The primary lesson being spiritual warfare. Spiritual warfare is something that often flies under the radar of the normal day Christian. The devil wants to be in power, he wants to have control of both the believers & nonbelievers lives. Here in the Asia Pacific Rim, the devil rules by fear. He works through the supernatural and holds many souls in captivity because of their recognition of his or his servants power. In the west- America- the Devil plays a different angle and pulls a magic trick greater than any stage magician. He disappears from our minds, and subtly influences our lives, keeping people in sin and in blame towards the brokenness of this world. His goal is to steal, kill, and destroy. He wants to steal away your life day by day. Kill your joy, praise, and obedience. And destroy your effectiveness as a Christian in the short life we have on this earth. He does this by twisting or hearts with pride, fear, and selfishness. If we let the enemy do this, we will be ineffective.
We have a mission, we have been drafted into the Army of God, and we are on the front lines right now. We must open our eyes to the enemy and start confronting him. We must recognize the victory we have in Christ and rebuke the devil’s attempts to try and sabotage our lives. Get on the battlefield! Start fighting the extremely real forces that are holding these very lost people in bondage through get on the battlefield! Start fighting the extremely real forces that are holding these very lost people in bondage through (1) Intentional prayer & (2) Going into these areas, proclaiming the news of absolute victory that no force, enemy, or prince of hell can ever quench. Get in the fight, start moving forward, and let the gospel of victory be proclaimed.
My mind snaps back to the week ahead. The island approaching.
-Joel
NT365 Gap Year Participant