If you’re a Christian you have at least heard the word disciple. Hopefully you know enough of what a disciple is supposed to be, that you strive to truly be a disciple of Christ. Something that I found a little surprising as I looked at various resources to confirm what my memory told me, was that my commentaries and my study Bibles did not show the definition of the word disciple. I had to look at “Vine’s Concise Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words” to actually find the Greek word and definition to that word. Just so you’ll be impressed; the Greek word translated disciple is the word mathetes.

Most of us tend to associate the word disciple with “discipline”, and there certainly is a need for discipline in living for Jesus. However, the word disciple doesn’t come from a Greek word meaning discipline. The Greek Word mathetes means “a learner” (Strongs 3101 should you care). I hope that as soon as you saw the meaning your mind began racing with all the ways this applies to us as “learners” of Christ.

If you are married, or ever wish to be, you have hopefully read Ephesians 5:22-33. If not, please take a moment to do so, I’ll wait right here.

OK, I will assume you have read the Scripture as of now. If you’re a husband or hope to be one, I hope you payed special attention to verses 28, 29 and 33. The primary command to a husband is to LOVE his wife. Not only to love her, but love her as Christ loved the Church. You are the bride of Christ, if indeed you are in the Church. Christ showed His love for you by giving of Himself to the point of death upon the cross to pay for your sins. That’s love my friend, giving of yourself and putting the one you love before yourself. I would like to assume that every married Christian knows that the Christian marriage is to be an example, even a “type” of the Church’s relationship with Christ (Though I want to go off on a tangent about the reality of most Christian marriages and the divorce rate, etc., I will refrain).

So what is the “secret” I know about staying in love? A pretty simple and obvious one I suppose by now. If a husband wants to stay in love with his wife, he needs to become a learner of his wife. He should strive to know her a little more every day. Hopefully, (here is where it helps for the wife to be interesting) the more you know her, the more you love her.

The correlation to our walk and love for God should be obvious. If you struggle in your relationship with Jesus, allow me to ask you; “are you a learner of Jesus”? If you will read Paul’s Epistles to the Church, you will notice that he always assumes that there is a continual desire to learn more of God. Read Colossians 1 for instance with this in mind.

What causes most marriages to grow stale? I don’t know! I’ve never been married! I would guess however, that it is much the same as our relationship with Jesus. When you grow stagnant in relationship, most start looking elsewhere to “supplement” the boredom. Which of course erodes the stagnant relationship even further.

To sum all this up: The secret to staying in love with Jesus is; to always be learning more of Jesus. Become a full-time professional student of Jesus. He never gets boring! The more you learn of Him, the more you love Him and want to learn more. I have been a Christian for 21 years and I can say that for myself, every time I grew cold in my relationship with Jesus, I had started to look elsewhere. How do you rekindle the fire of love from the ashes of stagnant love? You start over. You become a Learner of Jesus once again. You go back to why you fell in love to begin with. I promise you this much, if you make the effort to learn about Him, you will find the excitement again. Go ahead, open your Bible to Colossians or 1 John or anywhere else and learn more about Jesus. He will meet you more than halfway. As you become a “Learner of Jesus” you will become a “Lover of Jesus”.

Allow me to use this modern type of crime to paint an analogy in the spirit realm. When you obeyed the Gospel and became a Child of God, you were given a new identity in the Spirit. Among other things, this new identity comes with authority and power in the Spirit. This new identity gives you authority and power over demons, over sickness and over temptation.

WARNING! Beware: of Identity Theft! There is an Identity Thief who relentlessly attempts to steal your identity. By stealing your identity he steals your authority and power. He steals your victory over temptations and trials. Ultimately he may even steal your salvation. It is so easy to become so like the culture around us that we can no longer even be identified as a Christian, except by our claim to be one. The enemy of your soul wants nothing more than your total spiritual bankruptcy. He wants to steal your identity as a Child of God and all that comes with that identity. He will use the cares of life. He will use your slips and failings. He will use your friends and family. He will use your co-workers and career. In short, he will use anyone and anything to steal your identity! Beware Identity Theft!

