I would like to share five Scriptures that I pray will be an encouragement, refreshment, and strength to you.
When David prepared to meet the fierce giant Goliath, he put five smooth pebbles in his pouch for his slingshot. We need to do the same thing! As we encounter spiritual opposition, our best weapon is the powerful truth of Scripture.
If you would like to print a PDF of these Scriptures, click HERE.
Blessings to you,
Tami
(photo credit: Mary McKee)
This new movie has a fantastic message:
The right way to fight in marriage is by fighting on our knees through prayer. We want to fight for our spouses, not against them. We must ask God to fight the real enemy, the spiritual forces of darkness.
Elizabeth, the praying wife in War Room, reads these amazing words in James 4:7:
“Submit yourselves, then, to God.
Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (NIV).
As she ponders that incredible promise, Elisabeth sets a beautiful example of submitting herself to God in prayer. She then proceeds to resist Satan by shouting at him, which I am not ready to endorse as the best means of resisting Satan. Although she says that now she is going to let God do the fighting for her, Elisabeth actually tries to do a little direct fighting herself. The Warrior Wife tells Satan, “Go back to hell, where you belong!” It seems to me that that directive should come from Christ. I prefer to follow the example of Michael, the powerful archangel. In a dispute with Satan, Michael “did not dare bring an abusive condemnation against him but said, ‘The Lord rebuke you!'” (Jude 1:9, HCSB).
I am not wanting to be critical. I just want to add this surprising and encouraging truth:
Our submission to God IS resistance to the devil.
Pushing into God is pushing back against the enemy. We sometimes spend a lot of time and energy trying to hold the door closed against Satan. We might forget that our victory comes from something else: it comes from yielding entirely to the Spirit, allowing His Presence and Power to fill us so completely that nothing else can intrude. In other words, instead of trying to hold the door shut against the enemy, I can lay myself down in openness to the Spirit.
I encourage you to see War Room.
I am delighted to see a movie playing in the theatres that honors God, that seeks to strengthen marriages, and that promotes Scripture-based, persistent prayer.
Most of all, I encourage you to pray!
Let’s pray for our own hearts. Let’s pray for our marriages and families. Let’s pray for the people that God has placed in our lives.
And let’s pray the Scriptures. In doing so, our will becomes one with God’s will, and through that unity, power is unleashed, miracles are birthed, and ashes are turned into beauty.
I also invite you to join our ongoing “war room” every Thursday (at 12:30, Eastern time). For 15 minutes, we “fight on our knees” for our marriages and families. Join online or by phone.
During the month of September, FamilyLife is offering a “Oneness Prayer Challenge.” For 30 days, FamilyLife will text or email to you a short devotional and prayer that you and your spouse can share together.
One of the most powerful things you can do for your marriage is to pray with your spouse. One study found that praying together reduces the rate of divorce to less than 1 in 1,000. Wow!
Praying together seems like a simple thing to do, doesn’t it?
Well, it may be simple in concept, but it can be difficult to implement!
If you have not yet established a praying-together habit with your spouse, the Oneness Challenge will be a great help in getting started with that. After 30 days, you will have created a habit that will bless your marriage for a lifetime!
Praying together does not have to take a lot of time. Start with just 2 or 3 minutes.
And praying together does not have to be intimidating. You might begin by simply holding hands and praying together silently. When you are comfortable with that, try reading a short prayer aloud. Progress from there.
If you and your spouse already pray together, the daily devotionals in the Oneness Challenge will encourage you, and the prayers will add a fresh richness to your own.
If your spouse is not willing to pray with you, you can still benefit from using the Oneness Challenge as you pray for your marriage.
You can sign up here to receive the 30-Day Oneness Challenge by email or text: Prayer Challenge.
Praying with you!
Tami
Tami Myer 