Daily Devotional

Living on earth it is often easy to forget about higher things, heavenly things. We can get lost in the trivial, in our day-to-day lives, and focus only on what we can see with our own eyes. This verse reminds us, however, to be alert, that what we can perceive with our eyes is only part of the picture. Our true adversary is not our fellow man, but rather the powers of darkness that exist in the spiritual realm.

This verse has a few takeaways for me. First is that our fellow humans are not our enemy. As much as we like to make ourselves “enemies” for us to rally against, whether that be those that are politically different, physically different, racially different, or culturally different, none of them are our adversaries. Remember Jesus calls us to love one another, not fight one another.
Second, this verse reminds me that we are in a spiritual war. You don’t fight a spiritual war the same way we would fight a physical war. You don’t use guns, tanks, or bombs, you must use spiritual weaponry. What is our primary spiritual weapon you ask… its prayer. We need to be a praying people to fight our spiritual battles. Prayer drives the enemy away and binds the powers of darkness. God will do amazing things when His people come together in faith with the power of prayer.

Finally this verse reminds me that since our war is truly spiritual we know through God’s promise that He wins, and thus we do as well. The powers of darkness will win some battles, but remember this, they do NOT win the war. This should give us enormous confidence in our daily lives and allow us to live by faith knowing that our future is secure in God’s hands.
So remember to keep your eyes heavenward as you encounter various trials and tribulations for His name's sake, your struggle is not of this earth but in the spiritual realm. And through faith, prayer, and petition, with God’s strength you can overcome!

New King James Version (NKJV)Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.