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“Peace I leave with you.  My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives.  Don’t let your heart be troubled and fearful.” John 14:27 CSB

Today we begin a five day look at fear.  As I searched for scripture, this one jumped off the page at me with its beauty and elegance.  I am craving peace right now, there is an area of my life where satan is trying to steal my joy, but I’m holding onto my peace in Jesus.  I refuse to give him a foothold in my life. God is refining me in the process, already, I’m learning God wants me to surrender. He wants me to trust Him.  It’s an area of my life I have come to love dearly, and God is asking me to give it to Him. You would think that would be easy, because after all, it came from God.  But if I’m completely honest, I don’t trust God with it. I’m having an Abraham and Isaac moment in my life.

We meet Abraham in the book of Genesis.  He is the “father of many nations” (Genesis 17:5).  Abraham and his wife Sarah didn’t have a child together until they were close to a 100.  When they did, his name was Isaac. Isaac is who God was going to create many nations from for Abraham.  In other words, Isaac was destined to have lots of kids. There’s only one problem, God commands Abraham to sacrifice Isaac to Him.  Back in those days, they did a lot of animal sacrifices in their worship of God. Now God is upping the stakes, He’s asking Abraham to sacrifice his son.  He’s asking him, do you trust me enough to give up the one person you love most in this world. And Abraham does it, well, he intended to do it. He takes Isaac to where the Lord tells him too, he gets him on the altar and he raises the knife (Genesis 22:1-19 CSB). Then the angel of the Lord stops him.  God found out what He wanted to know. I love the beauty of this scripture: “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”  God found out he came first in Abraham’s heart, that is what God needed to know.

Sometimes the thing we fear most in life is losing what we love most.  When we have Abraham and Isaac moments that is what God is asking: What do you fear most?  Do you fear losing whatever it is you love most or do you fear God? Another way to ask the questions is, “Do you trust God with the people and things you love most?  Do you truly think He has their best interest at heart, even more than you do? Because that is what it is when we fear God. I can guarantee you, I do not want to face the wrath of God.  Just read the Old Testament, that doesn’t end well. But obeying Him, putting Him first, trusting Him. That I can do and want to do, in all things. Then I will have His peace.

Let’s pray:

Lord, we crave Your peace.  In this world there are so many things that try to steal it from us.  There are so many things that try to trouble our hearts and make us fearful.  Fill us Lord with the peace that surpasses all understanding. A peace not as the world gives, but only as You can give. (John 14:27 CSB).  In Jesus name we pray. Amen

“Pride comes before destruction, and an arrogant spirit before a fall.”  Proverbs 16:18 CSB

I have to share a secret with all of you, writing about pride is not easy.  At least it’s not for me, because it is like shining a flashlight into my heart; areas of pride have crept out that I didn’t know I had. Lord have mercy! I’ve heard pastors say it often in sermons, they are preaching to themselves more than they are anyone else.  I now know they are telling the truth. Since I started writing these devotionals, it has grown me in ways I can’t even put into words.

Pride goes before a fall is a phrase you will hear come out of my lips often.  Especially on the tennis court. It usually happens right after I hit a great shot, typically the next one is a flop.  My pride gets in the way. I hit one good, down the line shot and I think I’m Martina Navratilova. But tennis is what helps me most with my pride.  For instance, I hate to lose. In tennis, you lose at some point. I have to work on being a good loser. I have come a long way from where I used to be, but I still need work.  Thankfully, God sent me help.

My husband, Ron, is the best sportsman I know.  I know that is biased, but for those of you who know him, I’d bet you would agree.  But don’t take my word for it, take the word of the opposing team. Last night my husband’s tennis team, which he captains lost their tennis match.  In a USTA match, like this was, there are two singles matches and 3 doubles matches. Whoever wins three out of five matches wins the entire match. Ron, had finished his match and we were waiting as the other guys finished theirs.  One of the doubles matches finished, as the guys were walking off the court one of the opposing team members caught Ron’s eye and said: “Your team is the best sportsmen I’ve ever played against. You don’t find it that often.” My husband brushed it off as nothing, but I am a proud wife.

