Fighting For Our Liberties

Freedom is best appreciated after you find yourself in bondage, and taken for granted when we think we can’t be enslaved.

To those in bondage, a life of freedom doesn’t just have a different flavor; it’s a whole new buffet.

You can be in bondage to a vicious dictator, a bottle of whiskey or an unhealthy relationship. Whether someone purposefully and hatefully imprisons you or you’ve allowed yourself to be enslaved, freedom is only a fantasy until you cross over that victory line. Those without hope dare not even dream of freedom.

Sometimes liberty is within our reach, other situations require heroes to obtain it for us.

There are those who don’t appreciate their freedoms. They’re not thankful for the heroes that have provided it for them. They don’t see the chains that imprison them in a place where they need to be right, and can’t see the opportunities set before them.

To those not enslaved or those that don’t recognize their shackles, the struggles of bondage are seldom either respected or appreciated. Those enslaved to drugs or alcohol or other addictions are often shunned, made fun of, looked down upon, resented, feared and hated. Those imprisoned by evil men or power-hungry governments are often forgotten as quickly as their pictures fade from our television screens.

We shouldn’t live in fear of losing our freedoms, but neither should we take our freedoms for granted. By refusing to acknowledge those who would attempt to take our liberties from us, we allow them access to our greatest treasure.

Liberties must be cherished, and respected.

No, freedom isn’t free; we must fight to maintain it, lest the enemy snatch it while we sleep.

2 Corinthians 10:3-6 ‘…though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds; Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.’ (KJV)

God bless America and keep us safe in our liberties!

Ezer Standing V

Again, Sun Tzu said, ‘One may know how to conquer without being able to do it.’

Through the reading of God’s Word we gain insight to His ways and His will. We learn how He does things. We learn about His heart. Through spending the time it takes to prayerfully hear what He’s saying to us through His Word, we gain the faith, wisdom and strength to perform what He requires of us. (Faith comes by hearing, hearing by the Word of God.)

Many scholars read the Bible and walk away unchanged. Simpler minds can read God’s Word and come away a new man. Some can read it believing they’re objective or even on a fault-finding mission, and discover themselves on the pages. How can one man walk away changed and another leave it still hungry for what it contains?

Heart change – once the heart receives from God, the mind can believe. Is your heart teachable? Is it reachable? Are you prepared to give it away? Only when you let go can God change it and create in you a new heart, one like His. (Create in me a new heart, oh God, and renew a right spirit within me.)

Learning God’s Word, we’re more than a soldier reading through an instruction manual. We are being empowered to truly love and receive love, we’re being transformed. He who fights greatly has the heart for the battle. I would not be your first choice to be the poster child for being a vegetarian – I love meat. I would not be the woman to look to for pro-choice matters – I hate abortion. But I want to know that God can depend on me to declare His Word and live it to the best of my ability – to the best of the ability He’s placed within me – which is far greater than I know!

Though not a typical Thanksgiving's Day blog - I am thankful most for the God that loves me -no matter what!

Ezer Standing II

‘Security against defeat implies defensive tactics; ability to defeat the enemy means taking the offensive.’ ~Sun Tzu, The Art of War

Spiritual battles have the most at stake. If we don’t understand the strategies of war our enemies employ – they may win.

God is a god of peace and love – but He’s also a jealous god, a god of war. Only when you stand with Him, can you win.

To those who will not fight, I quote:
‘War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.’ –John Stuart Mill, 1806-1872

When I watch Revolutionary War movies, I can’t see the honorable or the advantage of fighting the way the British fought – standing in lines in clear view of the enemy, waiting for enemy fire. Why would you sacrifice your soldiers this way?

In the battles between good and evil - life and death, there are many unnecessary casualties – warriors not prepared for war, that don’t know how to use their weapons, that don’t understand the strategies and sacrifices to be made, that don’t wear the proper protection or that stand out in front of the enemy thinking he won’t dare fire upon an innocent, unarmed player.

‘Hence the saying: If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself, but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.’ ~Sun Tzu

Ezer - Help or Hindrance?

