Be Alert
Recently, I experienced some spiritual warfare, but I didn’t recognize it as such. Normally, it’s not hard to spot, but this time…I didn’t see it coming. The Lord has given me some amazing opportunities lately to minister to others and I should have known that a counterattack was on its way, but still…I wasn’t ready.
It began with a series conflicts—home, on the job at school, relationships, etc, one right after the other. The resolutions in these situations seemed difficult and uncertain and frankly in some circumstances impossible, and they created a great deal of stress, but it was a few days into this that the enemy really amped it up. Suddenly, feelings of worthlessness settled in—scrutiny over my weight, my appearance, and even thoughts like this: “No one cares about you. No one cares if you show up here or there. You’re bad at your job…” Let me be clear, these are not thoughts I struggle with on a daily basis and not even necessarily things that I believe about myself, but they were so heavy and so thick and so constant that, truly, they gradually became believable.
Then one night in particular, after several days of this, tired and stressed and battling a migraine, I took my migraine medication and went to bed. Normally, taking my medication and sleeping works to alleviate the migraine, but that night I woke up a little after midnight and my migraine was actually worse. I felt nauseous and all I could think was, “I have to go back to sleep. I need sleep.” And I did fall back asleep.
I didn’t wake up again until 5am the next morning when my alarm went off. As I lay there, I realized something. I was at total and complete peace. I felt light. My migraine was gone; my mind was clear, my heart was clear, everything inside of me and outside of me felt fresh and new—like the weight of the world had been lifted.
I lay there shocked and surprised…how was this possible? I had been so stressed and had even dreaded getting up a couple of mornings in the midst of this and couldn’t handle the thought of facing the day… And I heard so very clearly from the Holy Spirit: “Someone prayed for you.” And there was an absolute and firm understanding in my spirit that at some point between a little after midnight and 5am, someone had interceded on my behalf. WOW! Suddenly everything was back into perspective, like my vision had been restored…and I realized the unresolvable conflicts, the heavy thoughts and feelings, were all attacks, tactics of the enemy.
Ephesians 6:12,13 says: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.”
And the apostle Paul advises in Ephesians 6:18: “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.”
Today, let’s work on being alert; let’s remember that we have a very real enemy trying to take us out so we must walk in our armor every day—every hour, every minute! Let’s not forget to stand firm in God’s truth, and let’s make sure to do what Paul advises us to do and always keep on praying for each other.
Katie Botello
FBC Aztec Member