And we’re right back to where we started.  Do you see how that works? Pride is around every corner.  I am proud that I’m married to a man that not only is a good sportsman, but leads other men to be good sportsmen.  But he doesn’t even know he does it. He’s not proud or arrogant about it, he’s just honest. He gives others credit when they deserve it, he gives himself credit when he’s done something right, but he has a unique way of not being prideful about it.  I don’t know the secret in his sauce yet, but I’m learning. I’m praying God will give us many more years together for me to figure it out. But there is this one truth, pride goes before a fall. My husband knows it and I’m still learning it.

Let’s work on it together with this prayer:

Lord, pride does come before destruction.  Arrogance does cause us to fall. Help us today learn to be good sportsmen.  Don’t let our pride trip us up today or ever. Keep us hungry, keep us humble, keep us focused on You. (Proverbs 16:18 CSB).  In Jesus Name we pray. Amen

“For a day belonging to the Lord of Armies is coming against all that is proud and lofty, against all that is lifted up, it will be humbled.” Isaiah 2:12 CSB

Pete Rose is a legend in baseball.  He holds records for the most hits (4,256), games played (3,562), at bats (14,053), singles (3,215) and outs (10,328).  He won three World Series rings, three batting titles, one Most Valuable Player Award, two Gold Gloves, and the Rookie of the Year Award.  He played in 17 All-Star games in an unequaled five positions (second baseman, left fielder, right fielder, third baseman and first baseman).  Pete Rose knows baseball, and he is proud of his record. Unfortunately, he is permanently ineligible from baseball, he cannot be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame because his pride got the best of him.

When Pete retired from baseball, he became a manager of the Cincinnati Reds from 1984 to 1989.  During that time, he bet on his team, which is illegal in baseball. He denied the allegations until factual evidence was presented in court.  Bart Giamatti the new Commissioner of Baseball was tasked with handling the case. Once the facts were made public, Rose finally confessed to what he had done.  Giamatti announced Rose’s suspension and vehemently stated, “There is absolutely no deal for reinstatement.” Eight days after Giamatti made this announcement, only serving seven months as Commissioner of Baseball, he died suddenly of a heart attack.  The only man Pete Rose could appeal for reinstatement to baseball died. As a result of his ban, Rose cannot enter the Great American Ball Park, home to the Cincinnati Reds since 2003. It sits on a road way named after him, yet Rose can’t enter its doors.

God humbles the proud.

Rose now lives in Las Vegas.  I recently listened to an interview with him conducted by a pastor I follow. He is still a proud man, but he is banned forever from the sport he loves.  In the interview he talked about how the one man he could appeal to died. He has no way of ever being allowed into the game again. He has learned to accept this in his life, but yet, there is a sadness that someone who gave so much to the game could be humbled in such a unique way.  If Giamatti hadn’t died, Pete Rose may have eventually worn him down. He may have been able to find his way back to his love. Instead, it led him to a church, just off the strip in Vegas where he had the opportunity to meet Jesus.

God humbles the proud, against all that is lifted up, it will be humbled.  We don’t have to hold records in baseball to be proud. Pride comes in many different shapes and forms, but humility is where we meet Jesus.  Jesus suffered humility for us on the cross so that we can have a life with Him.

Let’s not take that for granted today as we pray:

Lord,  You oppose the proud.  What is lifted up will be humbled.  Help us today to let go of our pride, to seek You and Your will instead.  Help us not be blinded by our successes, but in all things, give glory to You (Isaiah 12:2 CSB).  In Jesus name we pray. Amen

“When arrogance comes, disgrace follows, but with humility comes wisdom.”  Proverbs 11:2 CSB

Arrogance is synonymous with pride.  This little story I found sums it up well:

God was once approached by a scientist who said, “Listen God, we’ve decided we don’t need you anymore. These days we can clone people, transplant organs and do all sorts of things that used to be considered miraculous.”

