour out your heart before Him;

God is a refuge for us. Selah."

Psalm 62:8
 

"Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O Lord.

Lord, hear my voice:

let thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications.

I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait,
and in His Word do I hope." 

Psalm 130:1-2, 5

"I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills,
from whence cometh my help.

My help cometh from the Lord,
which made heaven and earth.

He will not suffer thy foot to be moved:

he that keepeth thee will not slumber.

Behold, he that keepeth Israel
shall neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord is thy keeper:
the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand.

The sun shall not smite thee by day,
nor the moon by night.

The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil:
he shall preserve thy soul.

The Lord shall preserve thy going out
and thy coming in from this time forth,
and even forevermore."

Psalm 121

Timely Tips on Tuesday: "Holier, But How?"

We have talked for a number of weeks about Child-Training, and the Ten Things I would tell a young mom to do in order to raise Godly children...
Now, having said all of the above, I want to emphasize this...
We can do all the “right things” on the outside and even be one of the “Godliest” families to everyone else’s eyes...
and yet be filled with pride, arrogance, lust, envy, covetousness, unforgiveness, hatred, impatience, boastfulness, and every evil thing.
In Matthew 23:27 Jesus railed on those who were hypocrites:

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!

For ye are like unto whited sepulchers which indeed appear beautiful outward,

but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness.

Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men,

but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.”

Iniquity has been defined as “doing my will.” Righteousness is “doing God’s will” or "obeying the standards of the One who sets the rules”.

The gospel:  It is only Jesus Christ who saves us. Only by Jesus, who was perfect, dying on the cross, being punished for our sins, and by God showing that He accepted that payment by raising Jesus back to life, and bringing His dear Son back up to heaven where He lives now, where He sits at the right hand of God, the Father--only by believing this gospel truth and trusting in Him and His work on the cross to save us from hell—not by anything in us—no right things that we do--are we saved. We may know all that. But, do we also know, and act like we know, that He sanctifies us, or makes us perfect, like Jesus Christ? Or do we think we need to help Him out on this one? Do we have a list of things that we do or don’t do—anything from Homeschooling our children, to dressing a certain way, to eating or not eating certain foods, to having our babies by a particular method or in a particular place, to having many babies, to belonging to "the" organizations... (Each of us would have a slightly different list)—and so on and so on and so on...that we have made into a "religion"? Do we think that it is our "work" that accomplishes the perfecting of ourselves? Have we begun to look to our own standards of righteousness, instead of God's?  Setting up a set of rules for ourselves, which is a standard of righteousness, apart from Christ's, is called iniquity. Or perhaps, we are proud that we don't have to follow rules at all.  Perhaps the opposite is true of us, and we have decided that there are no standards of righteousness:  it doesn't matter what we do, once we are saved, that God will love us no matter what, so who cares?  Does God look on us more favorably when we do, or don’t do, certain things?

What do you think? Join the discussion.

What Must I DoTo Be Saved?

Charles Spurgeon quotes:
Saving faith is an immediate relation to Christ, accepting, receiving, resting upon Him alone, for justification, sanctification, and eternal life by virtue of God's grace.
 

The greatest enemy to human souls is the self-righteous spirit which makes men look to themselves for salvation.

A sinner can no more repent and believe without the Holy Spirit's aid than he can create a world.

Read these verses and think and pray about what they mean for you.
Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God."

Romans 6:23  "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

Romans 5:7-8  "7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.

8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."

Romans 10:9-10  "9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."

Romans 10:13  "13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

If you haven't believed in the Lord Jesus, that he took the punishment for your sins, and asked Him to come into your heart and cleanse you from sin, and make you holy and righteous, please give your heart and life to Jesus Christ today! If you have any questions about these verses, or how to be saved from your sins, or you want to be sure you're going to heaven when you die, please feel free to contact me (my contact information is above under "Contact Me") -- I would be happy to talk to you about it!