Have you been born again of water and Spirit? Have you become a new creature in Christ? Have you received your new identity as a Child of God? Then guard your identity with diligence! Do everything in your power to guard who and what you are as His Child. You have power and authority over your enemy. Use that power and authority and fight him tooth and nail. Don’t let your identity be stolen! Don’t forget who you are and what you have as a Christian. Fight the good fight. Keep your identity intact and show the world around you what a Child of God is.

That’s were the excitement is as far as I’m concerned. Imagine, sitting on a 1000 lb plus bull that is furious with you for being on him and he is determined to get you OFF. You have two connections to hang on with; the strap and your spurs. The good news is you only have to hang on for 8 seconds. The bad news is, that can be a mighty long 8 seconds.

As Christians we also have a “bull” or “bronc” to ride. You may think I am referring to the “Devil”, but actually I am referring to a much more difficult “beast”. I know, I know, the devil is the enemy of our soul. Very true and he is our enemy. He may even have horns. However, Satan is not the beast we ride day in and out. In fact since we have authority over him and his minions, he just doesn’t have the power to “buck” us off.

The every day, biggest “bull” we have to ride is simply called “life”. Life can throw so much at us in just one day that if we are not careful it can throw us in the dirt. In the Rodeo the Cowboy has to hang on for 8 seconds to beat the bull. However, if the bull wins and throws the Cowboy in the dirt, all is not lost. For the Cowboy can get up, dust himself off and ride again.

It would be nice, if in “life” we only had to deal with 8 seconds of trouble trying to “buck us off”. Of course that is not the case. The fact is you may have things you have to “ride” for days, weeks, months or yes, even years. In Luke Chapter Eight, Jesus told a parable about a Sower Who sowed the seed of the Word. Part of this parable speaks of those who “…are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.” (Luke 8:14 NKJV)

Let’s face it, there are times when the problems of life are overwhelming. One of my previous Pastors, Mark Morgan, always says that you will be tested in these areas of life: your health, your wealth, your family. I have found that to be so true. I have experienced all three at the same time in recent months. If I allow myself to focus on my financial problems, I frankly feel like losing hope and giving up. But I wasn’t raised to be a quitter and my God is no quitter. So what must I do? I’ve got to Cowboy up and get back on that bull called life everyday, and I don’t wont to just ride, I want to spur that bull called “life”.

In my opinion, the easiest way to be “thrown” by the problems of life is to focus on the weeks, months, years. My profound suggestion is to break life up into segments, known as a “day”. I know, really wise and profound. Here’s my point; focus on riding that bull called life one day at a time. On days that life “throws” you don’t give up, Cowboy up and the next day get back on that Bull and ride him Cowboy! So get your spurs on and pull your hat down good. Let’s Cowboy up in this Rodeo called “Life” and Ride ‘em Cowboy!

The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads This blog is doing awesome!.

Crunchy numbers

The Leaning Tower of Pisa has 296 steps to reach the top. This blog was viewed about 1,100 times in 2010. If those were steps, it would have climbed the Leaning Tower of Pisa 4 times

In 2010, there were 19 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 64 posts.

The busiest day of the year was May 3rd with 33 views. The most popular post that day was The Perfect Will of God?….

Where did they come from?

The top referring sites in 2010 were facebook.com, en.search.wordpress.com, r1rk9np7bpcsfoeekl0khkd2juj27q3o.a.friendconnect.gmodules.com, cdnclipper.wordpress.com, and apostolicnews.org.

Some visitors came searching, mostly for darren shane worlow, darren worlow, when your promise has died, why gehazi could not revive the son of this woman, and 2 kings 4 8-37 what to do when your promise dies.

Attractions in 2010

These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.

The Perfect Will of God?… May 2010
3 comments

When Your Promise Dies November 2009
7 comments

2010: A Year of Priorities January 2010
2 comments

I am what I am. April 2010

Forgive Me When I Whine June 2010

Now there were certain Greeks among those who came up to worship at the feast. Then they came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.”

