WHEN FIGHTING THE BATTLES, DON’T GIVE UP, BUT RELY ON YOUR BEST WEAPON!

SCRIPTURE:
I have hidden Your Word in my heart that I might not sin against you.  
(Psalm 119:11)

MEDITATION:
Remember when you were a kid and you had fantasy battles against the bad guys?
In your imaginary world, 
it could turn into a fierce battle until you pulled out your secret weapon.
Your special weapon could protect the good folks and subdue the bad ones.

It may have been a special six-shooter, a whip, a laser weapon, etc.
Whatever it was, 
you had confidence that it would consistently protect you from the bad guys.
Wouldn’t it be nice to have the same kind of weapon in our adult world 
to protect us from the assaults of the evil one?

Once we are saved, we discover that Satan is a formidable opponent 
who is bent on destroying our lives as much as possible.
We realize that he is clever enough 
to consistently attack us at our weakest points – he does not fight fairly.

He may tempt some with alcohol or drugs, because they are weak in that area.
Others he may tempt with impure thoughts or acts.
Some he may tempt with greed and covetousness.
He might tempt some with uncontrolled anger and an unloving attitude.

Whatever our weak area is, when we are tempted,
we need a ‘secret weapon’ to prevent such a difficult opponent 
from robbing us of the peace and happiness that God has for us.
When Satan has victory over us, our lives can become miserable
and our misery can often spill over to those around us.

We know that we are not living in a fantasy world, 
but in a world of reality where we need some help 
in defending ourselves against the constant attacks of Satan.
The good news is 
our loving and caring Heavenly Father has given us the help we need.

Our strength can be found in His Word.
Reading the Bible is an important starting point, but it goes deeper than that.
We need to 'hide His Word in our heart'.
Hiding it in our heart means we apply His principles to our lives.

When we read God's Word, 
we need to search for scriptures pertaining to our areas of weakness.
Next we memorize those verses, 
so that when we sense an attack, we can recite them to Satan.
This is exactly how Jesus fought Satan 
when He was under attack – He recited scriptures.

Two things we should learn for Jesus.
First of all, if Satan attacked Him, 
then certainly He will delight in attacking us.
Secondly, if reciting scriptures worked for Jesus, 
then certainly it should be the nucleus of our defense system.

ACTION:
Have you given up in your attempts to repel the attacks of Satan?
If so, then realize that ‘giving up’ is one of his strategies for defeating you.
Instead of feeling defeated and hopeless, start using your ‘secret weapon’.

Spend time in God’s Word and start applying His principles to your life.
Don’t just read for volume or to gather information, 
but read looking for, and expecting your life to change.
Then allow the Holy Spirit to direct you to key scriptures that you 
personally need to memorize in preparation for the battles.

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Word. Help me to develop a greater 
appreciation for the importance and power of Your Word. Teach me how to 
read with an intent to change, and with expectations that I will experience a 
change when I apply Your principles to my own life. Help me to memorize key 
scriptures so that I can recite them to Satan whenever he attacks me where I am 
weak. Show me how to gain confidence as each of his attacks are turned away. 
Independently, I am weak, but when I depend on You, I become strong!”