Becoming A Titus 2 Woman: What Does It Mean To Be Reverent

The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; 4 That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, 5 To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed. Titus 2:3-5

Today, at Becoming Titus 2 in 2010, we're looking at what it means to be "reverent" (or "sober").  Wow, this has been an incredibly "meaty" study.  Though this is long, will you stick with me, and allow me to share what the Lord has been teaching me? It will be encouraging by the end, so hang in there.

1. This is supernatural.
2. It's to be taught.
3. It can be learned.
4. We "older" women aren't "perfect" at it, just have had more practice learning it.
5. When we don't demonstrate this quality, the Word of God is blasphemed, (or can be). 
6. Like everything else in our walk with the Lord, we need Him desperately, and only by His grace can we even begin to do this.

The first challenge, how to find out what "reverent" or "sober" means. Well, to begin, a word study is in order. Looking up "sober" led me to "temperate" which led me to (not having) "passion"--read on:

1. … habitually temperate 3. Not mad or insane; not wild, visionary or heated with passion; having the regular exercise of cool dispassionate reason. (not) tempestuous and blustering. 4. Regular; calm; not under the influence of passion; as sober judgment; a man in his sober senses. 2. Cool; calm; not marked with passion; not violent  5. (Not displaying passion, as it's defined by:) Violent agitation or excitement of mind, particularly such as is occasioned by an offense, injury or insult; hence, violent anger.

Sometimes it's easier to see what something is, by noting what it is not.  Studying the word sober, (with its synonym "temperate" which related to not having "passion" as defined above), I couldn't help but notice that a sober, reverent woman was not marked by "fits" and outbursts and anger and violent outrage. She's even-keeled, able to make "cool-headed" (and I would add, Biblical) decisions, she's not harboring bitterness, not "flying off the handle".  She isn't a storm moving around the house or erupting (tempestuous and blustering).  She is, in a word, calm.

From the Bible, what it doesn't mean:
A quick and cursory look at the lives of leading Bible characters tells us that being reverent/sober doesn't mean sitting quietly in a chair, never having any strong feelings or emotions.
The Lord brought David, a "man after God's own heart", and verses such as these, to mind as examples:

"The sorrows of death compassed me, and the floods of ungodly men made me afraid. 5 The sorrows of hell compassed me about: the snares of death prevented me. 6 In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears."Ps. 18:4-6
He prays in his calamity--"9 Have mercy upon me, O LORD, for I am in trouble: mine eye is consumed with grief, yea, my soul and my belly. 10 For my life is spent with grief, and my years with sighing: my strength faileth because of mine iniquity, and my bones are consumed."Ps. 31:9-10
A verse that is very dear to me: "Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and He shall hear my voice."Psalm 55:17
"From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I. "Ps. 61:2
Ps. 77:2 shows a desperate man--"In the day of my trouble, I sought the Lord: my sore ran in the night, and ceased not: my soul refused to be comforted. I remembered God, and was troubled: I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed...I am so troubled that I cannot speak."
(Later in the same psalm he remembers the works of the Lord, all He has done, and says, "Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary: who is so great a God as our God? Thou art the God that doest wonders." This is key.)

And God Himself exhorts and encourages us: "Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver thee and thou shalt glorify me." Psalm 50:15 

David's prayers, filled with vehement emotion, and injunctions to "cry out" to God, clearly show that God, far from condemning a soul filled with emotion, accepts, no encourages, bringing our deep desires, hurts, and cares to Him.
David was also an example of strong affection for others: deep friendship characterized him.

So, God is not inditing us for feeling deeply within our souls, when He tells us to be reverent and sober (calm).

What being reverent indicates, to me, is what characterizes our outward demeanor.  Please don't be misled. I'm not advocating hypocrisy. What I am saying is that, our outward demeanor should demonstrate the truth of our convictions and faith, that we believe that God is in control, that He is able and mighty, that He loves us, and that we are trusting Him, even though we may be filled with emotions of every kind within.
(I need to include a caveat here: Some of us (women) who are naturally very emotional may need to try to control some of our emotions, not encourage them, so I am not encouraging us to give way to every emotional feeling that we have, but rather acknowledging that there are times in life of great emotion.)