Philip came and told Andrew, and in turn Andrew and Philip told Jesus.

But Jesus answered them, saying, “The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified. Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor. John 12:20-26 NKJV

There is so much insight into what our mindset should be as Christians, contained in this short passage of Scripture. I believe most of us desire to be fruitful for God, to be used by Him. The biggest obstacle to our being fruitful is usually our ego. One of the amazing things about farming is that one grain or seed can produce so much fruit. However, the only way that fruit can be produced is for the seed to first be buried and for it to die.

Likewise the only way for us to be fruitful for God, is for us to die. Our ego must die. Our desire for accolades must die. Perhaps most importantly, our will must die. Jesus tells us that we are to follow Him but the context makes clear that the prerequisite to following Him is death. There are probably many applications to this principle but I want to focus on what I believe was His main point; the death of our will and the pursuit of His will.

As I’ve already stated, usually our biggest obstacle to pursuing God’s will and dying to our own, is our ego. Our desire to be recognized and our desire to do things our way are in direct conflict with Scripture’s principles. When we desire to be praised it is no less than trying to take God’s glory because we can do nothing worthwhile without His enablement. Therefore He is the one worthy of praise for our accomplishments, not us. Our desire to do things our own way is nothing less than idolatry, because we are elevating our will to equality with God’s will.

We are two days from the year 2011. I don’t know what God has promised you for 2011. I do know that I am a part of an incredible Church (Dallas First Church) that God has made some great promises to for this coming year. I have also received some personal promises as well. There is one major obstacle to God fulfilling His promises to myself and to DFC; EGO. The things God will accomplish at DFC in 2011 are going to be known by others. God does not share His glory with ANYONE! Therefore those of us who desire to be used of God must do all we can to shun glory and point all praise and glory to the One Who is worthy. Indeed, there is nothing we will individually or collectively accomplish in 2011 because we are so great. Anything accomplished will be because of God’s anointing and enablement.

The year of 2010 has been a year of the “Potter’s Wheel” for me. It has been a year of God teaching me to die to my own will and plans and a time of learning to trust Him completely. Perhaps your 2010 was the same or hopefully this is something you have already learned. The great news is that if we will die to our own will and plans then we can live in His will and fulfill His plans. This is the true secret to greatness in the Kingdom of God. To become so completely dead to our own desires and ego, that God will trust us and share His will and plans with us. So that He will trust us enough to USE us for His glory.

The New Year is upon us. Only God knows what struggles, accomplishments, and joy awaits us in 2011. As Christians we do know at least this one thing however; that He will be with us every step of the way. I hope that 2010 has accomplished my death as it relates to my own will and ways. I pray that 2011 will see the resurrection of His will and ways in my life and ministry. I don’t pretend to know a whole lot. I do know at least this much; if you will truly pick up your cross, die daily and follow Him completely, you will experience the greatest year of your life in 2011. My New Years resolution? I want to die.

About this time in 2009 I was preparing for my annual Fast in the beginning of January where I seek God’s direction for the coming year, and I already was feeling that 2010 was to be a year of priorities. I just kept feeling that God wanted me to focus on what my priorities were to be. I had an idea of what that meant. I was completely wrong!

This year was indeed a year of Priorities, but it was not a year where I sorted out what priorities I needed to focus on and then executed the plan (so to speak). Instead it was a year where God has shown me where my priorities were and where they should be.

As you can see, I have not posted anything for a while. The reason has simply been that I could not think of anything that would not sound like I was whining about my circumstances. If you have read my previous post you know a little of what my recent months have been like. They got much worse. But please do not take my statement of facts as a pity party or a whine fest. Such is not the case. I am Blessed in more ways than space permits me to elaborate. If nothing else, I am BLESSED so much to be able to minister the Word to the best group of Saints in the World, Dallas First Church.

