II Timothy 2:3 (NAS) Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.
We are soldiers of Jesus Christ. (Have you ever thought about that?) Everyone has hardships. Soldiers take some hard knocks. Spiritual Warfare is real!
It is kind of like we are playing on a football team and we look good…but there is another team on the field. (spiritual attack, discouragement, negative thoughts, etc.)
The football team my daughter Zoe cheers for looks great, but they still lost a recent game 74-0. There was another team on the field.
Have you ever heard this phrase…
“From the day of your birth, till you ride in your hearse, things are never so bad, that they couldn’t get worse.”
Part of why Paul wrote I and II Timothy… is because Timothy needed encouragement. Yes. Sometimes things are bad. Sometimes we lose a battle.
Speaking of battles, in the church I grew up in, the song I remember the most is, “Onward Christian Soldiers, Marching As to War!” However, even though we sang about war, all we ever marched to was the potluck, or the Christmas chili and pie feed.
I was in a group of youth who met with the pastor of my church for a time, and you know what we did? Vision for the Kingdom? NO. We collected stamps.
What a missed opportunity for the Kingdom. I wish my pastor had cast vision for, “Doing the Stuff.” People need Jesus. They need hope, and Christian community!
And sometimes things get difficult.
We have to keep perspective, and keep the attitude, “Don’t quit.” Why? Because we’re soldiers of Jesus Christ! We’re in a battle—so keep fighting! Keep moving forward in your Christian walk. Keep reaching out. Keep loving.
We get to see people saved. We get to see baptisms. We get to see lives change and transform right before our eyes. There is nothing like it!
Yes, there may be some hardship. Yes, we are in a battle!
It is worth it! Lives are changing every day.
Blessings,
Thora
Thora–now you are being the encouraging “cheerleader”(leading w/a battlecry) & you know regardless of the score how they scream & jump & kick their little hearts out. I love your reality about the situation, your honesty, your faith from a child & your realistic eye on the war but also on the prize & the fruit (there are giant grapes & milk & honey in the land)!
As I elder, I see how weak I really am, so I lean on Him via prayer for everything, my Man of War, and my Invincible army (Exodus 15:3 & Habakkuk 3:17-19 Amp.), my Everything…..
Thanks for the battle cry to continue in the reality.
Feeling compelled to put on armor and pick up the sword!