I am to take all those deep feelings, emotions and cares, every burden of my soul, to Him. Leave it there. Trust in Him. Then, I am to act, in an outward expression of faith, calmly and reverently; I am to be ruled by my spirit, not my emotions, and my spirit is to be controlled by the Holy Spirit.  Let me repeat: I am not to be ruled by my emotions, and my outward behavior should demonstrate that.

That is calm, sober, reverent behavior.  We are not to be under the influence of passion, but it does not say we are not to have any passion, meaning fervor and emotion. (There are some passions and emotions which are forbidden as sin. We are told repeatedly in Scripture to Fear not, for instance. And we are told to be anxious for nothing. Fear, anxiety, worry are emotions which we can't make at home in our souls.) Our emotions and responses are to be ordered and controlled by the Spirit. But, obviously, from the example of David, emotions are not sin.

Titus 2:3-5 removes any preconceived notion we may have that reverence is an inborn trait, and natural. It is learned, it can be taught, we can improve in the skill, but it is supernatural. Without Christ, this is impossible. The natural man knows nothing of this "calm," reverent behavior. It is so foreign to the world, that it is one of the traits that will cause people to ask you for a reason of the hope that is within you. When you are mistreated, insulted, abused, and you do not give way to anger. When you remain calm in times of overwhelming circumstances, people will ask you your secret. This is why satan wants us to fail in this area. It is a great testimony to the world. And the way we act, as wives and mothers, greatly influences our family's behavior, especially our children's.

We must cry out to God, for there will be times when we are overwhelmed. There will be times when we are tempted to respond to insult, injury and offense with anger. There are, at times, storms raging in our souls. God, through His Spirit at work in us, is our only hope. He says we can overcome, and so we must make effort every day, but we must know that it is only by His strength that we will be victorious over sin.  Being reverent/sober is a command, not a suggestion, with a dire warning: that the Word of God be not blasphemed.

It is a lie from satan that those outbursts, those fits, those times of giving way to worry, fear and anxiety, those times that "I just lost it", are acceptable and normal.  No, I am sinning. The steps to take in those cases are to confess my sin to God and those I have offended, to ask God for help to change, to commit to steps which will bring a different outcome next time, to spend time in God's Word and in prayer, crying out to God for help and strength.

I will therefore that the younger women...give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully. 1 Timothy 5:14 (Nor the older women.)

There will be times when we will fail. This is very humbling. But, with the humbling to our souls from failing, from having to ask forgiveness, and from being on my knees before the Lord begging for help, comes grace. God gives grace to the humble.

Remember the saying, "It's not where you're at that counts, but the direction you're going." Let's remember that God is there to help us, and by God's grace, let's go in the right direction.

"Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O Lord.  Lord, hear my voice: let thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications.  If thou, Lord, shouldest mark (keep track of) iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared. I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait, and in His Word do I hope."  Psalm 130:1

A Prayer of Repentance and Request for God's Help:
"Lord, I am not calm in the worldly sense and often I am not calm in the spiritual sense. I feel things so strongly. I (over)react often. Father, at times I am a storm: tempestuous and blustering. Please forgive me for acting even wildly, at times, and for being given to extreme emotion (extremely agitated and sometimes even angry) in the face of insult, "injury" or offense. Lord, please change me by Your Spirit that I may demonstrate a regularity of calmness, and the ability to exercise cool, dispassionate reason. May I know how to be a woman of stability and sober judgment, that I may demonstrate to a needy world that reverent, sober, calm spirit which You alone can give, that Your Word may not be blasphemed, and I may be a testimony to all of Your grace and love."

If You Will Ask

Quoting from Oswald Chambers' book, "If You Will Ask":
"Have you ever noticed the 'wondering-ness' of the people who go on with God?  They never seem to be overanxious or overconcerned and they always seem to be getting younger.  What is the characteristic of the people of this world who have not got the child heart?  They are always sighing......

Have you got the wonder in your heart or are you sighing, 'Thank God I have managed to squeeze enough grace out of God to last through this day?' Blessed be the name of God, all the unsearchable riches of Christ are at your disposal!"