Devotional 3 – Know Your Enemy
“For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:12 NLT
“…Don’t be afraid of the enemy! Remember the Lord who is great and glorious, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives and your homes!” Nehemiah 4:14 NLT
In the days of Nehemiah, the Israelites were faced with the threat of attack while they worked to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem. They faced incredible opposition, but Nehemiah had heard from God, and he was determined to continue the important work of rebuilding the
wall around the holy city. He instructed the Israelites to work with one hand and hold a weapon with the other!
Nehemiah was not only a man with a vision, but he was also a man of prayer. His first defense was prayer. When the opposition mocked them for their work on the wall, he prayed, and they kept working. When the armies gathered around them and threats of war loomed, he prayed, and they armed themselves with weapons and tools to do the work. When his enemies tried to trick him into a meeting meant to ambush him, and then tried to deceive him with a letter of lies, God gave him wisdom to see through the tricks and deceit and again he prayed, “…Now strengthen my hands.” Neh 6:9 NIV
Nehemiah faced flesh and blood enemies. He had to make tough decisions, and he was a man of action. But he also knew there was a spiritual war he was fighting, and he fought that war with prayer. Sometimes there is nothing you can do except pray for your family.
I have spent many evenings sitting on my son’s bed with his bible open, reading scripture aloud and praying for his protection when he was out running with the wrong crowd. I have woken up at two or three in the morning with a prompting in my spirit to pray for my struggling adult son who no longer lives with me. I have sat beside my daughter’s hospital bed in ICU after a horse stepped on her jaw and crushed it, whispering in her ear, “He shall cover you with his feathers, under his wings you will find refuge,” (Psalm 91:4) and praying that God would spare her life and she would see no permanent damage.
I have sung songs of worship as I held my mother’s hand while she moved from this life to eternity. I have knelt on the bathroom floor, weeping and praying for my family and their protection and salvation. Instead of reacting, I am learning to pray. Instead of controlling, chasing, arguing, I am learning to pray. Well…. on my good days. Those are the days that I see past the superficial and I ask God to help me see the real issues behind the argument or the anger or the addiction.
Those are the days that I see the real battle: an enemy who wants to destroy my family and my home. An enemy who wants to separate us from the eternal love of God. The father of deception who masterfully weaves his lies to tear down what God is raising up. But like Nehemiah, we can see through the lies. We can ask God to reveal the truth to us. We can remember our purpose and our calling, and we can do the good work. We can be women of action…AND prayer.