We Are Warriors!

On October 20, 2015, DeDe shared with our group about what it means to be a warrior. A number of you weren't able to be there, so here is a summary of what she taught.

2 Samuel 10:12  "Be strong, and let us fight bravely for our people and the cities of our God.  The Lord will do what is good in His sight."

God goes before us and sees the scope of every battle. Trusting God for the outcome is what makes us strong warriors. 

Following up on Andra's teaching on War Room Strategy, our prayer closet is where we meet with Him individually, the place to be alone with God, the place of intimacy with the Savior.  There we pour out our heart and listen to the Holy Spirit. In the prayer closet, the Holy Spirit gives us the strategy and equips us to fight the battles.

In contrast, our prayer group is where we meet with Him together, where two or more gather in His name. Here, we also pour out our hearts and listen to the Holy Spirit. As we unite together, each operating in her own gifts,  we receive strategy and are equipped. Here, in our group, we deploy and fight the battle.

We are warriors, God's Warriors, and it is time to deploy.  

A warrior is a brave or experienced soldier or fighter.  

- signs on to fight because of blood of Jesus

- trains to fight by studying the Word

- wears gear to fight, the Armor of God

- knows his enemy

- knows his commander-in-chief

- expects to win

To deploy is to move troops into position for military action

- to have a deliberate purpose

- requires "action"/movement

- to gear up with full armor of God

- to follow orders from the Holy Spirit

- to move out in Faith

- to be focused on the course set before us

We have been given the gifts to fight. We have prepared ourselves. We know the battles that rage. We know the Word of God. We know our commander-in-chief, SO, why are we so hesitant?  Why are we insecure as warriors in God's army?  Do we lack faith or self esteem? Are we too busy or preoccupied with our selves and our lives? 

The battle belongs to the Lord, but He has called us to be His warriors in the battle. It is God's battle.  Although we are suited up, totally prepped and trained, we don’t have to fight the battle ourselves. If we wait upon the Lord and move at His command, we will be totally tuned into Him.  It will not be about us, but about Him. Jesus will then direct our paths: "enemy on the left", "enemy approaching overhead", "turn the corner", "clear".  Our job is to listen and follow. To trust and obey. He wins the victories! 

To hear His explicit directions, we must have clear communication with Him. As Lee has been teaching, this comes from true intimacy with Him. This is where prayer comes in - staying in the Word, worship, and spending time with the Holy Spirit.  For example, a warrior walking through a minefield must be totally focused on each step. God is shining His light on the path, leading us forward. He will show us the way through the minefields of the battle. We are called to look to Him for the victory.

In Linda's blog on Time to Deploy she states:

 I, for one, don't like to fight. Never really wanted to be a warrior.

 I never sought courage or battle skills because I didn't want to admit

 I needed them.

Sometimes we say, "I don't like conflict" and run from it.  What we are really saying is, "I don't want to battle". We are running from the battle, trying to dodge the bullet. At times we don't want to release control. There are times when He calls us to stand firm and other times when He wants us to move forward into battle for His glory. We must learn to have ears to hear and then trust and obey - release control!

This brings up Fear -  "Perfect love cast out fear!"  I John 4:18.  His love is perfect, and we march in His army. Both young soldiers and seasoned fighters face fear when they grab their guns and go into battle, but they move forward anyway. They fight for the love of their country. We fight because He first loved us. It is our response to Jesus dying on the cross for us. We are blessed to have God on our side and to be suited in the full armor of God.  With fear and trembling, we go into action. Let's not  run from the battle if He has called us to fight.

What must we do and How?

Deploy is an action word. It requires us to step out! 

I think of us as a Battalion. A battalion is  a group called together for a specific purpose.

For example, a medical battalion might man the hospital. An engineering battalion might build bridges. An air battalion might fly planes and drop bombs, and a ground battalion might fight arm-to-arm combat

We are a Prayer Battalion!  We must deploy. There is a war that is raging with lots of battles all over this world - in our homes, our church, our country and the Middle East, Thailand. Each of us has different gifts to use in our battalion. We need to identify what our assignment is and then be ready to edify the battalion to help it function in the battle. We do this for the glory of God for we are in His Army.  In the examples given above, the medical battalion is no less important than the air battalion. In our prayer battalion, each one has a different assignment  based on the gifts God has given us. There is no pride in acknowledging our gift, but just thanksgiving that God deems us worthy to be in the battle fighting for His glory.

In the Prayer Battalion, not everyone may be going out to the actual battle ground, but they are still deployed. Some are watching, observing and listening to the Holy Spirit in planning a strategy to defeat the enemy. While Lee was in Columbia on a mission trip, many fellow Christian soldiers stayed at home battling in the heavenlies for his safety and for his ministry. Some top ranking officers never leave the command post, but they send out orders to the warriors on the battlefield.

There is a spot for each of us in this Prayer Battalion. God has called us together to pray. There is a mission here for us.  He wants an effective Prayer Battalion. We need to seek His strategy.  We need a clear vision for "where there is no vision the people perish." (Prov 29:18)  Then we need to be ready to act on our vision and our strategy. Some of us may still be confused about our gifts/assignments, and that is okay. Your fellow warriors in the Prayer Battalion will have your back.  As we step out in faith, God will be faithful to show us and help us.  He provides everything we need to stand in the battle, from the trumpets to the slingshot. We are just to follow orders. We will grow in confidence of our gifts as we use them for His glory.   

WE ARE WARRIORS.  IT IS TIME TO DEPLOY!

"Onward, Christian soldiers!

Marching as to war,

With the cross of Jesus

Going on before."