Straight out of a Halloween movie.  Creepy, crawly, nasty.  Everywhere you look.  Overwhelming numbers. They’re on the verge of world domination.  We are under siege.  We’re barely holding our own.

Our weapons are a shop vac and tissues which we’re using with great dedication and bravery.  Our not-yet-sealed up under construction house appears to be the destination of every stink bug in the county.  Daily vacuuming of the walls and windows keeps the numbers down for approximately 10 minutes.  And the ones that haven’t found the new house, have settled for our RV trailer where they are met with a determined woman with tissues.  Don’t you hate it when you put on a pair of pants only to find that you’re not the only occupant of said pants?!  Speed is key in remedying this situation.  Fortunately, the only audience for this quick maneuver of pants removal was my husband.  Disgusting is when you’re combing your hair and notice movement on your shirt in the mirror.  Then there was the moving bump inside my gloves while I was wearing them…

We just keep on keeping on.  We can’t let up or give up.  No matter how discouraging it is.  There’s no end to them, but we must keep fighting.  No matter how repulsive, nightmarish, and disgusting, we can’t retreat.  We have to soldier on.

These daily skirmishes remind me of another battle.  A battle far more pivotal than fighting bug infestations.  This battle is determining the quality and outcome of our lives.   The conflict is discouraging, taxing, unending.  Just when we seem to make headway, a setback looms.  We make progress only to be ambushed by a new attack.

We are in a battle in the spiritual realm.  Our emotions, minds, attitudes, and souls are under siege.  We have a cruel and powerful enemy on the outside who desires our harm.  And we are our own enemy on the inside.  We must fight negative thoughts, desires, and attitudes all day long.  None of us are up to this battle unaided.  Eventually, we will cave if we are isolated.  We need re-enforcements.  God knew we are outnumbered and under-equipped so he provided help.  

He alerts us to our dire situation so we can combat the darkness inside and out.  He equips us for combat when we read the Bible.  God’s truth is our impenetrable defense.  By holding tightly to Truth, we disarm what is harmful.  Harmful lies about our worth, our sins, our future are exposed and rejected.  We are shielded from discouragement, fear, and paralysis by our faith in a God who is kind, loving and working everything together for our good.  Our emotions and desires are protected by purity that comes from Christ himself.  Knowing our God has wiped out our offenses gives us peace of mind.  Knowing God’s thoughts from the Bible ensures we are ready to meet attacks.

Any soldier who is separated from his company is vulnerable.  We are stronger when we are in the company of others who are marching in the same direction.  They will come alongside to carry our pack when we are tired and we will carry theirs when they are weak.  They will have our back in an ambush and we will watch out for them.

How goes the war on your front?  Need to borrow a shop vac?  Got tissues?

“Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.  Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.  For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies…Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness…In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”  Ephesians 6:10-17

“Carry each other’s burdens…” Galatians 6:2

“When you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else.  Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away.  These desires give birth to sinful actions.”  James 1:13-15