Devotional Archives--Victory

January 24, 2005 —

From Victory

It’s funny how old hymns take on increasing meaning as I come to know Christ more intimately. They are full of wonderfully deep words I sang as a child, yet didn’t really understand. Perhaps many adults experience this as they sing those precious, powerful truths.

In my mind, I can hear the twanging voices of the small congregation where I grew up belting out the old hymn: “Hallelujah what a thought! Jesus full salvation brought, Victory, victory. Let the pow’rs of sin assail, Heaven’s grace can never fail, Victory, victory.” Southern gospel style added slurs to the phrases and I can still hear the slightly off key sounds of one dear singer.

“Victory, yes victory; Hallelujah I am free, Jesus gives me victory. Glory, glory, hallelujah! He is all in all to me.”

I loved that hymn as a girl. I liked my dad’s voice hammering out the low notes and the life of a song so joyful.

But looking back I didn’t understand phrases like “Jesus full salvation brought” or “Hallelujah I am free!”

I understood being saved from hell, but not walking in victory.

A few years ago I heard a pastor** say that as Christians we begin from a place of victory, not failure. Once we receive Christ we are set free from all the sin that entangles us. We live from a standpoint of being already perfected in Jesus.

Because of Christ the tag after our name says saint, not sinner. Our whole identity is different:

No longer orphans, we are God’s children. (John 1:12)
No longer inadequate, we are made complete in Christ. (Col. 2:9-18)
No longer condemned, we are free from any charges brought against us. (Romans 8)
No longer afraid, we have power, love, and a sound mind. (2 Tim 1:7)
No longer citizens of a fallen world, our citizenship is in heaven. (Phil 3:20)
No longer apart from God, we are seated with Christ in the heavenlies. (Eph 2:6)
No longer directionless and messy, we are His workmanship created to do good. (Eph. 2:10)***

Each day as we climb out of bed we step to the floor with a God-given identity that proclaims, “victorious”. Because His mercies are new every morning, we begin as perfect—with a clean, pure, holy, forgiven heart.

We never start from behind, working our way up from our faults and failures. Every one of them is crushed and forgotten beneath the beloved feet of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Each moment is new.

And when we mess up again, our Lord wraps His arm around us, whispers, “let’s try it My way next time,” and forgives us so we never have to start from a place of defeat.

Heaven’s grace never fails us. That’s victory.

“Father, help me believe that I walk forward in victory—in the identity of a saint, one saved by Your grace. Help me to remember that I don’t have to play catch-up or work my way out of my faults before I can start living to your glory.”

*Victory by B.E. Warren
**Thought taken from a sermon by Clay Peck
***For more information on your identity in Christ visit Freedom in Christ Ministries at http://www.ficm.org/whoami.htm

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January 31, 2005

Bad Fly Days

Sometimes negative emotions zing about, like nasty flies at a picnic, landing on me and on the very things I’ve prepared to nourish others. I fear their contamination as I struggle to know what to do with them.

In these times I sometimes doubt the very things I was sure God led me to do. Usually, the flies swarm the most important things in my life—like serving my family, home schooling, writing, or trusting God as I live out the life He opens before me.

They gather in a black cloud telling me it’s not worth it. They whisper that the journey is too long and hard, that there’s no guarantee my efforts will render the desired results.

Most of the time when it happens, I take a big ‘ole fly swatter and smash those germy creatures. The flyswatter has a lot of Bible verses written on it—like the ones I shared last week.

Those verses remind me that God chose me, loves me, accepts me, and has a plan for me. They tell me I can live a life close to my Father and that I’ve been created to do good works. They say I don’t have to be afraid and that all things work together for my good.

And on those days, the flies lay in little dark piles, lifeless. They no longer taint my world. A flick of a rag or sweep of the broom and the pesky bugs are gone. I can passionately talk about victory in Jesus—quote every verse, stand bravely upon each promise, and share them with the world.

But sometimes, I feel too tired to even lift the flyswatter. Maybe I’ve pushed down the negatives for a while, tried to ignore them instead of inviting Jesus into my pain and disappointments.

I’ve swallowed those nasty insects and they landed on my heart and polluted it with their infested feet. My insides start to spoil and then the flies buzz all over me.

Or maybe something awful happens and I don’t know how to cope. In these times, I want to burst into tears, crawl under the covers, and never come out. I’m sure you’ve been there.

What do we do with those days? The ones where the flyswatter feels beyond our reach?

Well . . . we have a good cry, maybe whine before our Lord, admit with ravaging vulnerability and honesty that we’re struggling and hurting . . . and then . . .

We ask God to pick up the flyswatter and battle for us!

On our own resources we can’t fight every thing that comes our way. The enemy will whisper lies to us. Legitimate desires will be met with crushing disappointment. We’ll hurt others and ourselves. And others will hurt us. Life can make you want to give up—or at least throw a temper tantrum.

