SIGNS YOU ARE IN A SPIRITUAL BATTLE – 2
In my previous blog I explained two ways of knowing if we are being attacked spiritually. You know you are in a spiritual battle if a you are hit by a sudden, extreme barrage of various troubles, trials, difficulties and problems. You also know you are in a spiritual battle if strong temptation comes and doesn’t stop. Let’s look at 3 more signs.
- Hit with feelings of despair, darkness, fear, anxiety, etc. These things are common and many face them today. During our post-Covid times they are getting much worse. Mental illness is growing. Loneliness is a great problem for many. These are normal parts of life for everyone, but when they get really long or deep then look for Satan’s demons behind them. Elijah was hit with depression after a great spiritual victory (1 Kings 19). Our natural response is to blame others or circumstances for our emotional downs. Remember that it is Satan we are fighting and he man be behind these things. Fight him, don’t give in to feelings or circumstances. These attacks will come, and some are especially vulnerable to them.
When do you get ‘down’ or ‘moody’? What do you blame it on? Can you see Satan’s hand behind it? What should you do when these attacks start?
- Overwhelmed with condemnation and guilt. This attack can be very subtle and start small but gradually grow. That makes it harder to identify and fight off. If we are allowing sin in our life, even a ‘small’ sin that we are not dealing with, this attack will come. Sin separates us from God so we lose His peace and joy (Galatians 5:22-23). We throw ourselves into other activities and life gets very busy and hectic. A dark cloud of confusion and doubt grows over us. It follows us everywhere and won’t go away. God does not give us confusion but peace (1 Corinthians 14:33). If this sounds like what is happening to you, stir yourself to action and go on the attack. The best defense can be a good offense, so attack these feelings and guilts by praise, confession (1 John 1:9), recommitment, Bible reading and lots of prayer and praise. Accept His forgiveness ( Romans 8:1) and move ahead in service and fellowship. When His Spirit is quenched (1 Thessalonians 5:19) or grieved (Ephesians 4:30) we don’t feel His presence in life. Repent and be restored so you again have the joy of your salvation (Psalm 51:12).
Could you be going through this now, but keep too busy to realize it? Is there a sin in your life that you know shouldn’t be there, and you have given up battling it? Admit the sin and ask God to forgive you (1 John 1:9). Are you struggling with forgiving yourself for something in the past?
- Struggle with spiritual growth and feel spiritually dull. Worship, Bible reading, daily devotions, listening to sermons, even prayer feesl like chores you must push through: struggling with these are signs of a spiritual attack. We all have ups and downs, but prolonged times of spiritual dullness and lethargy are not normal for a child of God. It is natural to have ups and downs and go through times we don’t feel close to God and aren’t growing. Nothing grows all the time; everything grows in spurts. Our spiritual life goes in cycles as well, but when it hits bottom and stays there an extended time one thing to do is look for a spiritual attack. The solution is not to go to a different church, have an emotional experience or just quit trying. When attacked, fight back. Get back to the basics, even if it feels like a battle to do them (that’s because it IS a battle!). Read or listen to the Bible, pray, listen to praise music and have fellowship with other Christians. Ask them to pray for you, that can make a big difference (James 5:14).
How is your spiritual growth doing? Do you have an appetite to read the Bible and pray, to worship and have Christian fellowship? If not, what can you do to rekindle these in your life.
Keep these 5 signs of spiritual attacks in mind. The enemy loves surprise attacks and will cover his tracks so we don’t even realize it is his work. Learn to recognize his work in your life so you can quicker and better fight off his attacks. In the next blog we’ll look at our weapons and how to use them to win these spiritual battles. (January 29, 2024 Doylestown, PA)
cto Rev. Dr. JERRY SCHMOYER
Christian Training Organization
Jerry@ChristianTrainingOrganization.org
(India Outreach, Spiritual Warfare, Family Ministries, Counseling, World View)
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