I DECLARE WAAAAAAAAR (Part 3- No Sticks, No Stones)

This is a bloody war we are fighting.  The attacks are constant and they are brutal but this is not the warfare of man.  What we stand to lose is far more significant than our mere mortal lives.  If you took everything in this life from the time you are born until the time you die it would amount to just the blink of an eye compared to eternity.  It is eternity that we fight for.  We struggle for the victory on Earth but once we win and our mortal bodies are committed to the ground, we literally have forever to claim our reward. This is MAJOR but you would never know it if you looked at the lives of most Christians. 


I'm just going to be blunt, we are petty.  Ok, I am petty most of the time (feel better now?  I will just talk about myself).  I am engrossed in things like my wardrobe, my house, stupid disagreements, my bills, my job and often my hair (or the lack of it growing around the edges).  I'm a great a Christian the 8% of the time everything else in my life is going according to my plans.  The other 92% of the time, I'm putting down my bible, rolling up my sleeves and trying to work something out on my own (= Epic Fail!).  If you think about the fact that we are at war with a enemy that never eats, never sleeps and is ALWAYS trying to get us, this is actually kinda crazy but it is the life of most Christians.  While the devil is plotting and strategizing, we are at home pouting because of a recent disagreement with another church member *Blank Stare*  What in the world kind of soldiers take a break from the battle (while the battle is still going on) to pout or be angry or depressed?  I mean really try to imagine if this were a battle taking place on a physical battle ground, would you really have time to be soooo petty? 


But therein lies the rub, this is not a battlefield that can be seen with human eyes. The war that we are engaged in is a spiritual war but since some of us have the spiritual IQ of a really smart brick, we can't even see it. The following is a VERY important point: Almost everything in this life is a distraction which is meant to  snatch our focus from what really matters.  Just let that sink in. The ultimate purpose of the lives of Christians is to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ and produce new followers of Christ.  EVERYTHING else in life should be viewed as a means to that end.  Most people will not accept this but most people are not REAL Christians.  Most people are generic Christians who like the term but don't have a clue what it means to follow the example of Jesus Christ.  And because we don't nurture our spirits with the word of God (uh, yes that would be the bible) and communication with God (prayer), we are too weak to fight the spiritual war that is being waged against us. In fact we are too weak to even perceive it.  We eat all the time (instead of fasting which is necessary), talk to our friends, watch TV, shop, go to work, listen to crazy music and a number of other things which make us even weaker.

I am typing all of these words onto the screen but you will never be able to understand what I am talking about if you don't start doing some things to get stronger in the spirit.  I gave you guidelines for communicating with God in past posts and whether you use them or not you MUST pray.  I try to break down the bible for you with my own interpretations and other published translations.  Whether you use these materials or not, you must read the bible, understand it and learn to apply it.  I have talked about the hazards of hanging out with ignorant people but it is up to you to clean up your life.  You need to take a pause before I tell you how to fight this war because the truth is you will NOT be able to fight if you don't get some of this basic stuff in order.  Are you really ready or do you need a minute?