First let me say that I am not attempting to illicit sympathy nor am I saying poor me (though I am poor) For the first time in my life I have struggled to find a job. The company I worked for went out of business on February 7 without notice or warning. I was initially not concerned, but I eventually realized this was not like previous times. Then I found a good job and  four days later promptly injured my knee severely, by completely tearing my ACL tendon from the lower part where it was attached to the bone. (This was not an on the job injury, in fact I injured it at Church. I do not have insurance) Due to my injury I was not qualified for unemployment and I was quickly broke. Yet the Lord continually supplied my financial needs right on time.

It has really been a terrible time in many ways. At least physically. I was on crutches for a month and a half, then on a cane and finally it had been so long since the injury that I was able to hobble on my crooked leg. I could not stand for long and could not walk far. Yet God continually showed Himself faithful.

Then a miracle, a charity program agreed to pay for my surgery 3 months after my injury. So on December 1st I underwent ACL replacement surgery, which was not much fun. Then I began physical therapy and that has been torture. All of this though is bearable and expected due to the injury.

What was not expected and frankly threw me for a loop, was God seemingly cutting me off as of December. For the first time I find myself unable to pay my mortgage or other bills. Now I get to daily have encouraging conversations with collectors. To be honest this development really got me out of sync. I simply could not figure out the reason for this seeming abandonment by my LORD.

I cannot claim to really understand even as of now, but I do have a theory I will share with you. As I mentioned, this year has been a year of God teaching me His priorities and teaching me where my priorities need to be. I have learned He can and WILL provide for my legitimate needs. It has truly been the worst of years and the best of years. I have learned so much about what it really means to trust God. I thought I did trust Him, now I KNOW I trust Him.

That really has been the best lesson of this year. I know I trust my LORD. So, here I am facing mounting bills and late payments, etc. and I can now say truthfully; the LORD’s will be done. I don’t wont to face foreclosure nor do I want a bad credit report. I am proud to have a 800 plus credit score. Perhaps too proud. Regardless, as of this Sunday I understand. I think. (I spent the first 18 days of the month saying; Lord, where are You at?)

The question I have had to ask myself this month is; “can I trust Him when He doesn’t supply the need?” Perhaps, I need to learn trust Him when faced with the loss of what little I have left. I say I trust Him. That I trust that He has my best interests at heart and will only allow what is best for me into my life. Obviously I can bring bad consequences into my life for bad decisions and behavior. However, I can honestly say that the current circumstances are not the result of bad decisions or bad behavior. They are simply the result of an injury that prevents me from working at present. I had the 6 month emergency savings account. I was debt free except for my house. But 2009 and 2010 took my savings to $0.00 and added Hospital and Doctor debt. So financially and in the natural, it’s been the worst of years. So can I trust God when everything from the “natural” perspective seems to say that He’s abandoned me to my own fate?

I have learned this year to truly understand that this “natural” world is not truly the “real” world. The spiritual world is the “real” world. The lessons I have learned this year, the conversations I have had with Jesus, the trust I have learned; all this and more have made this the BEST OF YEARS.

I hope I have made some sense in my rambling. My heart is overflowing with so much I’m having trouble expressing my heart. Let me begin to sum it all up. Things are just that, things. Having a nice house is nice, but not necessary. I can rent an apartment again if need be. Having a nice bank account is very nice, but not necessary. The most important thing in life is a relationship with Jesus that is trusting and intimate. To have that is worth any natural price. I have learned to ask: “when I stand before Jesus, will this matter?” Will I care about the house I lived in when I stand before Jesus? Will having nice clothes be important when I am in heaven?

This is the bottom line, will I know Jesus and will He know me? What were my priorities on earth? Was accumulating possessions and wealth my driving force? I pray that when the time comes for me to stand before the Judgement Seat of Christ that I will have learned to put a relationship with Jesus as my first priority in life. You may say, but what about _______ (you fill in the blank)? The truth is, if you have a close relationship with Christ, everything else will fall into place because you will live to please Him.

