Fight to WIN!!

Something I have learned in the life that God has blessed me with is when you are truly living out the calling that God has placed you in, you will....I REPEAT.....YOU WILL face spiritual warfare! There's no getting away from it. You can run, but you can't hide. Sometimes I feel as if I got the wind knocked out of me, other times I feel a little brain rattled, other times I literally fall right smack down on the ground....but, I'm determined to never stay down long enough for the enemy to count to 10 and let him have the pleasure of saying, " Ha! I won!" You see, with Jesus in my life, I might get bruised and battered in the fight but because HE reigns within me, I WIN because HE WINS EVERY SINGLE TIME!

2 things I've discovered that I must take to the battle line in order to Win:

1. PUT ON God's Armour
I've noticed that when I go into battle and I'm not wearing my armour, those are the time I REALLY get knocked out cold. That's when the "surprise" element comes out to play that something will happen and I wasn't totally prepared for it. Now, the cool thing with God is, it doesn't have to be that way. When we live our lives for God, His Spirit lives within us and REVEALS what God is thinking to us. Combine that God knowledge of His revelation to our lives and put on His armour and then go take on your day and watch how different the battle looks....ha!! It comes down to learning how to be a true overcomer. Read on....

I Corinthians 2:10-16 (MSG) reads,

"The Spirit, not content to flit around on the surface, dives into the depths of God, and brings out what God planned all along. Who ever knows what you're thinking and planning except you yourself? The same with God—except that he not only knows what he's thinking, but he lets us in on it. God offers a full report on the gifts of life and salvation that he is giving us. We don't have to rely on the world's guesses and opinions. We didn't learn this by reading books or going to school; we learned it from God, who taught us person-to-person through Jesus, and we're passing it on to you in the same firsthand, personal way.

The unspiritual self, just as it is by nature, can't receive the gifts of God's Spirit. There's no capacity for them. They seem like so much silliness. Spirit can be known only by spirit—God's Spirit and our spirits in open communion. Spiritually alive, we have access to everything God's Spirit is doing, and can't be judged by unspiritual critics. Isaiah's question, "Is there anyone around who knows God's Spirit, anyone who knows what he is doing?" has been answered: Christ knows, and we have Christ's Spirit."



When we live our lives by the spirit, that allows us to know the very details of life that we need because the Spirit of God lives within us that hangs out with Jesus who know's all and reveals all to His Spirit which gives us the insight as to what is going on in our lives. This is how we live our lives and not face unexpected circumstances when we live by the Spirit and keep on the full armour of God, always.

2. Strength comes from Joy.

Nehemiah 8:10 says, "The joy of the LORD is your strength!" I love to think of this verse backwards.....My strength is found in the joy of the Lord. One of the definitions of joy is: the source or cause of delight. That takes me to Psalm 37:4 - "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." I love saying, 'Delight yourself in the Lord and HE WILL......." You want to win a battle, delight yourself in God and He will. Getting weary in the battle, your strength is found in your God-given JOY!! It's a crazy concept to think that when going through a battle you suddenly stop and roar out with laughter but I'm telling you, it really works!! The one thing that the enemy cannot relate to is JOY. He existence is to steal, kill, destroy....those are all from the root of one word: HATE. Joy and hate is like light and dark - they DO NOT relate to each other at all. So, when you are facing warfare, laugh in the face of the enemy because when it's all said and done......YOU WIN!!!

Tracee Lee

Don't Forget......TO LAUGH

Last week I was struck by a comment made by a speaker (who's name I can't remember...lol!) at a conference I was at....what he said was, "Don't forget...." After I heard that, I couldn't think of anything else the speaker said as my brain went on a shoe trail of thinking of all the 'don't forgets' I've done in my life and how if I really remembered those things I really don't need to forget, how much easier my life would be. Oh the joys of being human and having many many 'duh' moments this life brings. I'm one of those people that can make a shopping list and forget to leave my list at home. Now, I do have one good trait of actually being able to 'see' the list in my head and recall what I put on it...well, most everything I put on the list. lol!

So, I want to start a series of what I'm calling, Don't Forget. They'll be funny inspirations and spiritually challenging thoughts of the things we can't afford to forget as we walk closer and closer to our Master. It's the don't forgets that draw us closer to Him.....

Here we go.....

DON'T FORGET - TO LAUGH

Too many things in this life take away our laughter, our joy. When I read in the scriptures, I find a little secret that we must NEVER lose in order to succeed in this life that can be great, miserable, difficult, suffocating, fun, and crazy all in one. That key verse is: "Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength." Nehemiah 8:10 Did you see that secret - the joy of the Lord IS your STRENGTH. The way we find God's joy is by hanging out with Him - breathing Him in, living every single minute of every single day wtih Him. As we do that, His joy overtakes us and consumes everything we do.

Just the other day I woke up and was literally just not having a good day. My kids were sick, I didn't have a good night sleep, I just felt heavy inside. Even after reading the Word and praying that morning, I still didn't get that lift I was looking for. About 3 hours later, I was driving down the road and talking to God....I asked him, "Why do I literally feel so blah today?" You know what He said, "You have a choice of how you want to respond to all that's going on and how you feel...let it sink you or rise above it." Well, you guessed exactly what I did - I made the choice to seek JOY and when I did, I experienced HIS strength. It was wild! You might be saying, "Yeah, right! How could it be that easy?" I have to say it actually was. I literally, in one moment, made the decision to choose joy over how I was feeling and instantly I felt the heaviness begin to lift off me. Just as you choose to feel and accept the heaviness you are feeling, is just the same as you can choose to experience God's full joy for your life.

So, don't forget - LAUGH, LAUGH, LAUGH!! It's God's gift to YOU that is contagious.

Tracee