Session 6

How to fight back when doubt comes

From Making Bold Moves: A 7-Day Devotional

Most of us don’t think of ourselves as strong. But every day, we face a battle in which strength is required.

In “The Message”, Eugene Peterson describes life this way: “This is no afternoon athletic contest that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels” (Ephesians 6:12).

Using insults, setbacks, temptations, and lies, Satan tries to stop us from making a difference in the world.

If you’ve followed Jesus for any length of time, you know that every bold move comes with a moment of doubt. A second, or a season, where we wonder: Am I crazy? What if this all blows up in my face? I’m not cut out for this. What was I thinking?

When we rely on our own strength, doubt easily creeps in. Thankfully, we don’t have to fight spiritual battles alone. Paul, the writer of Ephesians, reminds the church to be strong in the Lord. We borrow His strength to fight our battles as we put on the full armor of God.

Our best defense against Satan’s attacks is faith. Faith functions as a shield, blocking those attacks from penetrating deep into our hearts and allowing us to keep moving forward.

Arrows are being thrown in our direction. The shield of faith can extinguish all of the flaming arrows of the evil one (Ephesians 6:16). That’s a guarantee. The decision we get to make is whether we will neglect our armor and take a direct hit, or use our shield to repel fear with faith.

Reflect:

• What battles are you currently facing?
• What is one area of your life where you need to borrow strength to be strong in the Lord?
• How can you pray for your brothers and sisters in their battles?