So what’s the answer to the question; “can I trust God when it seems in He has abandoned me?” I can now say YES! So really this has been the Best of Years. Since the spiritual is the “real” and eternal, while the “natural” is simply temporal, 2010 was really not a bad year after all. It’s been the Best Year of my life.

Let’s concentrate upon the authority given to Believers. It’s true that with authority there is responsibility, but what most believers miss is that there is no true Biblical Apostolic authority in the Spirit without a key component. I am not speaking of “positional authority” that is given to a Pastor or deacon, etc. in the local Church. I am talking about the authority in the spirit realm that every born again, Holy Ghost filled Believer is supposed to have.

Jesus tells His disciples in Luke 10:17-20 that He gives us authority over Satan and his demon minions. He reiterates this in Mark 16:14-18 when He says …”these signs will follow those who believe: in My Name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” (Mark 16:17-18 NKJV)

So why do so many Apostolic Churches and Believers seem to have absolutely no authority in the spirit? They may go through the motions of speaking with authority and claiming authority over spiritual attacks, but the lack of results is very telling. I believe there is a very simple explanation for this lack of authority. You should be able to guess by my title, what I believe the answer is.

Matthew and Luke tell the story of a Centurion of the Roman Army who sent elders of the Jews to Jesus to ask Him to heal a servant who was sick and near to death. So Jesus begins to head with them to the Centurion’s house. But when the Centurion heard that Jesus was coming to his house, he sent friends to Him saying in effect, Lord the reason I did not come in person to ask is I am not worthy for you to come to my house. Also, I realize the authority that you possess and that all you need do is to speak the word and my servant will be healed. This story is told in most detail in Luke 7:1-10.

The amazing thing about this story is how the Centurion explains that he understands Jesus’ authority. He said “for I also am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come.’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” (Luke 7:8 NKJV)

The Centurion recognized that the only reason he had authority over his soldiers was because he was in submission to the officers placed over him and indeed to the Roman Caesar. Without this submission, the Centurion would have not had any authority.

I believe this is where so many Believers miss it in today’s society and culture that teaches us it is all about me. The fact is you may know all the right words to say, even the right Scripture to quote, but if you are not in submission to the authorities God has placed in your life, you have no personal authority in the spirit realm. (Brings to mind the sons of Sceva. See Acts 19:13-16)

So the obvious question is who is my authority to submit to? There are actually several and they are all equally important to be submitted to. Obviously we must be submitted to Jesus Christ as our LORD and His Word (this means being intellectually honest with Scripture and not simply choosing the parts we like and ignoring what we dislike). We must be submitted to our Pastor. Children should be submitted to their parents. Husbands are to be submitted to Christ and the Pastor. Wives are to be submitted to their husband, Pastor and Christ. For the sake of brevity, I will not get into more detail of who or what we should submit to.

The Biblical fact is; Jesus has given His disciples authority over the enemy and power to lay hands on the sick and they should be healed (Obviously God has the final say as to who He chooses to heal). So, again the obvious question comes; why do so few Churches and believers have no authority. Answer: Because they have no submission. If every believer, from the Pastor of the Church down to the newest convert would learn submission to their authority, we would then experience the power of the First Church. There would be signs and wonders following, the world would know us by our love for one another, there would be END TIME revival and harvest in our communities.

As for me, I’ve determined that I will submit myself wholly to my LORD, to my Pastor, to my Presbyter and District officials along with the National officials and to anyone they should place in authority over me. I am ready for a revival in my life and in my Church and communities. So LORD, put me on the Potter’s wheel and do what You know must be done to bring me into total submission to the authorities You’ve placed over me. Then, I will know true Apostolic Authority through Submission.

I have proclaimed many times that I trust God. I have also found many times, that when the bank account met the life circumstance, that I have lacked the trust I thought that I had. These last few months have provided me a unique opportunity that (while not enjoyable) has allowed me the privilege of knowing that I can and do trust God to provide for me. For the first time in my life, it took me about six months to replace the job that ended when my company closed down. This past week I started training for the new job.

