Resistance is Not Futile

So, last year I wrote a book on overcoming fear. It’s my story about how God led me into and through places which shattered the cage of fear holding me hostage, a reclaiming of lost dreams I thought long dead, obsolete, and irrelevant. This journey released my heart to fly, to soar upon wings I thought weakened, dried up, and too ancient to do anything more.

You see, I believed lies. Many lies. Lies I told myself, lies others told me, and lies I allowed the enemy of my soul to speak into my spirit. I just sat down and told myself I had become irrelevant. Maybe someone has tried to tell you lies similar to this. DO NOT BELIEVE THEM! NOT FOR ONE MINUTE!

When Jesus spoke about His enemy, the devil, he said this, “He’s been a murderer right from the start! He never stood with the One who is the true Prince, for he’s full of nothing but lies—lying is his native tongue. He is a master of deception and the father of lies!  But I am the true Prince who speaks nothing but the truth…” _{John 8:44-45 TPT}

Satan is a murderer. He wants to murder the plans God has for you, the dreams the King of Kings placed inside your heart. If he can do this he can stall the purposes of God for His people here on earth. One of his greatest weapons is lies. But we can choose to “… surrender to God. Stand up to the devil and resist him and he will turn and run away from you.” _{James 4:7 TPT}

Jesus was not a weak man, y’all. Not in any way.

• He was emotionally strong. He stood up to others and for others. He took a whole lot of dirt cast at him and stood in who He KNEW he was. He was surrendered to God first!
• He was spiritually strong. I mean, he fasted for forty days and resisted the temptation of the enemy in the wilderness.
• He was also physically strong. He endured torture beyond what most of us could even begin to imagine…and lived through it to the appointed time of his death.

Yeah, but he was Jesus!! Yes, he was and is. But he came to earth as fully man! He learned to surrender to God as a man. He learned to stand up to the devil as a man. He learned to resist him as a man. WHY? So you and I could do the same thing. We resist with THE TRUTH! We resist by using the truth of God’s Word, our sword! Know your weapon and practice using it.

Resistance is NOT futile! The principle of resistance is simple. I could give you the definitions listed in the dictionary: 1) the refusal to accept or comply with something; 2) the ability not to be affected by something, especially adversely…along with several others listed. But what I want to share with you today is this word-PRACTICE!

I recently told a family member that God consistently provided opportunities for me to face the very things I struggled with the most. In other words, he presented moments for me to practice resistance. In the physical, resistance training is based on the principle that muscles of the body will work to overcome a resistance force when they are required to do so. When you do resistance training repeatedly and consistently, your muscles become stronger. _{(https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/resistance-training-health-benefits)}

The year I wrote my book I sat at a desk much of the time. I had hurt my knee and my physical activity was limited to walking around the block a few times. I lost muscle strength, was achy, my shoulders and elbows hurt so badly I could not lift my large cast iron skillet without using both hands. About four months ago I joined CrossFit. Trust me, my body resisted. But my mind resisted my body and I have persevered. After four months I am still at the back of the pack, but I can pick up both my cast iron skillets at the same time. I’m trying new things and the fear which seems to attack me so often is being defeated more everyday. CrossFIt has provided me the opportunity to practice resistance not only physically, but emotionally, and spiritually as well.

This girl has been released to fly! And that cage of fear gets broken into smaller pieces every day. Every day, when God gives me the opportunity to surrender to HIS will for my life, when I submit myself to Him and I resist the enemy, I see the backside of the lying good for nothing devil running in the other direction. But we can’t let our guard down. We must continue to practice surrender and resistance.

And it’s okay to sing a victory song every so often. King David wrote several that were pretty good.

With God’s help we will fight like heroes
and he will trample down our every foe!

Psalm 60:12

push back our enemies;
through your name we trample our foes.
I do not trust, in my bow,
my sword does not bring me victory;
but you give us victory over our enemies,
you put our adversaries to shame. (Psalm 44:10-12)

May He give you the desires of your heart
and make all your plans succeed.
May we shout for joy at your victory
and raise a banner in the name of our God.
May the LORD grant all your petitions.
Now I know that the LORD saves His anointed;
He answers him from His holy heaven
with the saving power of His right hand.
Some trust in chariots and others in horses,
but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.
They collapse and fall,
but we rise up and stand firm. (Psalm 20 BSB)

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