But, the best things in life are beyond our ability, anyway. Things like loving well, raising godly children, and trusting our Heavenly Father can only be accomplished by His power. And He promises it to us. He won the victory at the cross and there He purchased ours.

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February 7, 2005 —

Playing in the Bubbles

At church today our pastor gave a wonderful illustration of what happens when we sin. He said it’s like two sides of a magnet. There’s the attraction of sin, which draws us in—pulling us toward itself. We give in and for a moment sin feels good, but afterwards we’re suddenly repulsed, pushed away, and overcome by guilt.

 His illustration struck a chord with me. How many times have I given into the temptation? I dump my anger on someone else, feed my emotions by purchasing something I couldn’t afford, etc. Most sin begins in a place of legitimate need and because we seek to meet the need there is momentary relief.

Only with sin the relief never lasts.

As soon as I see the crestfallen look on the face of someone I’ve unloaded upon or when I walk out the door of that store where I splurged, the guilt hits. I’m repulsed by the sin I’ve committed—and usually that means I’m repulsed by me—the one who committed the sin.

It’s tempting to wallow there, overcome by my inability to live victoriously. I’m angry with myself for hurting others and it is easy to dissolve into rain clouds of discouragement, thinking I’ll never change.

That’s where the enemy wants me to stay—in a puddle of despair.

The Lord has a different way. My pastor pointed us to I John, chapter one. This scripture tells us that we all sin and if we say we don’t, we’re lying! But then we receive the good news in I John 1:9. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from unrighteousness.” (NIV)

Confession pushes away the clouds that keep us in our wet, muddy puddle of despair. When we seek His forgiveness, our Lord reaches down in His love and redeems us from our sins and guilt.

It isn’t always easy to say, “I’m sorry.” But when we confess our sins to God, He removes them as far as the east is from the west. His healing breath blows a way the muddy stains and His sunshine of forgiveness dries the water we’ve wallowed in.

There’s no puddle left, because God cleaned it up.

However, as Christians we can create and live in a virtual puddle—a puddle of our imagination. It’s not really there, but we believe it is. So we stay in the puddle.

The first way we do this is by clinging to pride. Pride ties our tongues in knots and excuses or accusations fly from our mouth instead of confession. (Or at least they hide in our heart.) We tenaciously hold onto our sin rather than releasing it into our Father’s hands.

Sometimes we think we’re not really so bad and therefore don’t need confession. But pride is often sneaky. Sometimes, it says we don’t deserve forgiveness, therefore, we shouldn’t ask.

Either excuse goes back to a prideful, self-serving attitude. What we’re saying is that Jesus’ sacrifice wasn’t for us—either we don’t need it or it wasn’t strong enough. When pride controls our response to sin, confession doesn’t happen and we think we can’t climb out of the puddle that soils our souls.

The second way to stay in the puddle is to see ourselves as wallowing and muddy, when in reality, the good Lord has dried up the puddle, planted grass, and dumped us in the bathtub of His forgiveness. The Old hymn, “Victory in Jesus”** says it this way, “He plunged me to victory, beneath the healing flood.”

One of the enemy’s favorite deceptions is to make us forget the power of the plunge. The old devil comes along with a paintbrush, draws a puddle around our feet, splatters muddy brown spots all over us, and we think we’re still blemished.

The reality, however, is that the enemy knows it’s just disappearing ink he’s using. The guilt drawings aren’t really there. Once you’ve been in the bathtub and used God’s special soap, they just don’t stick. So don’t believe that they do!

Ask the Lord to help you stand in the truth that you are forgiven and pure. When the enemy appears, fake ink in hand, just point to the bathtub, where you sit clean and shining and playing in the bubbles.

Father, cleanse me of pride. Teach me to confess my sins quickly. Remind me that I’m pure and forgiven, living in a bubble bath, not a puddle.

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February 14, 2005

Legacy of Victory

Christ’s legacy is victory. Victory over sin. Victory over death. Victory over the powers of darkness. And He ushered in a new covenant that gives US His legacy. The Bible says that Christ conquered and made you and me victorious as well.

Only sometimes I don’t feel victorious.

And today I’m asking why.

The word victory implies freedom from an enemy. The Bible says Jesus took me from Satan’s dark domain and placed me in God’s marvelous kingdom of light. Yet, there are days I can quote the scriptures and sing the songs, but I still feel beat-up. I know God has promised victory, but I don’t see it. Perhaps you’ve felt that way, too.

Just because we’re in the King’s army and the final outcome is assured, doesn’t mean we aren’t still in the fight. Sometimes the clashing swords of the enemy pierce our tender places.