God replied, “Don’t need me huh? How about we put your theory to the test. Why don’t we have a competition to see who can make a human being, say, a male human being.”

The scientist agrees, so God declares that they should do it like he did in the good old days when he created Adam.

“Fine” says the scientist as he bends down to scoop up a handful of dirt.”

“Whoa!” says God, shaking his head in disapproval. “Not so fast. You get your own dirt.”

Isn’t it true?  We don’t think we need God, until we do.  When life is going great, bills are paid, kids are good, spouse is happy, we don’t think we need God.  We become arrogant without even realizing it. Until something happens, then we need Him. We need His dirt to fix our mess.  And we have to ask for it. We have to humble ourselves before Him and confess, we can’t do it without Him. Living in America, the land of plenty, it can be even harder to recognize our need for Him.  But we need Him as much today as we ever did.

I’ve always said, when things are going well, that’s when it’s harder to cling to God.  We get caught up in the moment, letting it sweep us away. We can lose sight of who it was who brought us to the dance.  We wouldn’t be here if God hadn’t created us. This life we have, it’s from Him. He created us, He provides for us, He has plans for us.  We may think we’re doing it on our own, but we’re not. He’s doing it for us. God is a gentleman though, He’s happy to let us go our own way, do our own thing.  Thankfully, when we fall, He’s always there to pick us back up, brush us off and help us get going again. God isn’t selfish with His dirt, if we only ask.

Let’s ask today:

Lord, we’re sorry for our arrogance.  We’re sorry for the times we lose sight of who our true dance partner is in life, You.  Help us to remain hungry for Your word, let it keep us humble in Your sight. Let our humility bring us Your wisdom. (Proverbs 11:2 CSB).  In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

“This is what the Lord says: The wise person should not boast  in his wisdom; the strong should not boast in his strength; the wealthy should not boast in his wealth.”  Jeremiah 9:23

Have you noticed in every romantic comedy there is always the rich, annoying guy who loves to brag about all he has?  Typically he was born into money, has never worked a day in his life and is proud of it. He always tends to be shallow in his relationships, only having them with other rich and beautiful people.  Of course the girl is usually engaged to him, but then her knight in shining armor shows up on a lawn mower (referring to the 1987 classic, “Can’t Buy Me Love” with Patrick Dempsey). That is exactly what God is telling us not to do, even if we have it, we’re not to boast about it.  

We aren’t to boast about our wisdom, our strength or our wealth for one simple reason:  whatever we have, it’s all because of the Lord. None of us can do it without Him. As Job so eloquently put it, the Lord gives and the Lord takes away (Job 1:21 NIV).  When we do boast, we are being prideful. We are forgetting the source of our blessings, we’re not giving credit where credit is deserved. If we’re going to boast, this is what we need to boast about: “But the one who boasts should boast in this: that he understands and knows Me, that I Am the Lord, showing faithful love, justice and righteousness on the earth, for I delight in these things.  This is the Lord’s declaration” (Jeremiah 9:24 CSB).

According to these verses, this is the key to overcoming pride.  Instead of boasting in ourselves, boast in the Lord. Boast in what He has done for us.  When we are prideful we forget the Who in the how, then we’re in for a fall. As Solomon informed us in Proverbs, pride goeth before a fall (Proverbs 16:18 CSB).  As we talked about yesterday, pride is deceitful, we are easily misled by it. When we boast, we need to make sure we’re boasting about the right thing. We need to make sure we’re  boasting about God.

