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As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.
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These are some great books to encourage you.
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Battle Ready?
Posted on Sunday, May 11 @ 17:38:25 PDT by GregPaskal |
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Can you imagine if General George S. Patton, commander of the Third Army in WWII, simply marched his troops into battle with no battle plan? The consequences would have been disastrous. Yet as Christians, we often lead our lives in a state of reactionary living, giving little thought to the details of the battle we face every day. Like heading into battle without a plan, being unprepared or worse unaware as Christians of the battle we are in may lead to our destruction. Recently flying out of Dallas Fort Worth Airport to a conference in Orlando, I encountered such a situation.
I routinely get to the airport a bit early and pick out a magazine to read while waiting for my flight. Six months had passed since I last flew and boy had things changed. Shortly after checking in, I passed into the terminal waiting area where many snack shops and magazine racks were found. Entering one such shop, I wandered to the magazine area and started to look for the computer magazines. "Where are they?" I thought. They're not typically this difficult to find. Instead of computer magazines, a barrage of half dressed women on magazines I had no business looking at stared back. All I could do was turn away, knowing these were not images the Lord wanted to fill my mind. "I must be looking in the wrong section" I thought, Moving to the next rack, I looked and just as in the first, case, there seemed to be no computer magazines at all. Finally, I found the few computer and technology magazines mixed with other trashy magazines all around, "I give up, this was to much" and out the store I went as if being pursued by Devil himself. Not only did I feel embarrassed, but also irritated that the computer magazines that most interested me, were now being used to ensnare men into the world of pornography.
In retrospect, I wondered if I could have been more prepared. Had I put a plan in place when the enemy came knocking with his temptations and diversions? The answer was both "yes" and "no". I did know this was not what the Lord wanted me to look at yet I decided to take another look for the computer magazines instead of realizing I was being tempted by the enemy. The Bible has some very clear instructions when being temped in sexual sin...
Now then, my sons, listen to me; pay attention to what I say. Do not let your heart turn to her ways or stray into her paths. Many are the victims she has brought down; her slain are a mighty throng. Her house is a highway to the grave, leading down to the chambers of death. - Prov. 7:24-27
Flee from sexual immorality - 1 Cor 6:18
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. – Heb 12:1
Consider your life, do you have a battle plan in place? How would you have reacted to the airport situation? Would you have responded differently if you were alone? Does Satan have a target painted on your back, ready to hit you when you're not expecting it?
Just like General Patton, stop and consider what your battle plan is under the assault of lust and pornography. In today's Internet world, we are bound to encounter material the Lord would not desire to enter your minds. This is something we must realize as many of our professions and daily lives bring exposure to the web.
As Christian men, it's critical to have a handful of men that we can be completely honest with. Strategize and plan with each other how you'll react when confronted with images and material God would not want to be part of your life. Be prepared, because whether you acknowledge it or not, your in a fight for your life, a fight for your family, a fight for those God has plans for your to minister too. Equally, Satan has a plan to keep you from succeeding in Gods plans. Get prepared!
Oh, and one last thing, as far as the computer magazines go, I chose a bottle of water and bag of pretzels and decided to write you about this instead.
May the Lord direct your steps as we battle together in hopes to bring as many as we can with us into eternity. There's the General's voice now, I can hear Him saying, "Squad attention! Forward march!"
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Average Score: 4.41
Votes: 24
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Re: Battle Ready? (Score: 1)
by JPFAgapeU (JPFAgapeU@aol.com) on Thursday, July 29 @ 18:06:52 PDT
(User Info | Journal) http://www.worldoikos.net | To focus on the environment around the message for a moment, when I travel I usually pack a book or two that I know will capture my interest for the duration of the trip. I still tend to peruse the magazine racks and like yourself, usually get a tech mag of some kind. Faced with the situation you find yourself in, I would probably have searched out what books they had. Failing that, like you, I would have grabbed a snack (if anything) and contented myself with what I brought along.
But I hear your message and agree with you. I realized while reading your article that I need to reexamine my battle plan... or rather, I need to re-commit to the plan that helped me break free of the specific sin your article discussed.
My plan has been to wake at 5:00am, regardless of when I went to bed, and read the Bible. I have a reading plan I'm following. Then I read a portion of a bible study (I started this plan while going through Purpose Driven Life) and end it with prayer. Part of that prayer is to journal what I'm praying about. I also keep a bible on or near me at all times. Given the amount of Bible's now available online and for PDAs it's easy to do. I also have three men to whom I'm accountable. I have given each of them the right and duty to ask me how I'm doing, and (this is very important) to look me in the eye and ask if I'm telling the truth...and they do! Where I tend to sluff off is the journaling and sometimes directed bible study. Thanks for reminding me that this really is a war we're fighting, and we need to stay in communication with the Commander. |
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