MY Spiritual Battlefront
by Elin Henderson
“For we wrestle (battle) not against flesh and blood but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against the spiritual wickedness in high places.”
Ephesians 5:12 (NKJV)
I am not sure how many people I have come across ask me, “So, what’s it like on the front line battlefield?” For some reason, a lot of people consider missionary work “front-line” while everything else is what…“back-line”? Today, I would like to dispel this misrepresentation. While there is some truth in it, the reality is that God has given each of us a “battlefront” and there He wants us to stand and fight!by Elin Henderson
“For we wrestle (battle) not against flesh and blood but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against the spiritual wickedness in high places.”
Ephesians 5:12 (NKJV)
We see in Scripture that not just some of us, but all of us are called to front-line service, although the service itself may take on varying appearances. It isn’t an elite few who get to see the front lines while the rest of us sit back and watch in awe or cheer. God has designed unique battlefronts for each of us. Now, how effective we are on our spiritual battlefronts is more a matter of where we are looking for strength and direction.
God, in His perfect foreknowledge, plans out in advance each of our personal battles, where good and evil are fought out and where the flesh and the Spirit fight for the right to raise their flag and claim us. He also knows how much each of us can take on the front line, doing hand-to-hand battle, and when we need a rest and a little “leave time.” Sometimes it may seem that the war is never ending and at other times, we wonder, “Why am I being kept back and not sent to the front line again today?” Either way, our eyes must be focused on the General, leading us onward. We must be confident that He alone knows what is best for us; how much we can handle today, how long we can stand the heavy shelling, and when we need to fall back for a little rest and recuperation before heading back to the fray.
What and where is your battlefront? Could it be in an office? At home with your kids? Teaching in a school? Working in a hospital? It is true that there are some locations that are more intense with spiritual warfare, but on either front the bottom line is sensitivity to our Leading General. Where does He have us today? Where should our forces be? And on the day we are called home and the battle is over, may we say with Paul, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept my faith” (2 Timothy 4:7, NKJV).
GOING DEEPER:
1. How can this apply to the spiritual armor that we are called to put on in Ephesians 6:11-13? How does this equip us for our personal spiritual battlefront?
FURTHER READING:
2 Chronicles 20:27; 1 Timothy 6:12a; 1 Timothy 1:18b
Oakwood’s missionaries Elin Henderson and her husband Phil serve as church planters with New Tribes in Mozambique, Africa. Elin is mother to ten-year-old Callie and eight-year-old Elias.
