Are you ready for battle?

Let me tell you a story.

A man decides early one morning to take his lawn chair out and watch the sunrise on the beach. He sits and watches...6:30 rolls around and he continues to sit on the beach, enjoying the morning...oblivious to the war raging around him.

The date: June 6, 1944
The place: Omaha Beach
The event: The Battle of Normandy.

So, is this story far fetched? Tell me dear Friend, did you realize that there is a battle raging all around you?

A battle for your time.
A battle for your attention.
A battle for your soul.

It's a battle that's classified with the UFOs and alien abductions, but this battle rages on.

The battle stems from one moment in time when one thought he was greater than God.
That one deceived many, and those many followed him to the depths.
That one continues to deceive many who follow him to the depths, but they don't work for him, they live an eternal death because of him.

This battle is masked. At times, the realm between physical and spiritual is crossed. At times, a glimpse of the spirit is seen...but for the most part, it remains anonymous. Just another reason to disclaim God and claim Christians as nut jobs.

The Bible calls us to be suited with the full armor of God, and there's a reason for that. We must be shielded since we aren't ready to see a spiritual realm. We aren't ready for the darkness, the terror...And that's why God doesn't let it happen. Some walk into it. Some taunt it. Some are pulled to it, but God protects us. He may remove His hand for a moment, but when we faint in fear, he's there to scoop us back up.

The Bible says, "The Eternal God is our refuge and under are His everlasting arms."
So I'll ask again...are you ready for battle? Because it's all around you.

Demons are fighting for your soul.
Will you let them win?

What to be...?

The world has a way of framing who a person should be. Holly, my roommate introduced me to the saying, "You're unique, just like everyone else," and it's true. Some people go to the extreme to try and be different, and yet others are always following their pursuit.

I'll give you a little example...

I decided in high school that I wanted to be different than everyone else. (This was before plaid was technically "back in style," aka the Dark Ages Two) I went thrift store shopping and found this amazing pair of plaid pants for $6...terrific...I know. So, knowing that no one else has plaid, I wear then with pride...Three months later, I start to spy plaid walking around my school...not on me...and I start to wonder what's going on. Before I know it, Mom's are pulling out the plaid they wore in high school and their daughters are wearing it because it's now "fashionable..." What?! That was MY plaid...

Now, I'm sure the fashion industry didn't see me walking around in my plaid pants and say, "Hey, plaid is rad" or "Don't get mad, get plaid" or "plaid ain't no fad," (I had a shirt my friend made for me that said "don't get mad get plaid, and he had to others that said the other two...) but for some reason, being different doesn't always work.

But the difference lies with the person. Or should I say, inside of the person. As a Christian to be unique is to be in Christ. To be unique is to be everything the world isn't. To be the same is to live with the world's standards. It's not what we do that makes us unique but who you have inside of you. And with Christ as the focal point, you have already been made different. The Bible says that you were wonderfully made and crafted by the God who also entered the womb to save you. You are fearfully and wonderfully made and there is nothing in the world that will make you more unique than Christ.

To be unique is to be courteous.
To be unique is to be a virgin when you're married.
To be unique is to not come from a broken home.
To be unique is to give nothing out of selfish ambition.
To be unique is to be kind.
To be unique is to love your enemies.
To be unique is to have joy.
To be unique is to live selflessly.
To be unique is to live a holy life.

I want to be unique, just like everyone else.

Isaiah 6

My Opa died last week. It was fast. He was there and then he was gone, like a fleeting shadow swallowed by the Son.

The whole week before we were studying Isaiah 6. Isaiah stands before the throne of God.

The train of the LORD's robe fills the temple with smoke because of His glory.

The seraphim's voices cause the earth to shake because of their praise to God.

The unclean are made holy in the eyes of Him who is Holiness Itself.

My Opa is now standing in the throne room of God. He's now seeing the glory and majesty of God for the first time. His voice is joining that of the seraphim in praise to his Maker. He has heard, "Well done, good and faithful servant."

He's finally home, and knowing that, makes all the difference.