Do You Stand Up For Yourself?

For a long time, I thought standing up for myself just meant standing up to other people or standing up for what I believed to be right. Recently, however, my thought was challenged. We are usually quick to stand up to other people or society, but how often do we stand up against our own enemy?

The real enemy lives in our mind. The same one who encouraged Eve to eat the apple in the garden of Eden talks to us every day. How many times a day are we encouraged to do something that goes against our hopes and dreams, and the life we want to live? 

Every morning, I am encouraged to snooze. Just ten more minutes, I always think. Then instead of reading my Bible and spending my time with God, the enemy encourages me to check my emails, Facebook messages, and notifications. If I’m not aware of what is happening, I will be distracted from what is important to me. According to my thoughts, I am always too sleepy or tired to exercise, and my body always needs sugar and potato chips. When it comes time to write, I suddenly need to clean my house. And I never feel worthy or good enough to write or do God’s work. 

Sometimes we just need to stop and evaluate our lives. Who is in control? Who is leading us every day? Are we listening to the voice of our enemy or the voice of our Lord?

The enemy is constantly putting distractions in our life. He wants us to sabotage ourselves because he can’t make us do anything. He might be able to encourage us to do it, but he can’t make us do it. We need to remember that. And when he becomes relentless in his temptations and distractions, then we need to tell the Lord on him and ask God to help us overcome him.

We are all stronger than our excuses and temptations. This is our life! Are we going to allow the enemy to take it from us or are we going to fight against him? The first step for me is recognizing him. Once I know it’s the enemy, then I can ask God to help me to defeat him. Standing up for ourselves, against the enemy, is not easy.  Sometimes it’s really hard. The more we do it, however, the easier it will become. Every time we stand against the enemy and defeat him, it sets up a stone of remembrance for us. Our enemy is not able to overcome our Lord. When our strength falters, His strength begins. He is the One who ultimately stands up for us. The first step, however, is ours. 

Today, we need to decide who are we are going to live for and then make our daily choices based on that decision. Yes, it will be hard. But it will also be so worth it. 

Love and blessings, 

Candida