Then this past Sunday Bro. Godwin was preaching and said something to the effect that the wall was coming down to expand the sanctuary. I resisted the impulse twice, but on the third impulse I ran off the platform and instead of using the steps, I leapt (a lot higher than I realized) off the stage to run. Unfortunately my bad knees finally caught up with me and I simply went to the ground when my right knee collapsed upon landing.

I managed to drag myself to the sound booth and endured the rest of service in agony as I did not wish to distract from the service. ( my thanks to Bro. Craig Johnston for praying for me in the booth as the worst of the pain left) So, after service I went to the ER as my knee was quite swollen and painful, not to mention when I would attempt to put weight upon it, the bones would feel as though they were separating. The ER doctor took X-rays and determined there was no bone damage and said that it was probably a case of torn ligaments or cartilage. He said it would take an MRI to determine the damage.

Since I have no insurance or money, that was the extent of the advice. He did give me a referral to a free clinic however. Of course the clinic has no MRI and the doctor, who hardly looked at the knee, told me it was probably just a bad sprain (which would be good) but that it’s too swollen to do an MRI anyway and to just stay off of it for at least two weeks and see what happened.

This news of course didn’t work with my new job as they needed someone now and someone who can stand and walk. So, the new job is now the old job.

Now, you may think I said all of that to evoke sympathy or that I am telling a “woe is me” story, but not so. I am simply saying that I have learned through these experiences that I TRUST GOD to see me through. Everybody wants to experience a miracle but no one wants to NEED a miracle. Like the old saying; “everybody wants to go to heaven, but no one wants to die to get there.”

Well, I can truly say that the peace of God passes all understanding. Even today, after having looked at my bills, etc. I realize that I am not worried because I know that no matter what circumstances are in my life, God is right here with me as well. What more do I need? It is a truly liberating feeling to realize that the things of this life are truly temporal and cannot measure up to what God has in store for me and for Dallas First Church. (Trust in God is not just trusting Him when He works everything out the way we want them. Trust means that even if our world seems to fall apart; we lose a job, house, car, whatever the case may be, if we truly trust our God then we know it will work out for our good). (Romans 8:28)

Dallas First Church has undergone some pretty extreme things with the circumstances in Pastors life and his health. But God’s not finished yet! The Revival and Harvest that God has promised DFC has already begun.

In fact, since I can not stand or walk without crutches and not far at that, I now have more time for prayer and Bible. So the end result of this knee injury may or may not be bad financially, but the spiritual side….

I can truly say, God is Good All The Time. I cant wait to see what He is going to do at Dallas First Church. The promises have been given and God is not a man that He should lie. What remains to be seen is; will we step up and be the men and women of God He’s called us to be? Pastor needs us more than ever to step up and be the Leaders he has trained us to be.

Now is the time to stand up and fight hell in the Power of the Spirit. Now is the time to pray like never before. Now is the time to believe God like never before. Now is the time to witness like never before. Now is the time to worship in our services like never before. Now is the time to be expectant (eagerly anticipate) of what God’s about to fulfill at Dallas First Church. Now is the time to TRUST our God. We have a choice before us; to be a part of the work or to simply be spectators. The choice is ours to make.

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. (Ephesians 6:10-13 NKJV)

We are a people at war. No, I don’t mean the war against terrorism and I don’t mean the people of America. I am of course speaking of the “People of the Name” or Apostolic Christians. We are a people who populate many nations in our world, but we are one people or family. And we are a People at war.

The unfortunate thing about most of our people is that they fail to realize they are at war. Our enemy on the other hand, certainly never forgets he is at war with us. Indeed one of his best strategies is to keep us from realizing we are in the midst of war. The Scripture tells us, that though we walk in the flesh, we do not war in the flesh. The problem is that most of us, do war in the flesh. We fail to recognize that we are in a spiritual war, and instead react to those around us and our circumstances with our flesh. The Scripture also tells us that our weapons are not carnal, but mighty in God. However, most of us are engaged in spiritual warfare using carnal weapons that are destructive not to the enemy, but to ourselves and others. Weapons like our own wisdom rather than God’s. Reacting in anger rather than love, and the list goes on.

