Daily Devotional: 5/4/2018 MAY THE 4TH BE WITH YOU

 "Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses." 1 Timothy 6:12.

"Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize," (1 Corinthians 9:24-27). Our life is a constant war between God and the Devil. Every day is a new battle. We have to stand firm against the devil and not give into his temptations. We have to constantly be training and growing in our strength. We have to train the same way an Olympic athlete trains for the Olympics. They train everyday and go through numerous rigorous training sessions day in and day out. Their daily routine is eat, sleep, train. They train for the gold medal. They train for a momentary recognition. Yes, there are Olympic athletes that will be remembered for ever like Michael Phelps, Usain Bolt, Jim Thorpe, Wilma Rudolph, and so much more. But there are so many athletes that have won a Gold Medal, and now that they are done have a desk job like a normal person and no one even knows they won that Gold Medal. A Gold Medal only lasts for four years until someone else wins that event. We are training for a bigger medal, that is the medal of eternal life with God in heaven. We have to be ready for when the devil tries to tempt us and Jesus set that example several times, especially in Matthew 4. He was ready with scripture and stood firm. We are constantly fighting the good fight. We already know who wins the war, we just have to show up for the battles and stand on the front line ready for when shots are fired. Mother Teresa once said "There is nothing more calming in difficult moments than knowing there's some one fighting with you." God is right there next to us on the front line. God is our Five-Star General. He is different from every other Five-Star General, he does not only devise the plan but he is on the front line with us. He is right next to us in battle every day. He does not take a day off. He is always there for us, constantly making sure we are safe and that we are not tempted with more than we can handle. He has paved a path for us, he has made a battle plan for us; but instead of sitting back and watching the battle he is right there next to us holding our hand and helping with come out in victory. There are so many people in the Bible that we can learn from that fought the good fight. Jesus is the perfect example, but there are other people too that we can learn from like Moses, Joshua, Peter, Daniel, David, Paul and so much more. Paul wrote in his second letter to Timothy, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept my faith," (2 Timothy 4:7). Paul, before Jesus, was one of the worst people in the world; which he was not shy to say (1 Timothy 1:15). Paul was the definition of starting from the bottom and making it to the top. Paul persecuted and killed many Christians for fun, he treated it like a sport. He then become one of the most powerful and influential Christians of all time. He fought the good fight. He was not shy of his faith, he preached the Word and lived what he preached. He kept his faith, even though he was arrested on numerous occasions and was persecuted for what he believed. He stood firm and knew that he had God on his side. We can and should do the same. We live in a very dark world and we face the darkness on a daily basis. There is no escaping the darkness and all that it brings, but the good news is that we have the Light on our side. That light is more powerful than we can ever imagine and it can shatter any darkness that is encounters. We have to train and grow strong in our faith daily. We have to have a consistent quiet time. We have to pray daily, talk to our Heavenly Father and our Five-Star General. We have to talk and discuss the plans of each day's battles. We have to talk to him about life, and what we need, and just grow in our relationship with him. The more we talk with him it will be easier to understand and follow his plans on a daily basis. S. D. Gordon once said, "Prayer is repeating the victor's name (Jesus) into the ears of Satan and insisting on his retreat." We have to read his Word. His Word is the eternal playbook for everything that we are and will go through in life. His Scripture is more powerful than any weapon man can every make. We have to be equipped and ready to use scripture in defense. Continue to fight the good fight, be equipped for battle. It will all be worth it in the end. And May the 4th be with you. 

Lord I pray and thank you for all you do. Thank you for fighting on the front line with us on a daily basis. Thank you for the your Word that not only give us courage and your love, but is the battle plans and the playbook that never goes out of style. The playbook that has offensive and defensive plays that the opponent can never out do. You truly are an amazing Father and General and we do not deserve you. I pray all this in Jesus's name, Amen.

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