Let’s start with this prayer:

Lord, help us only boast in You.  We’re grateful for the wisdom You have given us, the strength You have given us, the wealth You have given us.  All that we have, all that we are is because of You. Forgive us when we forget that. Forgive us when we boast in ourselves.  Remind us that our blessings come from You. (Jeremiah 9:23 CSB). In Jesus name we pray. Amen

“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you.” James 4:10

Pride: Inordinate self-esteem; an unreasonable conceit of one’s own superiority in talents, beauty, wealth, accomplishments, rank or elevation in office, which manifests itself in lofty airs, distance, reserve, and often in contempt of others.  That is how Webster’s Dictionary of 1828 describes pride. Meet my thorn in the side. The closer I grow to God, the more I realize how prideful I am. The more I realize how pride is a struggle we all have, the more I have come to realize, pride is at the root of a lot of our emotions and our circumstances.

In an article titled, “Seven Subtle Symptoms of Pride” by Fabienne Harford, she gives some helpful clues to identify pride in our lives.  Pride finds fault, instead of looking for God’s goodness in people, we focus on their human weaknesses. We find fault instead of good. Pride has a harsh spirit.  Harford defines it as speaking of others sins with contempt, irritation, frustration or judgement. Pride is superficial, pride gets caught up worrying about what others think of us instead of what God thinks.  Pride is defensive, we try to protect ourselves in our pride by justifying it. Pride is presumptuous before God, we forget what He has done for us, we doubt God’s power, instead we focus on ourselves.  When we are presumptuous before God, we think His grace isn’t large enough for our sin. Pride wants attention, craves attention, is desperate for it. When we do this, we’re seeking the glory that comes from men instead of God.  Lastly, pride prefers some people over others. We want to make sure we’re sitting at the right table, with the right people instead of in a corner where no one notices.

Humility is the answer.  As James says, if we humble ourselves before the Lord, He does the exalting.  He’ll lift us up higher than we ever thought we could go. But in order to humble ourselves, we have to confess our pride.  We have to acknowledge that we are prideful, then confess it to God. He’ll do the work in our hearts to rid us of pride, but it won’t be easy. Pride is hard because it’s hard to identify, it’s deceitful.  Understanding that we all struggle with it, looking for its tell tale signs, then confessing it is not easy. It takes being honest with ourselves about whatever situations we are dealing with, then identifying the pride within it.  That’s tough stuff. But thankfully we have a God who understands our prideful hearts and helps us deal with it.

Let’s start today with this prayer:

“Lord, help us humble ourselves before You.  Help us identify areas of pride in our lives and confess them to You.  If we are to be exalted, let You do the exalting, not us. Forgive us our pride Lord, help us with our humility (James 4:10 CSB).  In Jesus name we pray. Amen

“You have clothed me with strength for the battle, you subdue my adversaries beneath me.” Psalm 18: 39 CSB

We’ve spent the last few days talking about strongholds, type of strongholds, overcoming strongholds.  Tomorrow we’re going to start looking at pride and how it affects our lives. But for today, as we finish our chat about strongholds, let’s remember, we’re already dressed for the battle.  God has given us everything we need to overcome our strongholds.

In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, he instructs them to put on the full armor of God.  It starts with the buckle of truth around our waist (Ephesians 6:14 NIV). As women, we all know the belt pulls the outfit together.  It’s no different with the Armor of God. The belt of truth is what every other piece of armor attaches too. It is the truth that will set you free from any stronghold.  It is the truth that will hold you firm in the midst of battle. Without truth, the rest is useless. The truth is found in Jesus. Jesus came to tell the truth, and to help us find it, everyone on the side of truth listens to Him (John 18:37 NIV).  Through the truth of Jesus you can put on the breastplate of righteousness to guard your heart from attack (Eph. 6:14). On your feet, we are to wear the gospel of peace (Eph. 6:15 NIV). Wherever we go, we are to take peace with you us. Lead with grace in all we do.

God has given us a shield of faith to extinguish the darts the devil sends our way (Eph. 6:16  NIV). All of the lies that the world tries to make us believe can be extinguished with the shield of faith.  Belief that God does have a plan for your life, that He has a purpose for your life, that you’re valuable and needed.  When we truly begin to grasp how “fearfully and wonderfully made” we are our faith takes root and begins to flourish (Psalm 139:14 NIV).  The fiery darts of the devil become ineffective. And we top it all off with the helmet of Salvation, pair it with the sword of the Spirit (the word of God), and we are dressed for battle (Eph. 6:17 NIV).  God has already dressed us for the battle. All we need to overcome our strongholds, we already possess. And it all starts with truth.