The primary problem is that so many Christians are carnal to begin with (I freely admit that this is a constant struggle for me). What do I mean? We focus on earthly and natural things rather than heavenly and spiritual things. There is a reason we are to pray and read the Word. We cannot stand against the wiles or schemes of the devil on our own. Without daily prayer time and Word time, we cannot be strong in the Lord or even aware of the war going on around us.

Our enemy uses carnal things to attack us spiritually, therefore we typically fail to recognize the spiritual aspect and react carnally. Certainly this is not the only way he attacks us, but it is the easiest way to attack someone who is carnal to start with. It all begins and ends in our minds. Notice this portion again; For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ (2 Corinthians 10:4-5 NKJV).

Our weapons are not to be carnal but mighty in God. We are not to fight the enemy with physical or carnal methods. We fight through prayer and the sword of the Word. When we fight God’s way, we then have His might to “pull down strongholds”, to “cast down arguments and everything that exalts itself against the knowledge of God” and to “bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ”. After all, it’s ‘ Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ Says the LORD of hosts (Zech 4:6 NKJV).

Notice what all of these statements have in common. The strongholds, the arguments and the thoughts, primarily have to do with the mind. In other words our thoughts. There is a reason we need to bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. Our thoughts become our actions and our actions are supposed to portray Christ to the world around us.

So ultimately, the battle ground of spiritual warfare is in our minds. Notice again Ephesians 6:11 which tells us that we need to stand against the “wiles of the devil”. The literal wording is the scheming of the devil. Let’s face it, the devil is smarter, more experienced and more evil than we can stand up to on our own. Paul tells us repeatedly to “stand” in our spiritual warfare. He also tells us that our struggle is not against our boss or co-workers at work or family, neighbors, etc., but it is against the demons of hell.

Because the battle is primarily in our minds, Paul tells us in Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. (NKJV)

So along with prayer, we must consciously focus on godly things rather than the ungodly. This is where worship songs can be so helpful. Music is a powerful force, both for good and bad. (A good reason to be careful what music you listen to) One thing I have found, is that when I need to get my mind back where it belongs, I can begin to sing in my mind a worship song and I can bring my thoughts back into captivity.

So what are we to do? First, we must recognize that we are at war every day of our lives. The enemy is looking for any and every opportunity to pounce on us and incite ungodly behavior or reactions. Once we recognize that we are at war, we must prepare and fight the war every day. How do we do this? Ephesians 6:18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints— (NKJV) There is no easy way around this fact, we MUST pray if we hope to defeat the enemy of our souls. I wish I could tell you an easier way, because I realize that having a consistent prayer life is not easy. However, it is necessary if you wish to win the war.

Spiritual war is not something we can comprehend carnally. Therefore we must work to remain spiritual minded and not carnal minded. I admit that this is a struggle, but that’s why it’s referred to as war. War is not easy and it’s not always clear cut but if you never recognize you’re in a war, you are already on your way to losing that war. Let’s wake up to the war around us and declare war on the enemy and pull down his strongholds. Our thoughts become our actions and our actions portray Christ. What kind of Christ are you portraying?

His disciples asked him what this parable meant. He said, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables, so that,

” ‘though seeing, they may not see;
though hearing, they may not understand.’

“This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God. Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. Those on the rock are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away. The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop. (Luke 8:5-15 NKJV)

Let’s be honest. Sometimes the parables of Jesus are difficult to understand, let alone to apply in our lives. However, this parable is definitely not one of them. This is one of the most pertinent and applicable parables Jesus ever gave in my opinion. In this parable, He shows us four conditions of the heart.

In this parable there are two primary “players”: The Seed, which is the Word of God; The Soil, which is the heart of the person who hears the Word.