False accusations, failings, hard times poke at us, striking at the edges of our armor. Disappointment, unmet expectations, and unfulfilled dreams, like boulders flung from a catapult, rain upon us until we stagger, barely able to stand.

Other times it’s not the intensity of the battle that beats us up, it the length. Difficult circumstances continue for years and we’re worn-out.

There are days, however, we forget there is a war. We think our every day circumstances are just that and we wonder why we feel so tired. We forget that the daily things we do are frontline work in enemy territory.

Serving with diligence and integrity in our jobs or teaching our children of the love of Christ isn’t just ordinary living. It is here we fight the most important battle—showing Christ to our family, friends, and co-workers. Do we really believe it will go unnoticed by the enemy?

It’s easy to read the Bible that says Jesus won the victory. But it can be very hard to feel like a winner. It’s during these times that our need for Jesus is often most obvious.

Living victoriously has a lot to do with relationship with the Commander. When we drink deeply of Christ’s love, the arrows of the battle don’t pierce quite so far. The rocks may pound us, but they don’t knock us out.

When the mortar picks up we can stand there, dazed, and wonder what’s happening or we can run to my Lord’s arms and talk about the battle. It’s when we tell Him everything we’re feeling and thinking that we experience His love most deeply.

The other day a friend and I joked, asking if God allows whining. Our conclusion was that the Lord knows our every thought and emotion, so we might as well live openly before Him.

Because he is both Best Friend and Commanding Officer, communication with our God is vital. When we don’t tell our Best Friend all that is there, it is as if we cut the phone line between us and can’t receive the His comfort. It is also easy to ignore our Commanding Officer’s marching orders—we don’t even hear them, because the reception is broken.

How can we fight this raging battle with confidence when we haven’t debriefed with our Leader? How can we feel our heart is safe when we haven’t shared it with our Best Friend?

For most of us to hold up in battle, our heart needs to be known, understood, and embraced. Thankfully, God is the Best Friend ever. He tenderly cares for our heart. Even when we don’t pick up the phone, He keeps calling. And, like a wise general, He makes sure his communications don’t get waylaid.

Our God, always present, reaches out to us. When we surrender to His care we can walk forward despite the exploding shells all around. We know He is there—right beside us, covering us with His own body, wrapping His arms around us.

Pick up the phone today. Victory is experienced in relationship with the Commander-in-Chief, Who is also our most trustworthy Friend.

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February 21, 2005 —

A Victory Diary

Dear Reader,

Instead of the normal devotional, I feel drawn to write you a letter this week. Next week I will return to the shorter, devotional format. This post is entitled, “A Victory Diary” because I want to share about the struggles of the last month while writing about victory, as well as ways the Lord met and helped me face the battles that came. This is longer than you usually receive and you may want to consider reading it when you have a few minutes of quiet.

While penning the last four devotions, I sought to live out the thoughts, standing on the truth of His Word, asking God to grab the flyswatter, being honest before Him, and journaling and praying. But, it was one of those months when I repeatedly got hit. Here are some of the ways I did battle. They are shared with the hope they may help you, too.

The first thing I needed to do was to simply recognize there was a battle! It occurred to me, after sloshing through several difficult days, that perhaps the enemy didn’t want me to feel victorious—that maybe writing about victory got his negative attention. It was quite possible that the vague sense of sadness and those tears so close to the surface were an attack.

I’ve done a lot of battle—fought hard with the sword of Scripture, using the truth God gave me to combat the lies the enemy fed my mind. I’ve learned to recognize those frontal attacks and to fight back. The Word says to resist the devil and he will flee, and I’ve discovered I can stand on truth found in God’s word. But the early attack this month was subtle. There weren’t specific lies to battle or specific situations to face.

So, I did what every spiritual person would do—I whined. Okay, so maybe it wasn’t choice number one on the list of how to conquer the enemy, but it’s what happened. And instead of reprimanding, the Lord heard my plea. I told Him I needed more attention from both Him and my husband, and the Good Lord surprised me with a week of unexpected gifts of His care.

It is good to admit our needs—to embrace the fact that we desperately need our Lord!

You’d think after He loved me so well that I would be strong, but it was a mere matter of days before getting hit again. This time it was the whole inadequacy thing. One night, while trying to sleep, thoughts bombarded me of all I must be doing wrong in homeschooling. It started with several conversations over the week with other moms who approach homeschooling differently than I do—and my self-confidence waned and I doubted my choices. 

Instead of trusting that God was working in our academics, I tossed and turned, whispering prayers, but not shaking my panic. (You’d think I’d be over this after 9 years of homeschooling!) Finally, I got up, made a cup of chamomile tea, climbed into the recliner, and picked up a Christian novel. It was full of the exact little nuggets needed to get my eyes off of myself and onto the amazing God who loves us and prepares the way before us. Making the choice to step away from negative thoughts and pursue something that made me think about God went a long way toward a peaceful (though short) rest.