The last thing Paul instructs us to do when putting on the Armor of God is pray.  Let’s do that now:

Lord, thank you for already clothing us for battle.  Thank you for subduing our adversaries and helping us achieve victory.  As we put on Your armor today, help us be rooted in truth. Help us carry our shields of faith strongly into battle, bringing peace where there was none.  Let us wear our armor well, in love always (Psalm 18:39, Eph. 6:14-17 NIV). In Jesus name we pray. Amen

“Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of eternal life to which you were called and about which you have made a good confession in the presence of many witnesses” 1 Timothy 6:12 CSB

In order to overcome strongholds in our lives, a vital part of it is confession.  But in order to confess what our strongholds are, we have to identify them. That can be difficult.  Often, strongholds live in our blindspot. Blind spots are areas of lives we can’t see. Typically, those around us can see it, but we can’t.

Recently I listened to an interview with Darrin Patrick.  Darrin was at one point, the chaplain for the St. Louis Cardinals.  He lead a large, multi-site church in St. Louis. Darrin was fired three years ago for abuse of power and an emotional affair he had with another woman.  In the past three years, he has been going through a restoration process. As part of the restoration, people who had been on staff, ex-members, elders, anyone who had interacted with him at various points during his tenure as Lead Pastor were encouraged to come and have a “safe” conversation with him, meaning he had to listen to how he made them feel without responding.  Many people signed up for the opportunity, it took over 2 days for it to occur. During the first day, he listened to many people say they felt used, felt like a pawn, didn’t feel connected etc. At the end of the first day, he told his wife, “These people are so sensitive. What is wrong with them?” Then the second day started. The first person came in and said they felt used, not connected.  The next person came in saying the same thing. It was then he realized, “It’s me.” He realized, for years he had not seen the truth about himself, although a lot of people had tried to speak truth into his life. This was a pivotal moment in his life where God revealed to him a blindspot he did not know he had.

We all have them, Darrin is not alone.  Darrin is continuing the restoration process, his walk with God closer than ever as a result of seeing his blindspot.  One of the toughest prayers to pray is, “Lord, reveal my blindspots.” It is hard to take a look in the mirror and realize, the person who is causing the problem is me.  It is hard taking responsibility for our actions. It is hard admitting, “Yes, I did that.” But it is worth it. It frees us from the stronghold. It gives us new life in Jesus like we have never known before.  I loved what Darrin said towards the end of the interview. His wife and him have been married 26 years. He said their marriage and his relationship with his children is better than it ever has been. He realizes, if God hadn’t revealed his blindspot to him, it wouldn’t be.  He had lost focus of what was important, God helped him find it again.

He can do the same for us, as he reveals our blindspots.  Let’s start today:

“Lord, we want to fight the good fight for You.  We want to be all in, nothing holding us back. Help us see our blindspots so we can confess them, so we can overcome them.  So we can fight the good fight and take hold of the eternal life we were called too (1 Timothy 6:12 CSB). We can’t do it without You Lord, only with You.  In Jesus name we pray. Amen

“Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good.”  Romans 12:21 CSB

Strongholds can easily be considered evil, they prevent us from living our lives to the fullest.  For instance, envy can be a stronghold. I heard a life changing message years ago from Andy Stanley that helped me identify it in my own life.  As Andy said in his message, when we use the term “must be nice”, it’s a sign of envy. For example, if you hear someone is going on a dream vacation, if the thought, “Must be nice” pops into your head, it’s a sure sign of envy.  It is hard to not be envious in this world, but we can overcome our envy with good. We can be excited that they have the opportunity to go on the trip. We can be joyful for them and overcome our envy with goodness.

