I don’t know about you, but since coming to know Jesus, my life has been anything but easy. Why is that? Because the enemy of God - the Liar - Satan - wants to bring such massive discouragement to the body of Christ that we get to the point of simply giving up. In other words, if he can silence the testimonies of those whom God has redeemed, he has effectively cut off the light of the redeeming love of Christ that the Lord wants to pour out of every believer’s life. God’s Word tells us that if we are redeemed we are to ‘say so’! The Liar has basically declared war on the followers of Jesus Christ. If we are at war, we need to know how to fight and we need to know the weapons of our warfare.

What gets me riled up the most - what keeps me in a constant state of spiritual warfare - is when the enemy messes with my family. I fight by crying out to God, specifically in songs of worship and spiritual warfare. I fight by declaring the written Word of God over my family. I remind myself to put on and to use the whole armor of God He has provided for me. Here it is in a nutshell:

Ephesians 6:10-17 NASB 10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual [forces] of wickedness in the heavenly [places.] 13 Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. 14 Stand firm therefore, having belted your waist with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having strapped on your feet the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil [one.] 17 And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Ephesians 6:10-17 NASB

When we are at war in a spiritual sense, we need a safe and secure stronghold where we can find safety and peace and rest and recovery. David said it like this:

2 Samuel 22:1-3 NASB 1 Now David spoke the words of this song to the LORD on the day that the LORD had saved him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. 2 He said, "The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; 3 My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge; My savior, You save me from violence.” 2 Samuel 22:1-3 NASB

On one occasion one of our sons came into our bedroom late in the night. He was 8 years old at the time. A thunderstorm had rolled through and he had become afraid. I assured him of God’s presence and protection. One of the practical things I did for my son to help him see the storms of life from a different point of view was to take him for a drive during that same thunderstorm that carried on through the night and well into the following day. We focused on the beauty and majesty and power of God’s display of thunder and lightning and wind and rain and massive clouds. That was a very practical way of waging spiritual warfare on behalf of my son.

The disciples of Jesus also got a very practical lesson during a storm. After spending time by the Sea of Galilee with a crowd of people who had come to hear His teaching about the kingdom of God and ministry by using several parables, we find this account in Mark 4:35-41 of something significant and practical Jesus did to bring these parables to life for his small band of disciples.

God’s Word says, On that day, when evening came, He [Jesus] said to them, "Let's go over to the other side." 36 After dismissing the crowd, they took Him along with them in the boat, just as He was; and other boats were with Him. 37 And a fierce gale of wind developed, and the waves were breaking over the boat so much that the boat was already filling [with water.] 38 And [yet Jesus] Himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke Him and said to Him, "Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?" 39 And He got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, "Hush, be still." And the wind died down and it became perfectly calm. 40 And He said to them, "Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?" 41 They became very much afraid and said to one another, "Who, then, is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”

Here in Oklahoma, we are very used to massive thunderstorms and the very real possibility of tornados. We have learned to seek shelter and have learned to simply ride out the storms. When our lives are going through stormy seasons and we feel threatened in any way, we must remember we have a shelter in Jesus Christ…and we must remember He can speak peace to any storm…and we must be patient when we find ourselves in lengthy storms. We must learn to ride them out. Where do we ride them out? In the shelter of the presence of God…and we must learn to see those storms from His point of view. From there, we see the beauty, the majesty, and the massive power of God and His amazing love for us.

The name of the LORD is a strong tower;

The righteous runs into it and is safe.

Proverbs 18:10 NASB

Let us seek shelter in the presence of God during the storms of life as a very necessary component of our spiritual arsenal. He really is peace in any storm.

Dennis Jernigan

To hear The Dennis Jernigan Podcast version of this blog and to hear the song You All Be My Rock, go to http://podcast.dennisjernigan.com/e/you-will-be-my-rock/

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