The Word does not change. Whatever God has set it to do, it will accomplish. We know that “faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God” (Romans 10:17). So faith comes by hearing the Word. Not arguing with the Word or explaining it away. By hearing what God has to say to you, through His Word.

Anyone who has ever attempted to grow a garden, let alone a true farmer, knows that the soil in which you plant your seed matters. There is a reason why farmers in some areas grow various vegetables, some fruit, some peanuts and some grow only hay. The soil determines what seed you can expect to do well when planted. In the parable Jesus gives, He explains four types of soil or conditions of the heart found in the hearers of the Word.

First there is the “Wayside Soil”. This is soil on the outskirts of the field, where there’s traffic that keeps the soil packed down and hard. This is a heart condition that is hardened and even though the Word is sowed upon it, it is never absorbed or believed. It never takes root. The devil steals it away with doubt and unbelief, thereby preventing faith that will obey and save the hearer.

Second there is the “Rocky Soil”. This is the field that’s plowed in areas where the top soil is shallow. There’s just a thin layer of soil on top of the rocks. It’s soil that’s so rocky that it allows the seed to begin to sprout, but the soil is too shallow for proper root depth. This heart condition is characterized by quick and joyful belief in the Word. There is true initial saving faith and the person obeys the gospel and is saved. However, they never make the effort to put down roots in the Word. They enjoy the novelty of the experience. It’s something new and different. But when the novelty wears off and they realize it takes committment and determination, they fall away. They never take root. They never get rooted or grounded in the Word of God and allow it to change them. Because they have no roots, when temptation or problems come along they disappear. They are hearers of the Word but not doers. They never get rooted in the Word.

The third type of soil is “Thorny Soil”. This condition of the heart hears the Word and joyfully obeys. They begin to take root and grow in the Lord. For a season they do good. But just as in farming, you cannot simply sow the seed and then ignore it, you must care for the seed. You have to water and pull weeds if you want success. When I first moved into my house, I had freshly laid Bermuda grass. It looked good for a while, but then the weeds that were in the soil beneath the sod that was laid began to come up. If I want a nice looking lawn, I have to regularly spread “weed & feed” products on the lawn. I have to regularly water the lawn. Otherwise the good grass gets choked out by the weeds. I have several neighbors who apparently haven’t figured this out, or worse don’t care. This condition of the heart is the person who hears, obeys and begins to grow. However, they don’t regularly study the Word and spend time in prayer. They don’t learn to trust God. After a time, the problems of life begin to pull them down and away from God. Their faith begins to be choked out by the bills piling up, the problems on the job, problems in the marriage, etc. For some with this condition of the heart, it’s not the cares of life it’s the pursuit of riches and the pleasures of the flesh that do it. All because the precious seed of faith they were given is not carefully tended to.

Forth is the “Good Soil”. This is the condition of the heart we all want to strive for. This is the soil that is rich and cultivated, cared for by watering and weeding. This condition of the heart not only hears and believes the Word but obeys the Word. This condition of the heart hears, believes and obeys, even when the Word is something that the flesh doesn’t like. The first layer of good soil is an honest heart (willing to exercise intellectual honesty when looking at Scripture). The second layer of soil is a willingness to hear what the Word has to say, even when it’s something you don’t like. The third layer of this soil is obedience to that Word. This was all required before the soil bore fruit. But along with these components of the soil, there must be perseverance. The good soil is those who believe, obey and COMMIT. These are those who choose daily to serve the Lord. Like the old-time cowboy would say, “come hell or high water” I’m sticking with Jesus.

What kind of soil do you have? What heart condition do you have? Ultimately our heart condition is a choice we make. Will you be wayside soil? Will you be rocky soil? Thorny soil? You can choose what condition of the heart you will have. If you realize you have allowed your heart to go untended and it’s becoming hardened, rocky or thorny, there’s good news. Just as a you can break up fallow ground, get the rocks out or pull out the weeds in your garden, you can also change your heart condition.

What’s your heart condition? You are the one who will decide.