It’s a struggle for sure.  When I was single and everyone else was getting married, there were a lot of “must be nice” thoughts that ran through my head.  Must be nice to be getting married. Must be nice to have someone to do life with every day. Must be nice to have two salaries instead of one.  Must be nice. If you’re battling health issues, it’s easy to be envious of those with good health. If you’re unemployed, it’s easy to be envious of those with jobs.  Envy is a stronghold we all struggle with to some extent. It’s hard to identify because it’s subtle, but if you start becoming aware of the “Must be nice” statement in your vocabulary, it will help you identify areas that it may be a stronghold for you.  It definitely helps me spot it in my own life.

There is one sure fire way to overcome envy in our lives.  It can help us break down any strongholds we are struggling with today.  It is love. Paul tells us in his first letter to the Corinthians, “Love is patient, love is kind.  It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud” (13:4 NIV). Love is the first step in overcoming any kind of stronghold.  In his letter to the Galatians, Paul talks about the Fruit of the Spirit. We receive it when we place our faith in Jesus and let His Holy Spirit work in our lives.  They are “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law” (Galatians 5:22-23). Again, it all starts with love.  When we want to break down strongholds, these are the weapons to do it with one day at a time, starting with love.

Let’s put love first today with this prayer:

Lord, thank You for helping us understand the power of love in our lives.  Help us to apply it to the strongholds in our life. Let us not be conquered by them, but instead, let us conquer them with love (Romans 12:21 CSB).  As we move through our day today, help us apply the fruits of Your Spirit to our lives, help us start with love. In Jesus Name we pray. Amen

“He is my faithful love and my fortress; my stronghold and my deliverer.  He is my shield, and I take refuge in Him, He subdues my people under me.” Psalm 144:2 CSB

This is King David’s prayer.  God did subdue David’s people under him and give him victory over his enemies.  There is story after story of this in the Old Testament. Starting with the infamous battle with Goliath, to whom he declared these words:  “but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty,” moments before sinking a rock into his head, thus saving the day  (1 Samuel 17:45 NIV). David knew how to face adversity in life, he chose the right stronghold, he chose the Lord.

Recently, I was watching the movie “Bagger Vance”. It’s about a hometown golfer, Junuh, whose life has been put on hold because of his time spent at war.  The story shows how he finds his way back to living again in depression era 1931. It’s told from the perspective of his young caddy, Hardy. Hardy’s father has lost his business, as a result, he becomes a street sweeper to support his family.  Seeing his father sweeping the streets while walking with his friends, Hardy acts like he doesn’t know him. He’s embarrassed at what his father does for a living; he doesn’t want his friends to know.

As the friendship develops between these unlikely friends, one of my favorite scenes in the movie happens.  Junuh is preparing for his next round of golf in the locker room, Hardy by his side as he laces up his shoes.  Hardy is sharing with him how embarrassed he is because of what his father does. This doesn’t sit well with Junuh.  He promptly informs Hardy how his father is the only man in town that paid off his debts. While all of Hardy’s friends fathers filed bankruptcy, his father found a way to pay off his debts and support his family.  My all time favorite line is when Junuh parts this wisdom to his young friend.:

“Your Daddy stared adversity in the eye Hardy, and he beat it back with a broom!”

Sometimes, that is exactly how we beat adversity, with a broom.  We thank God for what we do have, we don’t focus on what we don’t have.  We pick up a broom and go to work. In David’s case, he picked up five stones, but he only needed one.  Both these men show faith in action. They trusted the Lord with their lives. They looked around at what he had provided for them to use.  Then they went to work. They stared adversity in the eye, and they beat it back with the help of God. They knew the right stronghold to choose.

Let’s do the same:

Lord, You are our faithful love and fortress.  Our stronghold and deliverer. You are our shield, our place of refuge.  Whatever adversity we are facing, whatever stronghold we’re trying to overcome, help us do it through You.  As you did with David, do with us. ( Psalm 144:2 CSB). In Jesus name we pray. Amen