Going back a few blog posts I wrote a little about what an ezer is created to be. When God created our world, He saw that everything was good – the only thing that was not good, was for man to be alone, without one of his kind. God created the woman as the man’s ezer; his helpmate and so much more. The woman was created, as was the man, to bear God’s image in this world. Both men and women are created in God’s image – we are His masterpiece. Working together with each other, we more perfectly bear God’s image. When we war against each other, we mar His image.

Though men are traditionally the protectors, women have a protective nature and role as well. Along-side the men in our lives, we are called to fight. We are not called to fight against our men or to fight against our children. We are not called to chase after elusive battles that demand our attention, such as the battle of the bulge or the fight to keep up with the Joneses or even battles for equality. We are called to fight the good fight of faith. (1 Timothy 6:12 KJV)

This past weekend I had to take a step back and look at the bigger picture. In an attempt to ‘help’ my mate – I stepped on his toes. In order to help and not hinder the man I’m called most to stand beside, I have to be careful not to create little battles that can blind us to what we’re really fighting for. Satan rejoices when we get side-tracked and chase after pink elephants that aren’t really even there, instead of donning the full armor of God and pulling down strongholds and vain thoughts and every high thing that exalts itself against God.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 (KJV) For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ

Ezer Part 4

As Christian women, as an ezer, there may be more than one man that you and I will be called alongside to battle with. You may need at some times to stand with your father, your sons, a brother or a friend. But after our commitments to God Himself, if we're married, our priority is to battle with and on behalf of our husband; the man God created for us to love and receive marital love from. Satan doesn’t like us being committed to that mission and plots ways to divide and conquer. Sadly, he’s often too successful.

Shifting back to the walls we erect and the doors we slam shut; too often they are doors through which the love for and from our husband is meant to flow. Sure, sex might be good. Sure, we may even spend time together on extracurricular activities and share a date night on a weekly basis. But what is the foundation of our relationship? Is the foundation one that Satan will succeed in shaking or crumbling like old clay? Our foundation has to be the Word of God to be a lasting and unbreakable foundation. When the foundation of a house is cracked, it’s very costly to repair – if the repairs can even be made. Contractors need to be especially careful when constructing the foundation of any building. When the foundation of our marriage begins to shake and crack, the cost of repairs can be extremely high, if not out of reach. An old scripture song tells us not to build our house on sandy land – not too close to the shore, but to build your house upon the Rock, so you have a firm foundation, not one that will shift with the tide. The Rock is Jesus Christ; God Himself.

The children of this world often achieve a self-contrived inner peace and relationships of harmony that rival those of the children of God. The divorce rates across the nation are the same whether yours is a Christian marriage or not. This should not be so. As Christian men and women we should be fighting for each other, not against each other. We should be fighting for what God has given us, not looking for something easier or what appears to be better on the surface.

To be continued again.....

Ezer Part 1

Ezer - Part 1

What does ezer mean? We'll get to that.....

Ezer! Strong and loving friend; warrior in the battle to advance God’s kingdom, I love you and I thank God for you.

Called to the battle lines in the war that will see life as we know it come to an end, ushering in the kingdom of God on a level we can’t yet even comprehend, we grow weary quickly. Has God called us to battle without training us or giving us instructions or briefing us? It sure looks that way, especially when we don’t recognize His involvement and influence on every moment of our lives – every breath we take.

Oftentimes we’re thrust into the midst of a battle screaming, ‘Wait! No one told me we were at war!’ But what indeed do we think we’ve been in training for? All of life’s experiences to this point have not been pointless, random events taking place in a mass of matter and energy with no purpose. God’s been busy preparing us all for everything He knows we’ll face, especially for those events that will further His kingdom on Earth. Winning our lost loved ones souls for the cause of Christ is great and heavy in my heart and always on my mind. And clearly preaching at them is one method that appears to fall on deaf ears. Calling on the Spirit of God that lives within us, to love them through us is the greatest gift we can share with anyone, whether that’s a stranger on the street, a co-worker, a child, a parent or a spouse.

To be continued.....