WHEN DARKNESS FALLS...WE SHINE

As a fantasy writer, I love stories about warriors brandishing swords to slay dragons while the Angel Armies of Heaven cheer the hero's on and demons writhe in fear at their coming doom. Back in the day when I first put my ideas to paper few people saw the spirit world of 'good verses evil' as a force to be reckoned with in our everyday comfortable lives. Unfortunately, over the decades we exchanged the truth of God's principles with the current cultures condemned view of reality. 

Today, its easy to see our crumbling society through spiritual eyes. The veil has lifted and dragons, demons, and angels are living among us (figuratively speaking). Christians must lead the charge against the onslaught of darkness with the only weapons worthy of fighting a holy war.

Why do we need weapons and who are we fighting? We have an enemy, Satan, who comes to kill, steal and destroy our lives. Like it or not spiritual warfare is a reality for everyone, and you are a target.

" For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood..."(Ephesians 6:12-13)  As warriors in 2024 our weapons are not physical. Our weapons are spiritual and powerful for fighting lies and misinformation. The current culture has turned everything upside down. They preach good as evil and evil as good. Many people are confused, fearful and angry because they don't know what to believe. In these last days our rule of thumb must be...If its not in the Bible...don't believe it. Fight lies with the word of God. His truth is our spiritual sword to be used to correct, encourage and rebuke those who are stumbling through the growing darkness. (2 Timothy 4:2) If we don't speak up now, and tell them the truth, who will?

So...how do we engage the enemy? Read your Bible, our basic training manual. Don't just read it, do what it says. Memorize verses, and surround yourself with like minded people. When we hear bad news and feel powerless against the darkness surrounding our future... don't fear. God tells us our words have power. We need to speak life and hope, to ourselves and others, especially when it looks like victory is out of reach. It's in the darkest hour our light of truth will shine the brightest. Be a warrior. Rise to the occasion. "We are more than conquerors through Christ who loves us." (Romans 8:37)  

ALL THE FORCES OF DARKNESS CANNOT STOP WHAT GOD HAS ORDAINED. (Isaiah 14:27)

 

INFO WARS... 2024

 As we move forward into our unknown future many of us are afraid, some of us are confused, a lot of us feel hopeless and the rest of us are just plain angry. There are few people I talk to that have a positive outlook on their lives as we brace ourselves for whatever lies ahead. Most of our despair and mental torment over the events unfolding all around us comes because information is thrown at us at the speed of light. The professionals tell us if we want to receive a more balanced view of reality, choose multiple, opposing sources of information. The problem with this is all media outlets have to make a profit so they sell what the culture wants to hear. In other words, whether it comes to us from a right wing or left wing source much of it is sprinkled with lies, hoaxes. misinformation, rumors, disinformation and regardless of fact checking the tainted truth keeps circulating.We try to digest these messages by filtering it through our friends, family and co-workers for their take on current events just to be overwhelmed by so many different opinions. Instead of understanding the world we live in we begin to suffer from "Information Anxiety" where we can't discern truth from lies.

So...what can discerning people do to feed their brains a well balance diet of truth as we navigate these choppy waters of Info Wars in 24? First and foremost, if you want to remain calm, don't leave your Christian convictions behind to embrace the trends of the culture. If your friends decided to jump off a cliff I'm pretty sure you wouldn't follow them. Right? In my opinion, there is still only one source of absolute truth. Yes, I know, collage has embedded in our minds there is no such thing; it's your own truth so believe what makes you happy. I beg to differ. The Bible IS our only guide in these foggy days ahead. If you can't match the truth in the Bible with what the journalists or Podcasters are saying, change your stand. Don't keep following the wrong information. God says "Thou shalt not kill." End of Story. God says, "Thou shalt not lie, cheat, steal, covet, hate etc.  If He said it, its true. The reason we are confused, afraid, hopeless and angry is because we choose to believe worldly lies and not back up our beliefs with the Bible.

God wants us to let go of anxiety and live with a sense of inner peace. However, there is a condition. We have to wholeheartedly follow where he leads. "Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don't try to figure out everything on your own. Listen to God's voice in everything you do, everywhere you go. He's the one who will keep you on track. Don't assume you know it all. Run to God!  Run from evil. Your body will glow with health, your very bones will vibrate with life." (Proverbs 3:5-6 MSG)  

 As the year unfolds we need to cut loose all deceit. The enemy comes to kill, steal, and destroy our lives. Jesus came that we might have an abundant life. Choose faith and truth over fear and lies in 2024.

Source...The Information Age u-s-history.com