Time to Regroup

This is not Day Four's message.

There is a saying in the military and it goes back hundreds and possibly thousands of years. It's attributed to several different people, including Napoleon.

"No battle plan survives first contact with the enemy."

By now, you've had your first contact with the enemy. I know I have. The enemy of Christ doesn't want you doing anything that will draw you closer to God. He is attacking you right now, he may have even started his attack before you started following this blog. His attacks can be blatant, or subtle, but they exist and are him at work. Once you recognize your opponent, it becomes easier to defeat him.

In my case, my sleep anxiety has flared up, along with my sleep apnea. The two go hand in hand, the apnea causes the anxiety, which causes me to stay up later, making the amount of sleep I get less, intensifying the effects of the apnea. Nice huh? I know it's Satan at work in my life. How is Satan attacking you?

Do you remember the Bible verse I posted on Facebook when I was starting this? Ecclesiastes 4:12. Well, here is the extended verse.

Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their work:

If one falls down,
his friend can help him up.
But pity the man who falls
and has no one to help him up!

Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?

Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
Ecc 4:9-12(NIV)

Heavenly Father, I pray right now that you will help us overpower the enemy. Lord, I pray for my sisters Joleen, Sherry, Sarah, and Jen. I pray for everyone who is following along and drawing closer to you. Jesus, help us to put on the full Armor of God that we may stand against the enemy's schemes. Lord, bring peace to your faithful children, give us the strength we need to fight back the advances of the enemy. As I lay myself down tonight I know that you will do what we ask in the name of your Son and our Savior, Jesus Christ.

I ask you readers, as you read this right now, to pause for a moment and say a prayer to Christ. Praying for each other is the equivalent to standing back to back in a fight. You can defeat many opponents if someone has your back. If you don't feel comfortable praying like I just did, do what I normally do, recite the Lord's Prayer while you consider the others that are struggling right now. And if you're not familiar with the "Armor of God", it's described in Ephesians 6:13-17 Read this and picture yourself in The Colosseum of Rome, all decked out ready to face the enemy. Look to your side, I am right there with you. I've got your back!

Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the Belt of Truth buckled around your waist, with the Breastplate of Righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the Shield of Faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the Helmet of Salvation and the Sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.