Strongholds, pt.1

Stronghold: a well-fortified place; fortress; a place that serves as the center of a group, as of militants or of persons holding a controversial viewpoint.

What images are popping into your mind right now? Are you thinking of scenes from Lord of the Rings or The Kingdom? We don’t really have a reference for a stronghold here in America, which makes dealing with spiritual strongholds a little more difficult than we would think. How can we identify a stronghold? What do they look like? What is their purpose? How are they built? How are they torn down? Are they good? Bad?

As we address spiritual strongholds, we thought it would be beneficial to gain some background knowledge that will enable us to have a clear understanding of what we’re up against… or inside, depending on your perspective! We turned to our resident expert on ancient and medieval warfare for a crash course. Here’s what we’ve learned:

Q: What was the purpose for a stronghold?
A: Strongholds were defensive structures designed to ward off enemies. Kings, Lords, and Warlords would construct strongholds to defend their kingdoms from harm. They were not places of luxury or entertainment, but were places of war and hard work, often serving as a military base. An army leaving for war may stop by a stronghold to restock supplies, or they may gather in a stronghold when the country was under attack. Often times, a kingdom had several strongholds placed strategically around its borders for security. If those borders fell to the enemy, the soldiers in the border strongholds would retreat to a well-protected fortress deep within the center of the territory. These strongholds were much more difficult to reach, well stocked for long-term sieges, and equipped with tunnels and escape routes for those inside.

~Andrew Frederick

The C: We’ll look at more aspects of strongholds tomorrow. In the meantime, consider your own life. What kinds of defensive structures have you built in your life that keep others out? Are you protected or are you isolated behind those walls?

He said WHAT???

“…Who [is] this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” I Samuel 17:26

Goliath was a mighty warrior. He had been trained from his youth to be a man of war. His mere presence intimidated the armies of Israel and left them shaking in their shoes, unwilling to do battle against him.

The children of Israel had done battle in the land for many generations by the time Goliath showed up on the scene. They had conquered Canaan land and had defeated all of Goliath’s ancestors. God had given them a land to subdue, and they had exercised their faith in God by taking the land away from the enemy. Where was this same faith, years later, when the seed of the enemy returned to challenge their right and authority to possess the land? Why is it they were afraid of this one giant, when their forefathers had defeated armies of giants?

David was a youth with a call of God on his life. He knew from experience that God had equipped him to defeat any enemy that tried to hinder him. David didn’t sit in the wilderness, crying out to God to save his little sheep from harm. No! Instead, David was a man of action; he acted on his faith. He knew that the same God who gave him the job to protect the flock in the first place, was the same God who would give him the strength and wisdom to keep that flock from lions and bears.

When David heard Goliath, he thought, “What can this one enemy do to me, when my God has called and equipped me to possess this land?” In other words, David was saying, “He said WHAT?!!” So, he gave voice to that thought when he challenged Goliath. But he didn’t stop there. It wasn’t enough to say, “Oh, it’s only an attack of the enemy.” No, David did something. He followed his words up with an action. He took what was in his hands, having faith in God, remembering his past victories, and defeated the enemy. He fought…and it was a good fight of faith.

You have an enemy in your life, challenging you to prove that you have the right to continue possessing your land. Like the armies of Israel, so many of us have forgotten how to fight the good fight of faith. We have forgotten that God is the one who called and equipped us. That God is the one who helped us defeat past enemies. That this same God is the one who has given us tools to defeat this present enemy. After all, the enemy staring you in the face is only the seed. Jesus already defeated Satan and made an open show of him. You already overcame the enemy in your past by standing on the Word and using your faith to possess what Jesus provided for you. This present enemy is only doing what Goliath did – testing you to see if you really believe that this land is yours and that God has equipped you to continue to possess it.

So, look at the enemy in your life rather than cower in fear against it. Challenge that enemy by saying, “Who are you to think you can stop me, a child of God?” Don’t be content to sit by after you have made the challenge. Remind yourself of all the times He has led you in victory in your past. Look to see what the Lord has put in your hands today, and use this to overcome the enemy.

Fight the good fight of faith!

Q: After you declare your victory and act on your promises, you need to testify of the goodness of God. We want to hear testimonies of your victory over the enemy in your life!!!

Fight to the Finish

Endure.

I just feel burnt out. I feel stretched thin. I need some time. I’m overextended right now. Work’s not going well. My family is making me crazy. I can’t do all of these things that are being asked of me. The list goes on.

Hey, we all make mistakes and say foolish things. To further complicate our lives, we often don’t know when to say yes and when to say no; we confuse good for God and end up doing too much. While these things may be true, we also need to remind ourselves that we must learn to endure. In fact, it could be that our inability or unwillingness to endure is what draws out all of our complaints and murmurings in the first place.

It is safe to assume that endure is not a buzzword in society today. It’s certainly not a popular catch phrase. Can you imagine a prophet of God standing up on New Year’s Eve and proclaiming, “The word of the Lord for 2009 is Endure!” He would be called a false prophet immediately! Especially since it doesn’t even rhyme!

Webster defines endure like this : 1. to undergo (as a hardship) especially without giving in 2. to regard with acceptance or tolerance 3. to continue in the same state 4. to remain firm under suffering or misfortune without yielding

“And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also. Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.” – 2 Tim 2:2-4

Paul was writing his last letter to his spiritual son Timothy. He was encouraging him to hold fast to the gift that was in him and to stay true to God among a church world that was falling into all manner of false religion. He didn’t tell him to avoid hardness or to abstain from difficult tasks. Paul said endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. A soldier! Now I’ve never served in the armed forces, but I have enough sense to know that they don’t coddle you and pamper you. It’s hard. It’s demanding. It’s tough! Maybe we need to learn to be tough when we have to endure.

I’m not saying we lean on the arm of the flesh and trust in our own strength. That’s as foolish as saying I can’t make it; rather I’m saying lean into the Father. Lean into the Grace He has given you. Lean into the Family of God. Find the strength to endure that can only come from the Lord Jesus Christ.

We are praying for change. We are asking God to reveal things to us. We are asking to be trusted with things that are far more precious than silver and gold, and yet we often refuse to endure the process that brings us to God’s ultimate plans. We ask for the Gold Medals of the Kingdom but refuse to train and suffer under the hardships of growth and self-evaluation. We seek the rewards of the treasure but refuse to accept the responsibility of stewardship.

God rewards those who diligently seek Him. Let’s seek Him for a renewed ability to endure, knowing there are great benefits that come with endurance.

My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. – James 1:2-6a

Q: What is it that you are facing right now that you need strength to endure? Are you crumbling under the weight of it, or are you seeking for strength to overcome it?