The struggle didn’t stop, however. The Lord helped me in a couple of very practical ways. First, He put it on my heart to walk in the sunshine. There is scientific proof that being in the sunshine and getting exercise can uplift one’s mood. My husband walked with me and that gave an added blessing—an opportunity to get away from the demands of life and talk while we beat the path around the neighborhood.

Then, that weekend I made the hard choice to stay home from some of the children’s activities. I felt drawn to the recliner for some R&R. I set aside the work and just entered into the Lord’s rest. I read, made homemade soup, visited with loved ones, and went to bed early. I felt renewed by the extra time I took to simply be.

And guess what? Another round hit the next day! Hard! Fear, grief, self-doubt, and a bunch of old lies from the enemy dumped on me, like a truckload of manure. I prayed, journaled, and sought any nugget of truth the Lord offered. The Lord gave me an opportunity for a prayer time with loved ones and my heart was encouraged as my sister-in-law prayed out loud just for me.

We need community in this battle. We need to tell trusted friends how we feel and to vulnerably ask for prayer. As my dear sister-in-law sought the Lord on my behalf, I stepped back into the truth God gave me years ago and prayed again, confessing sin, giving Him my fear and doubt, and praying with conviction, “Satan, in the name of Jesus, in the power of the blood that He shed for me and that won the victory, I command you to go.”

Throughout life we must return again and again to the truths the Lord has given. It isn’t a one-time thing, but it becomes more natural to battle the lies the enemy hurls at us as we chose to stand the truth of the Bible each time the opportunity presents itself.

Another simple thing that helps during battle is praise music. It isn’t hard to put on a worship CD while cooking breakfast or dinner, and the verses that glorify God can help us look away from our problems and into the loving eyes of our savior. Sometimes I work with a little whispered song dropping from my lips, and other times I’ve been caught singing at the top of my lungs, signing the words, or dancing before my God. There is victory in worship.

This weekend I entered another round of battle. As friends and loved ones prayed, I found the courage to obey God’s direction in this particular situation. My husband prayed with me as I prayerfully fought the fear I felt. Then, focused on the Lord’s love, I thought of how He holds our hurts in His nail-scarred hands and I made peace with the pain.

It was late by the time I finished this process, but instead of going right to bed, I told the Lord I just wanted to be held by Him. I pulled a recliner into the middle of the living so I could see the cross I’d hung in a high window. I plugged in the lights taped around the cross and turned off the overhead lights. Then, I climbed into the recliner, snuggled under a blanket, just looked at the cross, and rested.

It’s been a weird month of attacks from the evil one—but God worked even that for His good. You, my readers, didn’t need platitudes or pie in the sky devotions, but words written in the real world where we all live—a world that often comes with disappointment and pain. And because I was honored enough to write about victory from a place of battle, I know I grew and learned more of how to fight. I pray you were encouraged as well as I shared the journey.

This month was not the most intense battle I’ve lived through. There have been others that sent me seeking outside help. Some of the best help I’ve received has come from praying women, women who’ve learned to walk in the freedom of Christ and who are vulnerable and willing to admit their needs and mistakes and to confront mine.

So, I encourage you to ask our Father to show you how to live victoriously today. It may be something as simple as nurturing your heart with a good book, taking a walk in the sunshine, cranking the praise music, or saying, “in the name of Jesus, Satan leave me alone!”

Or . . . it may include crying the tears that need to be cried—pouring your heart out before your Father, asking for prayer from your loved ones, or being brave enough to ask for help from people further on the journey than you are.

No matter what, there is no need to fear the battle. Christ won the victory, and He gave us His Holy Spirit who comforts us, ministers to our wounds, and leads us to the resources we need in this war.

May I pray for you?

Father God, Most Holy and Loving One,

Thank you for revealing Yourself to us. Thank you for freedom in Christ and victory over the evil one. Please teach us to walk in courage and help us believe that You have already rescued us from the world of darkness and placed us in Your kingdom of light, peace, and joy. Teach us to live as Your children and not as slaves to a master of sin and despair.

You know the hurts of those reading right now. We all need Your special touch. We need Your truth. We ask that You would stand between us and the deception of the enemy and that You would set us free from the lies he’s led us to believe.

We thank You that You know each of us intimately. You know each need, each tear, each fear, and each hardship. Lead us to the scriptures, choices, and people that will encourage and nurture our heart.

And most of all, give us Yourself. Reveal the depth of Your love and care. Show us Your glory and power. With Your mighty right arm wipe away the fog of untruth and unbelief that clouds our paths and puts a smoke screen between You and us. Open our hearts and eyes to see how close You are and give us the courage to reach for Your hand.

In Jesus’ name, Amen
Love,
Paula

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